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ONandOnScreen poems + videos WINTER 2012

ONandOnScreen
is pleased to announce its
fifth issue WINTER 2012.

Featuring Joanna Fuhrman, Jena Osman, Farid Matuk, Cara Baldwin, Wayne Kosetenbaum, Catherine Wagner, David Lehman, Kevin Killian, Matt Hart, Jared Stanley, Gabie Strong, Lytle Shaw, Leonard Gontarek, Adam Fitzgerald, Chris Girard, Mark So.

With bonus videos by Zoe Strauss, Emma Cocker,
Brendan Lorber, and mIEKAL aND.

ONandOnScreen is that conversation between moving words and moving images, on and on.

Edgar Allan Poe's "Dream-Land" on PoemTalk with McGann, Devaney, Timpane, & Filreis

Ill, Angelic Poetics (PoemTalk #48)
Edgar Allan Poe, "Dream-Land"
Hosted by Al Filreis

Featuring Jerome McGann, John Timpane,
and Thomas Devaney

PoemTalk is a podcast series co-published
at the Poetry Foundation and Jacket2.

“Dream-Land”

By a route obscure and lonely,
Haunted by ill angels only,
Where an Eidolon, named NIGHT,
On a black throne reigns upright,
I have reached these lands but newly
From an ultimate dim Thule—
From a wild clime that lieth, sublime,
Out of SPACE— out of TIME.

To read the full text of the poem and listen to the podcast click here: Ill, Angelic Poetics (PoemTalk #48)

OREGON AVE two photos by Zoe Struass and poem by Thomas Devaney

OREGON AVE
for Zoe Strauss

You can’t find a place to smoke anymore
Ro says, smoking and rifling
through her handbag looking for a number.
She sits in the backseat with Meg.
They’re not singing.
The ballgame’s on inside
and outside
the game is always on.
Actually, sometimes they do sing.
What year is the car, a ‘98?
A Ford? A Focus?
They always tip too.
There is dust, always; and terrible dirt;
but if that’s what you see you’re hardly looking.
They believe in the front stoop.
They believe the back of the Ford.
They believe that in the heat of day
shadows come back.
The trashcan on fire says things are hotting up.
The street’s a mix, water, water ice, LIVE CRABS,
jumbo jets, fire crackers.
Summer days are huge and often overlap late into fall.
Seriously, when you have a good spot, why move the car?

Our Emily Dickinson the blog and article

OUR EMILY DICKINSON the blog

The Our Emily Dickinson blog features a selection of work of students from Thomas Devaney’s Introduction to Creative Writing Poetry at Haverford College in the fall 2011. The project was designed as a meeting place between Emily Dickinson’s poems and their own work. After immersion in Dickinson's poetry, students responded by authoring poems influenced by her work.

An article about the project:
Emily Dickinson Inspires Class of New Poets

A poem after photo by Zoe Strauss at BOMBlog

My poem "The Blue Stoop"
published at BOMBlog’s
WORD CHOICE.
Photograph by Zoe Strauss

HOW WILL I FIND YOU?

HOW WILL I FIND YOU?

I AM WEARING A RED HAT SHE SAID.

I SAID OK—I'LL LOOK FOR YOU.

EACH RED HAT I SAW I SAW YOU.

THOSE HATS STOPPED ME.

AND MORE RED HATS.

YOU TEXTED I'M LATE.

YOU TEXTED I’M HERE NOW.

IT WAS WET, BUT NOT RAINING.

I AM HERE, I'M HERE YOU SAID.

STILL I COULDN'T SEE YOU.

A MAN TOLD ME TO GET JOB, YOU SAID.

AND WHAT DID YOU SAY?

JOBS COME AND GO BUT I HAVE SOMETHING ELSE TO DO,

THE WORK WE ARE IN.

IT IS GREAT AND IT IS REAL.

BUT IS IT ENOUGH?

YES IT IS.

BUT NO, IT ISN'T.

ENOUGH, ENOUGH.

YES, ENOUGH.

AND THEN ENOUGH, ENOUGH

COMING DOWN THE STREET.

Poem published at OCCUPY WRITERS. Photo by Brendan Lorber.

Louis McKee 1951-2011

GE Reutter asked me for a quote about Louis McKee for his obituary -- below is part of my comment about Lou:

"McKee was a poet who was able to capture the unexpected music of his working class Irish-Catholic world. Lou was mightily modest and mightily proud. He had a great ear and a great eye, but above all, he had a great heart.”

Read GE Reutter's full OBIT of Louis McKee at Northeast Philly.com

Louis McKee (born July 31, 1951, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) has been a fixture of the Philadelphia poetry scene since the early 70s. He is the author of Schuylkill County (Wampeter, 1982), The True Speed of Things (Slash & Burn, 1984), and fourteen other collections, including River Architecture: Poems from Here & There 1973-1993 (Cynic, 1999), Loose Change (Marsh River Editions, 2001), and a volume in the Pudding House Greatest Hits series.

