From Frank O'Hara: Poet among Painters, new ed. U of Chicago Press, 1997 I !"O#UC!

IO , 1997
by MARJORIE PERLOFF

When Frank O'Hara: Poet Among Painters was published twenty years ago, O' ara was a !oterie "igure, adored by his #ew $or% &!hool "riends and a!olytes, espe!ially by the painters whose wor% he e'hibited and wrote about((but otherwise regarded )when regarded at all* as a !har+ing +inor poet, erbert Leibowit-, in a largely generous re.iew o" O' ara's Collected Poems "or the New York Times Book Review in /01/, !alled O' ara 2an aestheti! !ourtier who had taste and i+puden!e and prodigious energy,2 E.en the a.ant(garde poet3no.elist 4ilbert &orrentino, whose #ew $or% literary world interse!ted with O' ara's through the +ediation o" A+iri 5ara%a )then LeRoi Jones* and his +aga-ineYugen, des!ribed unc! Poems as 2+o.6ing7 in a world o" wry elegan!e, o" gesture, a world +ade up o" a !ertain %ind o" stri!tly #ew $or% "oie de vivre8 slightly down at heels and ru+pled, but with the %ind o" style always a step abo.e !urrent 'style',2 What is not said in these or the other re.iews o" O' ara's poetry in the late si'ties and se.enties is that the 2style2 to whi!h &orrentino draws our attention was a style re!ogni-ably gay, Indeed, neither in the +o.ing +e+orial essays by John Ashbery or 9enneth 9o!h nor in the +any !riti:ues, "ro+ Fran!is ope's dis+issal o" the 2puppyish !har+ o" 6O' ara's7 o!!asional good i+pro+ptus,2 to Marius 5ewley's be+used !hara!teri-ation o" the poet's 2long in.ertebrate .erse lines2 as so +any 2strea+ers o" !repe paper "luttering be"ore an ele!tri! "an,2 is dire!t re"eren!e +ade to the poet's ho+ose'uality, When, "or e'a+ple, ;ho+as 5yro+ re.iewed +y boo%, along with O' ara's #arl$ %riting and Poems Retrieved, in the Times iterar$ &upple+ent, he !hara!teri-ed O' ara as "ollows8
is aestheti!s are "ro+ a !atalogue o" late <i!torian !a+p, a +atter o" e'!ellent personal taste, e burned hard and ge+li%e= he dran% and tal%ed .olubly, ;hough he tried on later ideologies, the one he li.ed was a so!iable and less "rigid .ersion o" Paterian pop, and the one he wrote was a sub>e!ti.e i+pressionis+, is synta' has little o" the !ra"ty or inspired appositi.eness o" the &urrealist= it is an arti!ulation o" +ental !hatter and dri"t, and his style depends "or its su!!ess wholly on his sensibility, Perhaps he is +ost li%e e, e, !u++ings, the sa+e so"t .er.e, a senti+ental eroti!is+, a !ertain heart, , , , ?asualness, :ui!%ness, openness were what he wanted and o"ten got,

2Late <i!torian !a+p,2 2Paterian pop,2 2+ental !hatter and dri"t2(( twenty years later we re!ogni-e these as !ode ter+s "or 2:ueer,2 5ut at the ti+e I read 5yro+'s re.iew, )whi!h suggested it was bad "or+ on +y part to ta%e this play"ul poet seriously@*, I +ysel" wasn't aware to what e'tent !riti:ues o" O' ara's 2gi"ts "or buoyan!y, spontaneity and "un2 )5yro+, T &' 1A*, were, !ons!iously or not, !riti:ues o" a poeti! that generated lines li%e 2E.en trees understand +e@ 4ood hea.ens, I lie under the+ too, don't IB2 )?P /0C*, or 2you were +ade in the i+age o" god 3 I was not 3 I was +ade in the i+age o" a sissy tru!%(dri.er2 )CP, DDA*, E.en in the later /01Es, readers didn't :uite %now how to respond to su!h sel"(e'posure, When, in an early dra"t o" Frank O'Hara: Poet Among Painters' I re"erred to Joe Le&ueur as Fran%'s lo.er, Fonald Allen suggested ta!t"ully that I use the word 2"riend2 instead, 2O' ara,2 wrote 9enneth 9o!h in his ad+iring re.iew o" the Collected

