The Beat: Gary Metras and Simon Perchik

Gary Metras is a retired high school English teacher and college writing instructor. His poems have appeared in America, The Common, Poetry, and many others. Metras has published eight books, including his latest called Vanishing Points. His book Marble Dust is forthcoming from Cervena Barva Press. Metras was the founder, editor, and letterpress printer of Adastra Press, a venture that for forty years specialized in limited editions of poetry chapbooks. In 2018, Metras was appointed the inaugural Poet Laureate of Easthampton, Massachusetts.  Simon Perchik's poems have appeared in The Nation, Poetry, The New Yorker, and many others. He was born in 1923 in Paterson, New Jersey. During World War II, he joined the Army Air Corps, flew 35 missions overseas, and reached the rank of first lieutenant. Thanks to the GI Bill, Perchik attended New York University where he earned a bachelor’s degree and a law degree. He practiced law for 25 years before becoming an assistant DA for Suffolk County and its first environmental prosecutor. He was a prolific writer, and he published more than thirty books of poetry. A November 2000 issue of Library Journal called Simon Perchik “the most widely published unknown poet in America.” Perchik died on June 14, 2022, in New York City. Links:Read "The Engagement" and "Lint" at The Poetry Foundation Read "Another Winter"Read "3" and "482"Gary Metras"April 6, 2022" at One Art"Two Poems by Gary Metras" at Flyfishing and Tying Journal"Art Maker: Gary Metras, Poet" at Daily Hampshire Gazette"In Studio: Gary Metras" by Easthampton Media (via YouTube)Simon Perchik"Simon Perchik, Poet" in The Easthampton Star"Five Poems" at the Poetry FoundationPoems at Poetry NorthwestPoems at Plume"Two Untitled Poems" at The Inflectionist ReviewMentioned in this episode:KnoxCountyLibrary.orgThank you for listening and sharing this podcast. Explore life-changing resources and events, sign up for newsletters, follow us on social media, and more through our website, www.knoxcountylibrary.org.Rate & review on Podchaser