Ann Charters
Encyclopedia
Ann Charters was born on November 10, 1936 in Bridgeport, Connecticut
. She is a professor of American Literature at the University of Connecticut at Storrs and has been interested in Beat Writers since 1956 when as an undergraduate English major she attended the repeat performance of the Six Gallery Poetry reading in San Francisco where Allen Ginsberg
gave his second public reading of Howl
. It was here that she first met Jack Kerouac
. She began collecting books written by beat writers when she was a graduate student at Columbia University
, and after completing her doctorate she worked with Jack Kerouac
to compile his bibliography. After his death she wrote the first Kerouac biography "Kerouac" - 1973, unique as she was the only biographer he co-operated with. She also edited his posthumous collection "Scattered Poems
". She has written a literay study of Charles Olson
and biographies of black entertainer Bert Williams
and (with her husband) the Russian
Poet
Vladimir Mayakovsky
. She was the general editor of the two volume encyclopedia "The Beats:Literary Bohemians in Postwar America" and has published a collection of her photographic portraits of well-known writers in the book "Beats & Company". She is also the editor of numerous volumes on Beat and 1960's American Literature, including "The Portable Beat Reader", "The Portable Sixties Reader", "Beat Down To Your Soul", "The Portable Jack Kerouac" and most recently, "Brother-Souls" (John Clellon Holmes, Jack Kerouac, and the Beat Generation) which she co-authored with her husband, Samuel Charters
, a noted musicologist.
Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...
. She is a professor of American Literature at the University of Connecticut at Storrs and has been interested in Beat Writers since 1956 when as an undergraduate English major she attended the repeat performance of the Six Gallery Poetry reading in San Francisco where Allen Ginsberg
Allen Ginsberg
Irwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
gave his second public reading of Howl
Howl
"Howl" is a poem written by Allen Ginsberg in 1955 and published as part of his 1956 collection of poetry titled Howl and Other Poems. The poem is considered to be one of the great works of the Beat Generation, along with Jack Kerouac's On the Road and William S. Burroughs's Naked Lunch...
. It was here that she first met Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...
. She began collecting books written by beat writers when she was a graduate student at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, and after completing her doctorate she worked with Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...
to compile his bibliography. After his death she wrote the first Kerouac biography "Kerouac" - 1973, unique as she was the only biographer he co-operated with. She also edited his posthumous collection "Scattered Poems
Scattered Poems
Scattered Poems is a collection of spontaneous poetry by Jack Kerouac. These poems were gathered from underground and ephemeral publications, as wells as from notebooks kept by the author. Some poems include: "San Francisco Blues," the variant texts of "Pull My Daisy," and American haikus....
". She has written a literay study of Charles Olson
Charles Olson
Charles Olson , was a second generation American modernist poet who was a link between earlier figures such as Ezra Pound and William Carlos Williams and the New American poets, which includes the New York School, the Black Mountain School, the Beat poets, and the San Francisco Renaissance...
and biographies of black entertainer Bert Williams
Bert Williams
Egbert Austin "Bert" Williams was one of the preeminent entertainers of the Vaudeville era and one of the most popular comedians for all audiences of his time. He was by far the best-selling black recording artist before 1920...
and (with her husband) the Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
Poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
Vladimir Mayakovsky
Vladimir Mayakovsky
Vladimir Vladimirovich Mayakovsky was a Russian and Soviet poet and playwright, among the foremost representatives of early-20th century Russian Futurism.- Early life :...
. She was the general editor of the two volume encyclopedia "The Beats:Literary Bohemians in Postwar America" and has published a collection of her photographic portraits of well-known writers in the book "Beats & Company". She is also the editor of numerous volumes on Beat and 1960's American Literature, including "The Portable Beat Reader", "The Portable Sixties Reader", "Beat Down To Your Soul", "The Portable Jack Kerouac" and most recently, "Brother-Souls" (John Clellon Holmes, Jack Kerouac, and the Beat Generation) which she co-authored with her husband, Samuel Charters
Samuel Charters
Samuel Charters, born Samuel Barclay Charters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 1, 1929 , is an American music historian, writer, record producer, musician, and poet...
, a noted musicologist.