Poems, 2had an unusual gi"t "or "riendship and "or lo.e,2 And it is si+ilarly "riendship and a shared aestheti! that are !entral to John Ashbery's +o.ing a!!ount, in his introdu!tion to the Collected Poems, o" Fran%'s in.ention o" a 2.erna!ular !orresponding to the !reati.ely +essy #ew $or% en.iron+ent,2 with its 2s!ent o" garbage, pat!houli and !arbon +ono'ide2 )see ?P '*, I re+ind the reader o" these !on.entions o" the se.enties so as to pro.ide the !onte't "or +y own histori!al3!riti!al study o" O' ara's wor%, a study largely de.oid o" spe!ulation on the role gender played in O' ara's oppositionality, ;hat he was a radi!al and 2di""erent2 poet was +y pre+ise, but I regarded that oppositionality )to the aestheti!, not only o" Robert Lowell, whi!h he !riti!i-ed openly, but also that o" the then !ounter!ulture hero, ?harles Olson*, as a :uestion o" indi.idual ethos rather than as, in any pro"ound way, !onstru!ted by the poet's !ulture or se'ual identi"i!ation, Along the sa+e lines, I paid little attention to the roles ra!e and ethni!ity play in poe+s li%e 2Ode8 &alute to the Fren!h #egro Poets2((the heady +i' o" e'oti!is+, !uriosity, and egalitarianis+ with whi!h O' ara !elebrated 2the lo.e we bear ea!h other's di""eren!es 3 in ra!e whi!h is the poeti! ground on whi!h we rear our s+iles2 )?P DEG*, and that pro+pted the poet to re+ar% on the 2Puerto Ri!ans on the a.enue today, whi!h 3 +a%es it beauti"ul and war+2 )?P HGA*, In /011, the age de+anded a raison d'Itre "or O' ara's !asual, i+pro.isatory, non+etri!al and generally nonstan-ai! 2I do this, I do that2 pie!es, pie!es that hardly see+ed to :uali"y as (oems at all, en!e +y attention to poeti! lineage )"ro+ Willia+s, "ro+ Maya%o.s%y, "ro+ Apollinaire*, generi! pla!e+ent )odeB elegyB o!!asional poe+B*, and te!hni!al de.i!e )espe!ially the daring use o" line(brea%*, It was i+portant, I "elt, to e'pose an audien!e a!!usto+ed to the well(+ade ironi! lyri! o" Ri!hard Wilbur on the one hand and the ora!ular, densely allusi.e 2pro>e!ti.e .erse2 o" Olson on the other, to the .ery di""erent 2aestheti! o" attention2 that is O' ara's spe!ial signature, ;he i+pa!t o" !ulture and se'uality on that aestheti! was undoubtedly underesti+ated, ow di""erent is the situation todayB In one sense, we ha.e witnessed a total turnaround, ;he "irst O' ara biography, 5rad 4oo!h's Cit$ Poet: T!e i)e and Times o) Frank O'Hara )/00D*, is nothing i" not !andid about the poet's lo.e a""airs and one(night stands((so !andid, in "a!t, that, a"ter so+e .aluable !hapters on the poet's !hildhood, na.y days, and ar.ard years, it be!o+es an e'tended )so+e would say, e'!essi.e* portrait o" what it was to burn with a hard ge+(li%e "la+e in the postwar and pre(AIF& de!ades, ;he new respe!tability o" Jueer ;heory, !oupled with the brea%down o" the igh ?ulture 3 Popular ?ulture di.ide, and the toleran!e, e.en in the A!ade+y, "or open "or+s and i+pro.isatory dis!ourse(( these ha.e gi.en O' ara a new pla!e in the !anon, e is, "or e'a+ple, in!luded in the +ost re!ent edition o" the Norton Ant!olog$ o) American iterature )/0A0* as well as in elen <endler's !ontro.ersial Harvard Book o) Contem(orar$ American Poetr$ )/0AG*, In ea!h o" these, O' ara gets !onsiderably less spa!e than Robert Lowell or Adrienne Ri!h or e.en Allen 4insberg, but he does get pride o" pla!e in three re!ent large a.ant(garde anthologies(( Eliot Weinberger's American Poetr$ since /0GE )Marsilio, /00D*, Paul

oo.er's Postmodern American Poetr$ )#orton, /00K*, and Fouglas Messerli's From t!e Ot!er &ide o) t!e Centur$: A New American Poetr$ *+,-.*++- )&un L Moon, /00K*, 5y /00G, when the Collected Poems, edited by Fonald Allen, was reprinted by the Mni.ersity o" ?ali"ornia Press, it was sa"e to say that any treat+ent o" +id!entury A+eri!an poetry would ha.e to ta%e Fran% O' ara into a!!ount, Indeed, at a !on"eren!e on 2Poetry o" the /0GEs2 held at the Mni.ersity o" Maine at Orono in June /00C, there were +ore papers )ele.en in all* on O' ara than on any other single poet, and his na+e !ropped up repeatedly in the .arious %eynote addresses on larger topi!s, ;en years ago, I would guess, the !entral "igure o" su!h a !on"eren!e, held as it was in E-ra Pound !ountry, would ha.e been ?harles Olson, 5ut at the "in(de(siN!le, there see+s to be a de!ided shi"t in sensibility, And not >ust a turn to gay sensibility as su!h, sin!e the spea%ers "o!used on su!h .aried topi!s as the e""e!t o" the ?old War on O' ara's !uratorial a!ti.ities at the Museu+ o" Modern Art, the relationship o" his poetry to the "il+ !ulture o" the "i"ties, the !rossing o" !a+p and subli+ity in the late poe+ 25iother+,2 and the parti!ular brand o" 2liberation politi!s2 that lin%s 2Meditations in an E+ergen!y2 to the 2e+ergen!e2 o" "or+erly sub>ugated groups, ;hirty years a"ter his death, O' ara's poeti! has thus !o+e o" age, 5ut grati"ying as this interest is, we +ust now be !are"ul not to turn this +er!urial and highly indi.idual poet into a +ere representati.e o" "i"ties' :ueer sensibility or ?old War politi!s, In a re!ent essay "or American iterar$ Histor$, "or e'a+ple, ?aleb ?rain e'a+ines what he ta%es to be O' ara's deep(seated aggression((an aggression that doubles ba!% upon itsel" sin!e, in the 2regi+e o" ho+ophobia2 o" the 2pre(gay liberation /0GEs,2 it !annot dire!t itsel" outward(( through the lens o" F, W, Winni!ott's ob>e!t(relations psy!hology, One needs su!h an e'planatory +e!hanis+, we are told, be!ause, ta%en in the+sel.es, the 2!onstitutent ele+ents 6o" the poe+s7 !an see+ tri.ial, and their stru!ture as !a.alier and !asual as telephone gossip or lun!h !on.ersation, , , ;he poe+s' ele+ents do not see+ a+enable to analysis and a new synthesis in the !lassroo+,2 5ut the 2aggression2 ?rain is at su!h pains to a!!ount "or )its e'e+plar is the wonder"ully absurd re"eren!e in 2Personis+8 A Mani"esto,2 to 2so+eone !hasing you down the street with a %ni"e2* is ta%en to be a gi.en o" the poetry rather than shown to be present in its a!tual "abri!, And that "abri!, the +ateriality o" the poe+s, is >udged to be 2!a.alier,2 2!asual2 and 2tri.ial,2(( a poeti! stru!ture not 2a+enable to analysis,2 at least not without an e'ternal %ey li%e Winni!ott's psy!hiatri! theory, Ironi!ally enough, su!h assess+ent e!hoes that o" O' ara's early detra!tors8 in 2Personal Poe+,2 "or e'a+ple, the poet, a!!ording to ?rain, 2bobs along on a buoyant gush o" detail,2 and 2an outsider +ight not 'get' the story behind this glib, !hatty, undire!ted +onologue2 )AL DE/(DEH*, Indeed, the poe+'s 2laundry list2 is redee+ed

only by the poe+'s !on!lusion, whi!h re.eals it as a lo.e poe+8

I wonder i" one person out o" the A,EEE,EEE is thin%ing o" +e as I sha%e hands with LeRoi and buy a strap "or +y wristwat!h and go ba!% to wor% happy at the thought possibly so )?P DDC*

