Ted Berrigan: An Annotated Checklist

w/27 images by George Schneeman

Poet, editor and publisher of the legendary 'C' Press Ted Berrigan (1934-1983) was a charismatic presence on the literary scene of New York's Lower East Side during the '60s and '70s. Fiercely unpretentious, intensely self-absorbed, prodigious in his ambition and energy, Berrigan did more than create a substantial body of poetry. He also embodied a spirit that gave meaning to many other writers' lives, wrote Ken Tucker shortly after Berrigan's death. Through anecdotal descriptions Ted Berrigan: An Annotated Checklist provides a vivid glimpse of one writer's life as seen through his publications. Statements and stories from collaborators and friends such as Ron Padgett and Anne Waldman give this book an on-the-spot character which separates it from the usual dry checklist. Lewis Warsh's poignant introduction "Publishing Ted" sets the stage for a fascinating book into the inner workings of the literary underground during its heyday. Amply illustrated with 27 never-seen-before literary pictures (eight in full color)collaborations between Berrigan and painter George Schneeman this is an important new contribution to the Berrigan canon as well as a useful tool for understanding one of the richest eras of American literary history.