Naomi Shihab Nye says, "Louis McKee is one of the truest hearts and voices in poetry we will ever be lucky to know."

McKee was a longtime editor of the Painted Bride Quarterly. During his tenure, he edited three special issues, celebrating the work of Etheridge Knight and John Logan, as well as a retrospective, 20th-anniversary volume of the PBQ. He was the publisher of Banshee Press and the magazine One Trick Pony.

Our Emily Dickinson — a reading Nov 17th

OUR EMILY DICKINSON
A Reading of Poetry by and inspired by Emily Dickinson
November 17, 8:00PM
Haverford College
Woodside Cottage Meditation Room
for more information see program link above.

Rachel Blau DuPlessis Conference at Temple University OCT 21, 2011

A Celebration
of the
Poetry and Criticism of
Rachel Blau DuPlessis

Featuring —

Rachel Blau DuPlessis,
Bob Perelman, Libbie Rifkin, Eric Keenaghan, Ron Silliman, Jena Osman, Brian Teare, and readings by alumni and members of the Philadelphia poetry community: Holly Bittner, CA Conrad,
Thomas Devaney, Sarah Dowling, Ryan Eckes, Lucia Gbaya-Kanga, Pattie McCarthy, Michelle Taransky, Heather Thomas, Kevin Varrone.

October 21, 2011 - 10 am to 5 pm -
1810 Liacouras Walk -Temple University, Main Campus

New poems & an interivew with Bill Berkson in ZOLAND POETRY

I have new poems in Zoland Poetry #5. They are "Darkroom Dairies" and "all day dance 1963." In the same issue I also have an interview with Bill Berkson entitled "The Education of Poetry."

Here is the opening/introduction of my Berkson interview:

That the critic and the poet should be the same person is not a surprise when it comes to the work of Bill Berkson. Both activities have fruitfully informed each other in the over five decades that comprise the poems in his new and selected Portrait and Dream (Coffee House Press, 2009). But what is surprising is how each poem and each essay continue to be so distinctively and affectionately rendered. In his “Critical Reflections” Berkson writes that he’s interested in “communicating the spontaneously dense, specific and often paradoxical events of consciousness in the face of contemporary works,” and that he desires “to tell the polymorphous story of the thing.”

Zoland Poetry : An annual of contemporary writing from around the globe, Zoland Poetry brings together original unpublished poems, translations into English, and interviews with featured poets. Published and edited by Roland Pease and issue #5 edited with Christopher Mattison.

Haverford grad Eve Gleichman wins Stony Brook Fiction Prize

Congratulations to Eve Gleichman for winning this year's Stony Brook Short Fiction Contest.

I am quoted about the prize and Gleichman's fiction below:

"Eve uses a minimal prose style to a quirky maximal effect... There is feeling of saturation via consumerism, brand names, and so-called 'new realities,' which are all matter-of-factly handled... Eve’s characters yearn for escape, yet they continue to perpetuate their own loneliness."

See articles on Gleichman here: Haverford College News
and The Village Patch

Philip Levine named U.S. Poet Laureate

The Philadelphia Inquirer quotes me on Philip Levine:

Tough yet tender poet
Philip Levine
is new U.S. laureate
August 11, 2011
By John Timpane,
Inquirer Staff Writer

Here is the paragraph from Timpane's article and my quote:

Philadelphia poet Tom Devaney says he clipped out "What Work Is" and "taped the poem onto my wall next to my desk. For Levine, work and love are the same subject. His poems are often about the working class, but the poems go further than that, illuminating work's greater meaning in all of our lives. His question of 'what work is' is a defining one, and one that reverberates poignantly in this American moment."

Harriet & the Poetry Foundation on ONandOnScreen's BOMB issue!

Harriet the Blog on

ONandOnScreen's
summer issue with BOMB MAG

From Harriet, the news blog
of the Poetry Foundation

ONandOnScreen Summer 2011 | BOMB Issue!

ONandOnScreen
Issue 4 | SUMMER 2011
BOMB Issue

ONandOnScreen is pleased to partner with BOMB Magazine on our summer issue, in a convergence of our shared projects exploring text and images.
Each week BOMBlog will highlight a new poem and video selection.

With work by:

Cedar Sigo
Elaine Equi
Susan Briante
Rosanna Bruno & Jeanine Oleson
Ernest Hilbert
Carter Ratcliff
Christina Davis
Kyle Schlesinger & Scott Stark
Joseph Massey
Matthew Zapruder
Jeannie Simms, Fiona Ng, Susie Hu & Miles

Thomas Devaney at PHILA POETRY FESTIVAL & the ICA's LAUNDRY BOAT APRIL 23, 2011

Featured poet

Philadelphia Poetry Festival
1 PM
Saturday April 23, 2011

Main Auditorium of Central Library

Parkway Central Free Library
1901 Vine Street
Philadelphia, PA

Admission is Free
The Festival runs from 12-5 PM

- and -
A Toast at the ICA
April 23, 2011
Thomas Devaney will make a toast
in honor of the Bateau Lavior
at 4:30 pm

Following the toast
Matthew Buckingham will present
Navigate the Streams:
From the Seine to the Hudson

In conjunction with the city-wide
Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA).