?rain !o++ents, 2;he happiness that sur"a!es at the !lose sheds light ba!%ward through the poe+, !onne!ting the rando+ narrati.e into pillow tal%, lo.ers' gossip at the end o" the day, Li%e baby booties +e+oriali-ed in bron-e, O' ara's tri.ial day is ele!troplated with the !harge o" %nowing he is lo.ed2 )AL DEH*, ;his reading s+ooths out the poe+'s tensions, +issing the "or!e o" the poignantly tentati.e 2possibly so2 o" the last line, Indeed, despite the e'ternal e.iden!e that 2Personal Poe+2 was written "or O' ara's then(lo.er <in!ent Warren, its narrati.e, "ar "ro+ being 2glib2 and 2!hatty,2 begins on a note o" thinly .eiled an'iety8
#ow when I wal% around at lun!hti+e I ha.e only two !har+s in +y po!%et an old Ro+an !oin Mi%e 9ane+itsu ga.e +e and a bolt(head that bro%e o"" a pa!%ing !ase when I was in Madrid )CP, DDG*

&o+e good lu!% !har+s@ ;he poet wor%s hard to !heer hi+sel" up8 he puns on the 2lu+inous hu+idity2 o" the re!ently !o+pleted 2 ouse o" &eagra+ with its wet,2 and en>oys, as in 2A &tep Away "ro+ ;he+,2 the sight o" !onstru!tion wor%ers on girders, espe!ially when they are wearing sil.er hats, 5ut on!e inside the pub, the an'iety !o+es ba!%8
I wait "or LeRoi and hear who wants to be a +o.er and sha%er the last "i.e years +y batting a.erage is,E/C that's that

LeRoi's news that 2Miles Fa.is was !lubbed /H 3 ti+es last night outside 5IRFLA#F by a !op2 )terri"ying news "or the gay spea%er as well as his bla!% "riend, gi.en the raids on gay bars so "re:uent in these years* doesn't e'a!tly help, #e.er +ind8 it's the hour o" "riendship and so the two poets, e'!hange +utual antiestablish+ent senti+ents((2we don't li%e Lionel ;rilling 3 we de!ide, we li%e Fon Allen we don't li%e 3 enry Ja+es so +u!h we li%e er+an Mel.ille2*, 5ut how !lose are 2we2 reallyB It is at the

+o+ent o" saying goodbye to LeRoi that Fran% wonders 2i" one person out o" the A,EEE,EEE is 3thin%ing o" +e,2 Ob.iously, as Ja+es E, 5, 5reslin notes per!epti.ely, that person isn't the LeRoi with who+ Fran% is sha%ing hands, but then Fran% isn't thin%ing o" LeRoi either, 2Friendship,2 "or those who want 2boundless lo.e,2 only goes so "ar, espe!ially when one has that terri"ying sense o" being only one in eight +illion, ;o suggest that O' ara's 2laundry list2 is +ade +eaning"ul only by the obli:ue re"eren!e to the poet's putati.e lo.er in the "inal lines is, I thin%, to posit !losure where O' ara e'pli!itly denies its possibility, 2Personal Poe+2 doesn't +a%e a point= it presents w!at it )eels like, at a "airly bad ti+e, to go to lun!h with a "riend )who is not a lo.er*, and, in the "a!e o" a persistent sense o" an'iety, to draw on one's basi! reser.e o" hu+or and opti+is+, It is the ubi:uity o" the e'perien!e, not its oppressed(gay(+an(in(/0G0 parti!ularity, that +a%es the poe+ so +e+orable, &i+ilar :uestions are raised by Andrew Ross's pro.o!ati.e essay on 2;he Fay Lady Fied2, ;he essay argues, :uite rightly I thin%, that O' ara's "abled 2!ulture o" sur"a!e2 is not without its own politi!al resonan!es, its i+pli!it !riti:ue o" a !onsu+eris+, dependent upon the sharply de"ined gender roles o" the "i"ties and the dile++a they posed "or the gay +an, 5ut Ross's !ase see+s !uriously o.erdeter+ined8
Loo%ing ba!% o.er O' ara's poe+ we !an see how it tends to a!!ept what +ight ha.e been stereotypi!ally regarded as the so!ial !ontours o" gay +as!ulinity in /0G0, the obsession, "or e'a+ple, with tri.ia, with "eelings, with dis!ri+inations o" taste, and, o" !ourse, with the "ine arts, ;he tone o" the poe+ +ar%s its ob.ious distan!e "ro+ the .oi!e o" legiti+ate +as!ulinity= O' ara's is not the .oi!e o" the publi! sphere, where real de!isions are +ade by real +en and where real politi!s is supposed to ta%e pla!e, In "a!t, the he!ti! itinerary "ollowed by his poet !ould >ust as well be that o" a genteel lady about town, i" you substitute a hairdresser "or the shoeshine, the Russian ;ea Roo+ "or the soda parlor, Ri--oli's "or the 4olden 4ri""in, and so on,, , , In "a!t, 2the 'day lady died' is an a!!ount o" a lady's day, played out by a +an through an i+agined lun!h hour that is the .ery opposite o" the power lun!hes being eaten in restaurants in the sa+e "ew blo!%s by the +en who +a%e real history )&E DAA(A0*,

