0:08 – In memory of Lawrence Ferlinghetti, poet, founder of City Lights Books, and icon of the free speech movement, who died yesterday at the age of 101 in San Francisco. Including:
- KPFA recording of Ferlinghetti reading a poem called “Constantly Risking Absurdity.” As part of the collection “A Coney Island of The Mind,” it would go on to sell over a million copies. KPFA recorded this in 1956 – more than a year before that collection was published.
- Excerpts from the audio documentary Lawrence Ferlinghetti: San Francisco Locations. The documentary is structured as a tour of Ferlinghetti’s neighborhood. Here’s the section on City Lights.
- Excerpts from a 1958 panel with Lawrence Ferlinghetti for publishing Allen Ginsburg’s Howl and Other Poems, moderated by KPFA founder Lewis Hill.
- 1994 reading of “A Buddha in the Woodpile” during an interview with KPFA”s Jack Foley. The poem is a response to the FBI siege of a religious sect in Waco, Texas, that killed 86 people, including 25 children.
Donate today for KPFA’s Legacy of Lawrence Ferlinghetti collection ($100) and support KPFA.
1:08 – Fund Drive Special: A People’s Guide to the San Francisco Bay Area
Rachel Brahinsky is a Professor at the University of San Francisco in Urban Studies
Alexander Tarr is an Assistant Professor of Geography at Worcester State University.
Their latest book is A People’s Guide to the San Francisco Bay Area. yours for a pledge of $120 to KPFA.