Institute of Contemporary Art
University of Pennsylvania
118 S. 36th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104

On Ross Gay's Bringing the Shovel Down

My book review of poet Ross Gay's
Bringing the Shovel Down

published in The Philadelphia Inquirer
Sunday April 17, 2011

La Belle Époch: Poetry from the Banquet Years

La Belle Epoch: Poetry from the Banquet Years
Thursday, April 14, 2011 at 6:00PM
Skyline Room | Admission is FREE

The Free Library and the city-wide the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA) present a lively evening of French poetry hosted by poet Thomas Devaney.

Local literary luminaries and Francophiles shine a spotlight on poetry in fin de siècle and early 20^th century Paris with readings from Rimbaud, Verlaine, Mallarmé, Valéry, Apollinaire, Stein, Jacob, Cendrars, Reverdy, Desnos, among others. Readers at the event will include Marcella Durand, Daniele Thomas Easton, Sueyeun Juliette Lee, Maud McInerney, Elizabeth Scanlon, Laura Spagnoli, and Seth Whidden.

The Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA)

Two poems in The Awl

Two New Poems in The Awl

The Death of Erik Satie & Baby Black Bear

For My Irish American Family | The Philadelphia Inquirer first published March 17, 2002

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For my Irish American Family

By Thomas Devaney

It is ironic that the day set aside to celebrate Irish Americans is the day that reinforces the most unfortunate stereotypes. Middle March is an onslaught of unflattering Irish images—parading leprechauns binge-drinking green beer till the cows come home.

No other ethnic group in this country would stand for it. It is odd that a group with so many storytellers, so many successful and articulate professionals, would not do more to get the word out.

But it’s very Irish not to talk about certain things, and while some have the reputation for being big talkers, the truth is Irish Americans are a self-effacing bunch who often downplay their achievements – a not always helpful precaution we have against becoming “too bigheaded.”

My father – Thomas E. Devaney, skilled builder, talented athlete, U.S. Army drill sergeant, father of three children, little league baseball coach, small business owner (now working in the public sector) – is one of the dearest, most severely modest, and funniest men I have ever met. But he’s not what is called witty. His subtle art is mostly in the telling – his manner, the body language and mightily intuitive timing. It is always a joy to bring friends over (having a full house is something both parents love) because he puts people at ease and can talk to anyone about almost anything.

From tracing our family’s genealogies, restoring old photos, and taking care of his mother and Colleen, a daughter of 31 with mental retardation, to conducting his long-standing water balloon fight with the now 12-year-old kid across the street – my father loves to mix it up.

His childhood friends called him “Do,” and I’ve never met a man who did do more for more people, especially in a tight spot: fixing heaters, broken-down cars, leaky roofs, flooding basements; cashing squirrels and birds out of the house – and at all hours! Helping people out is something he just does, and always has, and doesn’t talk much about.

Recently my brother Jim made journeyman in the Philadelphia electricians union. Irish Americans figure prominently in the American labor movement, and as both workers and leaders in the building trades. I clearly remember when Jim (not a person who suggests reading materials) handed me an article he had put aside about his politically prominent business manager John Dougherty. Although he didn’t show it, I understood he wanted me to know who Mr. Dougherty was, and that he was proud to work for the man he called “Johnny Doc” and proud to be an electrician.

My mother’s sense of family – indistinguishable from a private sense of duty – is unflinching and remarkably graceful. Her love of holidays and special occasions is the love of being surrounded by family and friends; yearly vacations down the Jersey shore to Sea Isle City (or what we affectionately call the Irish Riviera) amount to the same thing: family.

Irish American mothers have long been idealized by their sons, so it would be strange if I did not say my mother is one of the most decent, giving, strong, beautiful, sincere, and truly kindhearted people I have ever known, but she is. Maureen Devaney (maiden name Haugh, pronounced Hall and in Ireland Hawk) is the real article.

With more than 30 years of volunteering and unpaid advocating for her daughter and adept at bringing people together my mother has established herself as a behind-the-scenes force for the rights of people with disabilities. She worked closely with former Gov. Ridge on several major initiatives and in 1996 she went from parent-advocate to parent-professional, cofouding the organization Vision For Equality where she is Co-Executive Director with Audrey Coccia, which currently employs more than 28 staff members.

There was a time when I didn’t feel Irish American. I think I didn’t know – didn’t want to know – that, in fact, for all of the good (and some of the more stubborn characteristics I’ve talked less about here), there’s something very Irish about me. I have become a poet, love to hear and tell stories and mix it up, have a

--> bona fide reticent streak – and yes, I am very close to my family. And I am going to enjoy myself on this St. Patrick’s Day

Published in The Philadelphia Inquirer, Sunday March 17, 2002 page C5.