;he di""i!ulty with this argu+ent is that Ross has to posit a 2.oi!e o" legiti+ate +as!ulinity2 against whi!h O' ara's own ho+ose'ual one +ay be seen to position itsel", 5ut whose .oi!e in /0G0 )or, "or that +atter, at any other ti+e* would this beB Fid 2straight2 poets o" the "i"ties((say, Robert Lowell or Robert ?reeley((present the+sel.es as 2+a%ing real history2 o.er their business 2power lun!hes2B Or weren't they also outsiders by their .ery status as lyri! poetsB ;he relation to wo+en is e.en tri!%ier, Ross's argu+ent is that 2the so!ial !ontours o" gay +as!ulinity o" /0G0,2 whi!h O' ara's poe+ supposedly e+bodies, allow the poet no !hoi!e but to assu+e a "e+inine role8 2the he!ti! itinerary "ollowed by his poet !ould >ust as well be that o" a genteel lady about town,2 O' ara's elegy )see below pp, */+.01 below* begins with the

lines8
It is /H8HE in #ew $or% a Friday three days a"ter 5astille day, yes it is /0G0 and I go get a shoeshine be!ause I will get o"" the K8/0 in Eastha+pton at 18/G and then go straight to dinner and I don't %now the people who will "eed +e )CP DHG*

24enteel2 lady shoppers are hardly li%ely to go out to the Island on a su++er Friday a"ternoon without %nowing with who+ they are going to ha.e dinner, 2;he people who will "eed +e,2 +oreo.er, is an odd way o" re"erring to one's hosts8 who %nows what unladyli%e things that 2"eeding2 is to in!ludeB Again, the sense o" i++edia!y and i+pro.isation is unders!ored by the re"eren!e to getting a shoeshine, Ross's suggestion that we need only substitute 2hairdresser2 "or 2shoeshine2 "or the day to re.eal itsel" as a 2lady's day,2 !uriously +isses O' ara's nuan!e, Ladies' .isits to the hairdresser are s!heduled and regular((part o" the routine o" putting onesel" together, rather li%e brushing one's teeth and putting on +a%e(up in the +orning, 5ut one doesn't s!hedule a shoeshine or +a%e an appoint+ent to ha.e one8 one does it )or rather, a man does it* on the spur o" the +o+ent so as to 2loo% good,2 to +a%e an i++ediate i+pression, espe!ially when one doesn't %now 2the people who will "eed +e,2 And the "urther irony is that, what with the drin%ing and the partying that !ould be anti!ipated at Mi%e and Patsy's, no one would noti!e Fran%'s shoeshine anyway, It is +erely a way o" )literally* putting one's best "oot "orward, Or !onsider the lines in the "ollowing stan-a8 2I go on to the ban% 3 and Miss &tillwagon )"irst na+e Linda I on!e heard* 3 doesn't e.en loo% up +y balan!e "or on!e in +y li"e,2 ;his see+ingly !asual and irrele.ant re"eren!e, "ar "ro+ lin%ing the poet to genteel lady shoppers with their 2busy so!ial s!hedules,2 has pre!isely the opposite e""e!t, What ban% teller would !on"ront a Madison A.enue +atron by loo%ing up her balan!eB What +atron would gi.e so +u!h as a thought to the teller's na+eB ;he i+pli!ation o" the lines is that the poet is always sel"(!ons!ious about being 2di""erent28 polite and "riendly as he is at the ban%, Miss &tillwagon e.idently per!ei.es hi+ as >ust a bit :ueer, and besides he is e.idently prone to o.erdrawing on his a!!ount, ;he routine withdrawal o" +oney thus be!o+es an in!ident worth reporting, ;he na+e 2&tillwagon,2 +oreo.er, with its o'y+oroni! !on>un!tion o" whis%ey still and being on the wagon, anti!ipates the !risis o" 5illie oliday's last days, It is !harged language o" this sort )a good bit o" whi!h I +issed the "irst ti+e I dis!ussed the poe+* that +a%es O' ara's wor% so "as!inating, As "or 2!onsu+eris+,2 it should be noted that e.ery ite+ the poet buys )or !onte+plates buying* is bought )or someone else, Intense "riendship, whi!h is

the gay poet's alternati.e to the "a+ily networ%s that deter+ine the largely routine pur!hases +ade by the typi!al #ew $or% lady shopper, depends upon the !are"ul dis!ri+ination and !hoi!e o" gi"ts8 Fran% %nows Patsy's taste "or <erlaine and that Mi%e espe!ially li%es to drin% &trega, And , in the larger sense, it is the set o" !hoi!es o" the poe+'s +a%er that pro.ides us with a !atalogue o" ite+s, all o" whi!h )as I suggest in ?hapter G*, relate, li%e Miss &tillwagon, to 5illie oliday hersel", In line /1, "or e'a+ple, the poet !onte+plates buying 25rendan 5ehan's new play or e Balcon or es N2gres 3 o" 4enet,2 5ehan, who dran% hi+sel" to death at a young age, anti!ipates Lady Fay's death "ro+ a drug o.erdose, while the +ise(en(s!Nne o" es N2gres sets the stage "or Lady Fay's !li+a!ti! appearan!e at the Fi.e &pot, As "or 4enet hi+sel" )and the !hara!ters in e Balcon*, the +oti" introdu!ed by the in.o!ation o" the gay, e'(!on.i!t author is that o" the artist punished "or his or her de.ian!e((punished, in Lady Fay's !ase, by pre+ature death, ;o say that the poet's itinerary is !on!ei.ed as the daily shopping round o" a genteel lady thus glosses o.er pre!isely those i+ages and phrases that +a%e 2;he Fay Lady Fied2 the bitter(sweet, poignant elegy it is, 2;otally abashed and s+iling2 )?P KEC*, "ear"ul and "unny, sel"(possessed and yet pro"oundly .ulnerable, the poet who +a%es his Manhattan rounds on a Friday )with 5astille Fay soon to !o+e@*, is the Fran% who was gi.en to re"erring to #ew $or% as 2&odo+(on( udson,2 the Fran% who had written in his ar.ard Journal, 2I o"ten wish I had the strength to !o++it sui!ide, but on the other hand, i" I had, I probably wouldn't "eel the need, 4od@ ?an't you let us win on!e in a whileB2 )/E3/13KA, EW /EE*, I" the sensibility here is indeed 2gay,2 we +ust re+e+ber that not all gay sensibility o" the period(( Allen 4insberg is a !ase in point(( stri%es the note o" !o+i! pathos, o" hu+or la!ed with tough !o++on sense, and espe!ially o" !o+ple' .erbal play, that is O' ara's lega!y to poetry, OOO
2What would Fran% ha.e thought o" gay liberationB I as%ed John 5utton, 2Oh, he would ha.e thought it was silly,2 !a+e the reply, 2but he would ha.eloved the dan!es,2 &tuart 5yron, Real Pa(er )&E, CK*,

