Richard Brautigan Poem Inspires BBC Documentary Series June 23, 2011: As Ron Silliman pointed out yesterday, a new documentary series has been developed by the BBC (created by filmmaker Adam Curtis) titled after a Richard Brautigan poem, "All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace." Written in 1968 and reprinted in The Pill versus The Springhill Mine Disaster, the poem serves in this instance to encapsulate [...] by Harriet Staff

Mexican President Felipe Calderon to Meet with Javier Sicilia Today June 23, 2011: Mexican president Felipe Calderon has agreed to meet with poet and activist Javier Sicilia, reports CNN. Sicilia, whose son was killed in March, has dedicated the last four months to a widespread movement demanding an overhaul in the handling of the government's war on drugs. The poet will meet Calderon and several members of his Cabinet today at [...] by Harriet Staff

Jackson Mac Low Reads Tender Buttons June 22, 2011: Speaking of Jackson Mac Low, Jacket2 has just posted a newly available recording of the poet reading from Gertrude Stein's Tender Buttons (for seven minutes!). Al Filreis also writes: "You'll hear the voice of Charles Bernstein as he and others (members of Bernstein's class at Buffalo at the time) scramble to find a copy of the Stein. Then Mac [...] by Harriet Staff

Keanu Reeves’ First Book of Poetry. Finally. June 22, 2011: The description of the book, from Alexandra Grant's website: Ode to Happiness is a grown-up’s picture book. Featuring artwork by artist Alexandra Grant and text by actor Keanu Reeves, this thoughtfully crafted artist’s book serves as a meditation on making the best of a bad situation. In the tradition of a classic “hurtin’ song,” [...] by Harriet Staff

DownTown Ensemble to Perform Sound/Text Pieces by Jackson Mac Low, Anne Tardos, Robert Ashley and More June 22, 2011: If you're in New York this week, you might want to check out the DownTown Ensemble at Issue Project Room tomorrow night. Having just performed up in Hudson on Friday, the group comprises musicians working with text and sound--they'll perform pieces by Robert Ashley, Daniel Goode, Richard Kostelanetz, Jackson Mac Low and Anne Tardos, according to [...] by Harriet Staff

Mountain Goats’ John Darnielle Shares Draft of “Dance Music” June 22, 2011: Over at The Atlantic, John Darnielle, the mind and voice behind Mountain Goats, who we've reported on not once but twice, shares a draft of "Dance Music" while discussing the process and personal details involved in the writing of the song. From the transcript, as told to Alex Hoyt: The record I listened to when I was five—the first [...] by Harriet Staff

James Franco’s Hart Crane Experiment Tests Patience of LA Film Fest Audience June 22, 2011: The reviews are in! It's graphic and messy! After the Los Angeles Film Festival premiere of The Broken Tower, James Franco's "small, experimental film" about the life of poet Hart Crane, Franco set up a talkback, billed as "An Evening with James Franco." Apparently the audience had just undergone somewhat of an endurance challenge, and maybe even [...] by Harriet Staff

The Poet and the Means of Production June 22, 2011: For a brief period, around 1992, I brewed beer, which in retrospect amazes me, because I’m not a handy fella, nor do I like to cook, and but for the fact the end product was 5 gallons of delicious intoxicant, I wouldn’t today believe I undertook so labor-intensive a project. I mention this because it occasioned my first encounter with [...] by Garrett Caples

100 Thousand Poets for Change: September 24 June 22, 2011: Poets for change! In over 265 cities and 58 countries (that's so far), poets are organizing events, demonstrations, and workshops for September 24, 2011, under the hopeful eyes of poet and editor Michael Rothenberg, "as part of a global initiative to celebrate/demonstrate poetry and address issues of peace and sustainability." The concept of the [...] by Harriet Staff

100K Kingsley Tufts Poetry Prize Open to Submissions June 21, 2011: We wonder if you heard? The Los Angeles Times reported yesterday that Yale just created a literary prize aimed at becoming one of the country's most significant, awarding creative writers $150,000 (that's for fiction, nonfiction, and plays), and partly named for Donald Windham. Interestingly, though it's sponsored by a university: There will [...] by Harriet Staff