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Title: |
d. a. levy Papers |
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Repository: |
Western Reserve Historical Society
Phone: 216-721-5722 http://www.wrhs.org |
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Creator: |
levy, d. a. |
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Dates: |
1964-1981 |
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Quantity: |
0.40 linear feet (1 container) |
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Abstract: |
d.a. levy (Darryl Allen Levy) was a central figure in poetry and the publishing of poetry in Cleveland, Ohio, from 1962 until his death in 1968. Using a small hand letterpress and mimeograph, levy produced and distributed hundreds of chapbooks, pamphlets, magazines, and newspapers. From 1963-1968 his 7 Flowers Press and his publications The Marrahwannah Quarterly and The Buddhist Third Class Junk Mail Oracle printed the works of scores of Cleveland poets. His own poetry appeared in journals throughout the United States. A significant figure in the Cleveland counterculture of the 1960s, he was arrested several times. He committed suicide in 1968. The collection consists of published poems, artwork, publications, correspondence, legal correspondence, and posthumous biographical sketches. Correspondents include Allen Ginsberg. |
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Identification: |
MS 4727 |
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Location: |
closed stacks |
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Language: |
The records are in English |
d. a. levy (Darryl Allen Levy, 1942-1968) was a central figure in poetry and the publishing of poetry in Cleveland, Ohio, from 1962 until his death. Using a small hand letterpress and a mimeograph, levy produced and distributed hundreds of chapbooks, pamphlets, magazines and newspapers. From 1963 through 1968 his 7 Flowers Press and his publications The Marrahwannah Quarterly, and The Buddhist Third Class Junk Mail Oracle, printed the works of scores of Cleveland poets. His own poetry appeared in numerous journals throughout the United States. levy became a notable figure in Cleveland's counterculture and attracted the attention of city officials and police. First, James Lowell, the owner of the Asphodel bookstore, was arrested by narcotics agents for selling levy's Marrawannah Quarterly. Shortly thereafter, on March 28, 1967, levy was charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor for reading poetry deemed obscene by city officials. About this time poet Allen Ginsberg began a correspondence with levy. After the arrests and subsequent plea bargains, which resulted in probation, levy continued his work, but the legal battles left him increasingly despondent. After arguing with his companion, Dagmar Ferek, and burning much of his poetry, levy committed suicide on November 24, 1968.
click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for d. a. levy
The d. a. levy Papers, 1964-1981, consist mostly of published poems, artwork, and other publications, in addition to correspondence, legal correspondence, and posthumous biographical sketches.
This collection is of value to researchers studying the history of poetry in Cleveland, the 1960s literary, political, and drug countercultures, censorship, and the poet Allen Ginsberg.
None.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 4727 d. a. levy Papers, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Jonathan Dworkin, 1991
Processed by Chuck Piotrowski in 1995