It has ta%en a long ti+e "or su!h !a+py irre.eren!e to be ta%en seriously, In a brilliant re.iew essay "or Parnassus )/011*, ;ho+as Meyer put it this way8
owe.er intri!ate the underpinning gender arrange+ents, we are still !on.in!ed the opposite o" all that is authenti!, e'pressi.e, and pro"ound re+ains the light, :ui!%, !asual though de"t gesture, And when !onsidering greatness the absolute ene+y is !a+p, best e'e+pli"ied by the urban, loose, and high(li.ing +ale ho+ose'ual, , , , ;hen, too, the +aterial O' ara wor%ed with loo%s too o"ten on "irst glan!e !hi(!hi, di--y, piss elegant, and "aggoty, Or else his poe+s see+ adoles!ent, their e'uberan!e and e'!ite+ent +ade e+barrassing by what appears a la!% o" e+otional +aturity, , , , ;he :ualities o" e+otion he wrote about, and "ro+, are the hardest to ad+it8 breathlessness, e'!ite+ent, anti!ipation and e'pe!tation,

5reathlessness, e'!ite+ent, anti!ipation8 in the "irst wa.e o" !riti!is+ o" O' ara's wor%, +y own in!luded, these :ualities were related to what was

then !alled 2A!tion Painting,2 the painting o" Ja!%son Pollo!% and his "ellow Abstra!t E'pressionists in whi!h, as arold Rosenberg put it, 2the !an.as be!o+es an arena upon whi!h to act rather than a spa!e in whi!h to reprodu!e2 )see below (3 04*, In tra!%ing the Pollo!%((9line((de 9ooning !onne!tion, !riti!s were, o" !ourse, drawing on O' ara's own e'tensi.e !o++entary on these painters and his e'hibitions o" their wor%, $et here is an instan!e when !onsiderations o" gender are surely rele.ant, In ?hapter D, I obser.ed that O' ara 2was really +ore at ho+e with painting that retains at least so+e "iguration than with pure abstra!tion2 )below, p, AG*, but what I "ailed to see is that when one a!tually reads O' ara's poe+s against, say, Pollo!%'s drip paintings or de 9ooning's eroti! i+ages o" wo+en, one be!o+es aware o" +ore di""eren!e than si+ilarity, ;he dis!ourse o" +ale power and authority !hara!teristi! o" Pollo!% and de 9ooning((a dis!ourse !o+parable to that o" ?harles Olson, who+ O' ara o.ertly !riti!i-ed as too grandiose, too bent on +a%ing 2the i+portant utteran!e2 )see below, p, /G*, !ould hardly ha.e been all that !ongenial to a poet whose signature was 2the light, !asual though de"t gesture,2 And "urther8 although I paid !lose attention to O' ara's !ollaborations with Larry Ri.ers, 4ra!e artigan, and #or+an 5luh+, I now "eel I slighted a relationship +ore signi"i!ant than any o" the abo.e((na+ely O' ara's a""inity to Jasper Johns, O' ara and Johns "irst +et in /0G1, At least "i.e o" O' ara's poe+s re"er to or are dedi!ated to 2Jap,2 in!luding the se+inal 2Joe's Ja!%et,2 )see below, pp, /KA(GH*, Johns "or his part has +ade a nu+ber o" wor%s that re"er to O' ara, o" whi!h the best %nown is probably &kin wit! O'Hara Poem o" /0CD(CG, ;he relationship between the two artists deser.es a "ull study= here I +erely want to say a "ew words about Johns's 5n 6emor$ o) 6$ Feelings((Frank O'Hara )/0C/*,whi!h pro.ides an espe!ially interesting .isual analogue to O' ara's poe+ by that title, written in /0GC, as well as the +any related poe+s that "oreground ordinary ob>e!ts, In the lower right(hand !orner o" Johns's painting )see abo.e, p, ii* ne't to the sten!illed title 2In Me+ory o" My Feelings,2 and all but hidden behind the thi!% blue(gray brushstro%es, we "ind the outline o" a s%ull and the words 2FEAF MA#,2 ;he phrase +ay be glossed by a !itation "ro+ one o" Johns's s%et!hboo%s, as reprodu!ed by John ?age in his essay(poe+ 2Jasper Johns8 &tories and Ideas,2 ;he note reads8 2A 7ead 6an, Take a skull3 Cover it wit! (aint3 Ru8 it against canvas3 &kull against canvas,2 2With this FEAF MA#,2 writes Fred Orton, 2Johns returns, albeit re"erentially, to "iguration a"ter years o" painting "lags and targets, nu+bers and letters,2 For at le"t !enter, silhouetted against a networ% o" blue and greyish abstra!t "or+s, is an ordinary sil.er spoon, with a "or% behind it, the two bound together and suspended on a wire s!rewed to the top o" the painting, ;hese utensils, whi!h reappear, together with a %ni"e, in Johns's illustrations "or the MOMA !o++e+orati.e .olu+e 5n 6emor$ o) 6$ Feelings, appear "re:uently in his wor%, Ordinary do+esti! ob>e!ts, they are !uriously stripped o" their nor+al asso!iations by their pla!e+ent and

