BAY AREA WRITERS ARCHIVES
Donation protected
Back in 1976/1977, I taught a class called "Bay Area Writers" at a new experimental college north of San Francisco, called Indian Valley Colleges. The campus--all redwood and glass--won an architectural award from Alan Temko of the SF Chronicle (who appears as a character in at least one of the Kerouac novels), We were filled with a lot of spirit and also, luckily, a lot of money.
My class came with funding attached so I was able to invite writers--Robert Duncan, Robert Creeley, Michael McClure, Jack Gilbert, Linda Gregg, Bobbie Louise Hawkins, JoAnne Kyger, Jack Micheline, and plenty more to class where they discussed their work, answered questions, and did readings of their work. These were wonderful evenings, filled with fine poetry and the generous spirits of these artists.
We videotaped the events and they have been sitting in boxes, old 3/4" "industrial" type video cassettes that are as outmoded as 8-track stereo cartridges, ever since.
Now, thanks to the magic technologies of reconnecting with people from one's past, it has come to pass that the original videographer can oversee transferring these tapes into a digital format which can then be duplicated on DVDs or stored on flash drives as well as uploaded to a dedicated youtube channel.
This task will require a modest amount of money to ship the tapes across country and to purchase the storage drives to transfer them on to.
I'm presenting this information so I can do a little crowdsourcing and ask that if there are those who would like to help make this happen, they can contribute a few dollars. The rewards will be the Youtube channel where you can watch Jack Micheline sing, "It's the dead that rule this world," watch Robert Duncan read, "My mother would be a falconress," watch Michael McClure tell the story of how he was inspired to write, "The Beard," and more. This project will present 18 iconic writers, associated with the San Francisco Bay Area, including dynamic readings of their works and candid discussions of their views, including insights into their creative processes.
My class came with funding attached so I was able to invite writers--Robert Duncan, Robert Creeley, Michael McClure, Jack Gilbert, Linda Gregg, Bobbie Louise Hawkins, JoAnne Kyger, Jack Micheline, and plenty more to class where they discussed their work, answered questions, and did readings of their work. These were wonderful evenings, filled with fine poetry and the generous spirits of these artists.
We videotaped the events and they have been sitting in boxes, old 3/4" "industrial" type video cassettes that are as outmoded as 8-track stereo cartridges, ever since.
Now, thanks to the magic technologies of reconnecting with people from one's past, it has come to pass that the original videographer can oversee transferring these tapes into a digital format which can then be duplicated on DVDs or stored on flash drives as well as uploaded to a dedicated youtube channel.
This task will require a modest amount of money to ship the tapes across country and to purchase the storage drives to transfer them on to.
I'm presenting this information so I can do a little crowdsourcing and ask that if there are those who would like to help make this happen, they can contribute a few dollars. The rewards will be the Youtube channel where you can watch Jack Micheline sing, "It's the dead that rule this world," watch Robert Duncan read, "My mother would be a falconress," watch Michael McClure tell the story of how he was inspired to write, "The Beard," and more. This project will present 18 iconic writers, associated with the San Francisco Bay Area, including dynamic readings of their works and candid discussions of their views, including insights into their creative processes.
Organizer
David Rollison
Organizer
Novato, CA