!onte't, &poons and "or%s are to eat with, not to hang suspended "ro+ a wire, &poons and "or%s are to be held by a hu+an being, using both hands, not bound together as they are here, ;he e+pty spoon behind whi!h the "or% 2hides2 thus has no use .alue= its !on.entional shape, +oreo.er, see+s to ha.e no relationship to what Leo &teinberg de"ines as Johns's 2M(W brushstro%e that loo%s and "un!tions li%e the !orrugated staples !arpenters use,2 nor to the unpainted lower edge o" the !an.as, and the "a+iliar #ew $or% &!hool drip abo.e it, Rather, the spoon, with its shadow aureole, interse!ts the bla!% line that see+s to separate the greyish re!tangle abo.e it "ro+ the larger blue(white re!tangle in whi!h it is e+bedded, Is this inner re!tangle a windowB A window(shadeB A +irrorB Or >ust an area o" the larger re!tangle painted in di""erent !olorsB ;he notion o" +irror i+age is "urther suggested by the hinges that di.ide the painting in hal", 5ut again, these hinges are de!epti.e8 the le"t hal" o" the painting, "ar "ro+ +irroring the right, does not :uite !orrelate with it, ;he abstra!t "ield )blue, white, blue(gray, a tiny bit o" red* on the right pro.ides no +at!h "or the i+age o" the hanging spoon and "or% or the light gray re!tan!le on the le"t, nor to the blue drips on white ba!%ground beneath it, 5n 6emor$ o) 6$ Feelings thus produ!es a !urious disorientation "or the .iewer, al.es don't +at!h, a spoon is not to eat with but hangs, so to spea%, by a thread li%e a !orpse, and the 2s%ull2 asso!iated with 2FEAF MA#2 has been 2!o.ered with paint2 and 2rubbed against !an.as2 a!!ording to Johns's pres!ription, 2Metony+y,2 Fred Orton obser.es in his dis!ussion o" Johns's te!hni:ue, 2is based on a proposed !ontinuous or se:uential lin% between the literal ob>e!t and its repla!e+ent by asso!iation or re"eren!e, It is the re!ord o" a la!una, o" a +o.e or displa!e+ent "ro+ !ause to e""e!t, !ontainer to !ontained, thing seen to where it was seen, goal to au'iliary tool, ;he +etony+i! pro!esses are redu!tion, e'pansion, and asso!iation, , , , PMetony+y7 represents not the ob>e!t or thing or e.ent or "eeling whi!h is its re"erent but that whi!h is tied to it by !ontingent or asso!iati.e trans"ers o" +eaning2 )FF /1H*, It is pre!isely su!h 2asso!iati.e trans"ers2 that !hara!teri-e O' ara's 2In Me+ory o" +y Feelings2)see below pp, /KE(KC*, 2My :uietness has a +an in it28 the opening shi"t "ro+ !ontainer to !ontained sets the stage "or the insistent role re.ersals, the split(se!ond displa!e+ents o" the poet's 2transparent sel.es2 ((a +obility )2to lo.e is to +o.e2* that is "inally li"e(threatening8
and I ha.e lost what is always e.erywhere present, the s!ene o" +y sel.es, the o!!asion o" these ruses, whi!h I +ysel" and singly +ust now %ill and sa.e the serpent in their +idst, )?P HG1*,

;he 2o!!asion o" these ruses2 is not unli%e Johns's staging o" the e+pty spoon as the sti!% "igure o" a +an about to be hung by the wire around his throat,

e.en as the brushstro%es that +a%e up the painting's ground re+ain resistant to su!h translation, 2Metony+y,2 Orton re+ar%s, 2per+its the utterer to bypass obsta!les o" so!ial !ensure in!luding those whi!h are !ons!iously or un!ons!iously sel"(i+posed2 )FF /1H*, In Johns's painting as in O' ara's poe+, eroti! energy be!o+es the property o" ob>e!ts and utensils, o" words and brushstro%es, so that its autobiographi!al !onne!tions re+ain obs!ure, 2&o +any o" +y transparen!ies,2 as O' ara puts it, 2!ould not resist the ra!e@2 )?P HGD*, I don't want to o.erplay the identity between poet and painter8 Johns's wor% is +u!h !ooler than O' ara's, less !a+py and droll, +ore !on!eptual and austere, 5ut what has be!o+e apparent with the passage o" ti+e is that O' ara's aestheti! is !loser to the !on!eptualis+ o" the John ?age((Mer!e ?unningha+((Jasper Johns((Robert Raus!henberg !ir!le o" the "i"ties and si'ties )a !ir!le o" gay, i" notably !loseted and dis!reet, artists* than to the openly e+oti.e and e'pressi.e gestures o" A!tion Painting or 5la!% Mountain or 5eat aestheti!, 2;he se!ret,2 as ?lar% ?oolidge put it in his !ontribution to Homage to Frank O'Hara, 2is that "la+boyan!e can be so e'a!t, )dis!reteB* And the word 2dis!reet2 !an be used "or so+ething +ore pre!ise than pruden!e i" you +o.e one o" those e's to that end,2 2It's a"ter all,2 ?oolidge notes, 2a +atter o" +o.e+ent and the standing ob>e!ts, ;he drea+ o" starting to spea% and the words all !o+ing to you "or on!e in the right order, surprises , , , , 2An in!lusion o" .e!tors ine'pli!able to synta'2 )55 /AD(AK*, OOO
, , , na+ing things is only the intention to +a%e things, O' ara, 2Me+orial Fay /0GE2

2An in!lusion o" .e!tors ine'pli!able to synta'28 ?oolidge's notes on O' ara, published in /01A within a year o" +y own boo%, signaled a shi"t in the understanding o" the poet's wor%, perhaps e.en +ore i+portant than the shi"t in gay politi!s I dis!ussed abo.e, For in /01A a new +i+eograph +aga-ine !alled 9A9N9:9;9A9:9#, edited by 5ru!e Andrews and ?harles 5ernstein, +ade its "irst appearan!e, and so+e i+portant re!on"ig(urations o" the literary +ap began to ta%e pla!e, In his own li"eti+e and "or +ore than de!ade subse:uently, O' ara was %nown as a 2#ew $or% Poet,2 and his progeny ha.e been ta%en to be the poets who deliberately adapted his "or+s and styles8 Ron Padgett, ;ed 5errigan, Ji+ 5rodey, Mi!hael 5rownstein, , John Perreault, Ali!e #otley, Eileen Myles, and a host o" other younger poets loosely asso!iated with &t, Mar%'s Poetry ?enter in the 5owery, ?lar% ?oolidge's own poetry, "or that +atter, was "irst disse+inated in Ron Padgett and Fa.id &hapiro's Ant!olog$ o) New York Poets )/01E*, $et e.en in this early appearan!e, ?oolidge was writing a .ery di""erent sort o" poetry "ro+, say, the Ji+ 5rodey, whose

2Poe+ )'Wo%e ;his A,M,'*2 begins with the lines 2Wo%e this A, M, 3 radio signals in the sunshine at +y sleepy door,2 ?onsider the "ollowing si'(line poe+ )#$P DA*8
prune a!ryli! whose di.es +arls pays loops watts lo!% +i' dee+ white apart sass

ere word play, asynta!ti!ality, radi!al ellipsis, and .isual !on"iguration point toward the wor% )?oolidge's own in!luded* soon to be published by su!h West ?oast >ournals as T!is )/01/* and Hills )/01D*, and, +ore pro+inently, in 9A9N9:9;9A9:9#3 It see+s a "ar !ry "ro+ O' ara's 2Personis+,2 with its >aunty assuran!e that 2you >ust go on your ner.e,2 5ut perhaps it too% a #ew $or% Poet man<u= li%e ?oolidge to understand that O' ara's 2dis!reet2 3 2dis!rete2 language )as opposed to the O' ara +ysti:ue*, "ar "ro+ san!ti"ying the 2natural,2 the !asual, and the uni:ue spea%ing .oi!e, was a!tually pro.iding a groundwor% "or the new+aterialist poeti!s, 2#ote,2 !autions ?harles 5ernstein in 2&tray &traws and &traw Men,2 2that O' ara's word 'personis+' is not 'personalis+'8 it a!%nowledges the wor% to be a "ronting o" another (erson((another +ind, i" you will, as +u!h as another nature, O' ara's wor% (ro(oses a do+ain o" the personal, and not si+ply assuming it, "ully wor%s it out, is re+ar%able use o" .oi!e, "or e'a+ple, allows, through a +using whi+sy in that .oi!e, "or "antasy as wild as any surrealist i+agines, !ontained, still, within his proposed boundaries,2 Another way o" saying this is that "or O' ara, 2.oi!e,2 "ar "ro+ being a gi.en, is, as 5ernstein says, with !o+i! bo+bast )re"erring to poetry in general*8 2!onstru!ted, rule go.erned, e.erywhere !ir!u+s!ribed by gra++ar L synta' , , , designed, +anipulated, pi!%ed, progra++ed, organi-ed, and so an arti"i!e, arti"a!t((+onadi!, solipsisti!, ho+e+ade, +anu"a!tured, +e!hani-ed, "or+ulai!, will"ul2 )?F KE(K/*, 5ob Perel+an, in his witty spoo" o" O' ara's 2A ;rue A!!ount o" ;al%ing to the &un at Fire Island,2 points at the sa+e !onstru!tion o" 2.oi!e,2 when he has Roland 5arthes interrupt O' ara's re!itation o" 2A &tep away Fro+ ;he+,2 with the !o++ent8
2Langurously agitating8 Fran%, I dete!t a poeti! phrase((e.en an elaborately sounded stru!ture,2

And Perel+an's own 2Alphabet o" Literary istory2 is testi+ony to the in"luen!e O' ara's 2elaborately sounded stru!tures,2 with their daring +i' o" 2high2 and 2low2 and their predile!tion "or pun and allusion, ha.e had on the

ne't generation, ere is a snat!h "ro+ the 252 se!tion o" 2Alphabet28
I ply +y needle, ply o.er ply, As you word ea!h line, reader, and e'a+ine the linea+ents o" the phrases, "eel as well the body reading, its present weather, I a+ +ad "or it to be in !onta!t with us, 5ut we'd better s%ip the "iner points, or we won't get a good spot to wat!h the +ar!h o" literature, a,%,a, the triu+ph o" !riti!is+, We'.e +issed the "irst "loats already, Loo%@ )Mar /KG*

;he O' ara who wrote 2;he ?riti!2 )see pp, >'>>>i.>>>iii* would ha.e en>oyed this parodi! 2Alphabet,2 although, it +ust be said, his own wor% always !ontained +ore pain, ;a%e the "irst "our lines o" 2Ode );o Joseph Le&ueur* On ;he Arrow ;hat Flieth by Fay2 )?P DEE, see below pp, //1( HE*8
;o hu+ble yoursel" be"ore a radio on &unday it's a+using, li%e dying a"ter a party 2!li!%2 3 and you're dead "ro+ "all(out, hang(o.er or so+ething hyphenated )?P DEE*

It see+s nothing i" not natural and dire!t8 Fran%, hung(o.er and grou!hy, sounding o"" to his roo++ate Joe, the poe+ hen!e 2between two persons instead o" two pages2 )?P K00*,, 5ut beneath the bra.ado o" 2Personis+2 is, as Perel+an's 5arthes points out, an 2elaborately sounded stru!ture,2 First, the !o+ple'ities o" genre8 the ode e.idently alludes to Walla!e &te.ens's 2&unday Morning,2 in whi!h the wo+an's 2?o+pla!en!ies o" the peignoir, and late 3 ?o""ee and oranges in a sunny !hair2 repla!e the e'pe!ted &unday !hur!h(going ritual, ;he poet's own &unday +orning ritual is to 2hu+ble 6hi+sel"7 be"ore a radio2 rather than be"ore the 2altar2 o" his ?atholi! boyhood, ?asual as the re"eren!e see+s, it thus i++ediately sounds the note o" an alienated &unday, What we don't yet %now is that it also happens to be

Mother's Fay((a double wha++y "or this parti!ular prodigal son, ;he sense o" pain soon to be introdu!ed((2do we really need anything +ore to be sorry about 3 wouldn't it be e'tra, as all pain is e'tra2(( is "oreshadowed by the sardoni! +odulation o" 2it's a+using2 into 2li%e dying a"ter a party,2 Indeed, the +e+ory o" last night is redu!ed to a 2'!li!%'2 )with its a+biguous re"eren!e to !a+era((the 2party shot2((and gun* and, absurdly, 2you're dead "ro+ "all(out, hang(o.er, 3 or so+ething hyphenated,2 ere the poe+ !ondenses into eight words the relationship o" Fran%'s own situation )2hang( o.er2* to the publi! sphere )the "ear o" ato+i! "all(out*, as well as the an'iety o" dealing with the un%nown, unna+able, 2&o+ething hyphenated28 it +ust be one o" those diseases you read about in the papers but whose na+e you !an't pronoun!e, ;o read these lines is to see how thoroughly, i" obli:uely, the naturalisti!2 ode has internali-ed the politi!al and se'ual dis!ourses o" its day, At the ti+e o" writing )the poe+ is dated // May /0GA*, the &o.iet Mnion had >ust !o+pleted the "irst operati.e I?5M )see the allusion in line HE*, thus pro+pting the belligerent M,&, rea!tion to a supposed 2+issile gap,2 Fro+ Fran%'s point o" .iew, the +issile hysteria +ar%s a %ind o" +oral 2death o" a nation2 )see the "il+ allusion in line HG*, a nation whi!h is 2hen!e"orth to be !alled s+all,2 In this newly 2s+all2 nation, the ad.ent o" AIF& was still de!ades away and yet the tal% o" death "ro+ 2so+ething hyphenated2 now see+s li%e a !urious anti!ipation o" I<, And yet, the use o" the se!ond( person i+plies, 2you2 +usn't ta%e it all too seriously8 2it's a+using2((2'!li!%'2(( >ust as it's a+using to +a%e up absurd Mother's Fay +essages and send the+ to a 2Russia2 that no longer e'ists, A+using, 2e'!ept I will ne.er "eel ?O#;E&;8 WI# A Frea+ ;rip pertains to 3 +e, so+ehow,2 E.en here, though, the de"ense +e!hanis+ %i!%s in8 2)Joe, I wouldn't go, probably*,2 O' ara's language in these +o!%(odes and elegies )rather than the O' ara +ysti:ue* has pro.ided an i+portant bridge to the language poeti!s o" the /0AEs and 0Es, Indeed, >ust as it is no longer enough to read O' ara's poetry as the .erbal !ounterpart o" #ew $or% abstra!t e'pressionist painting, so it no longer see+s satis"a!tory to .iew hi+ pri+arily as a "ounding "ather o" #ew $or% Poetry, a s!hool allied, in Fonald Allen's New American Poetr$ )/0CE*, pri+arily with 5la!% Mountain, the 5eats, and the so(!alled &an Fran!is!o Renaissan!e, Rather, we !an now see that this 2+aster o" peripheral .ision,2 as ?oolidge re"ers to O' ara )55 /AK*, de.ised linguisti! stru!tures that anti!ipate the poeti!s o" our own +o+ent, "ro+ ?harles 5ernstein, Ron &illi+an and 9athleen Fraser down to Peter 4i--i and 9enneth 4olds+ith, ?ole &wensen and &usan Wheeler, It has ta%en a long ti+e to understand that those 2strea+ers o" !repe paper "luttering be"ore the ele!tri! "an,2 as 5ewley !alled the+, are a!tually the +ost intri!ate o" language ga+es, One artist who did see it, early on, was John ?age, who wrote the "ollowing +e+orial 2+esosti!2 )internal a!rosti!* on the poet's na+e8

hurtFully Rolls "oot+Ar% redu!i#g negati.e "eedba!9 %Olo+na hart's tongue o !hi +inh huel.A "an!ieRs eusebio "rAn!is!o %ino )55 /AH*

ere it is art ?rane's tongue that pro.ides, .ia John ?age's tribute, that s+all apostrophe )not e.en a "ull("ledged letter@* "or the na+e 2O' ara,2 and 2"rAn!is!o2 )Fran%* is lin%ed to 2%ino2((the "il+ art that was his spe!ial lo.e, ;he "low o" poetry, ?age suggests, depends upon su!h e'panding tributaries,
perlo""Qleland,stan"ord,edu R 5a!% to Mar>orie Perlo""'s o+epage R 5a!% to the EP? o+epage

Footnotes /, erbert A, Leibowit-, 2A Pan Piping on the ?ity &treets8 T!e Collected Poems o) Frank
O'Hara,2 New York Times Book Review, HA #o.e+ber /01/= rpt, inFrank O'Hara: To Be True to a Cit$, ed, &!ott Elledge )Ann Arbor8 Mni.ersity o" Mi!higan Press, /00E*, p, HK, ;his e'!ellent !olle!tion is subse:uently !ited as &E,

H, 4ilbert &orrentino, 2;he #ew #ote2 )re.iew o" unc! Poems*, Bookweek, / May /0CC=
rpt, in &E /G,

D, Fran!is ope, re.iew o" unc! Poems, in New &tatesman, DE April /0CG, p, CAA, K, Marius 5ewley, re.iew o" ove Poems ?Tentative Title@, in New York Review o) Books, D/
Mar!h /0CC,= rpt, in &E /1,

G, ;ho+as 5yro+, re.iew o" Perlo"", Frank O'Hara: Poet among Painters, O' ara's #arl$
%riting, and O' ara's Poems Retrieved, in Times iterar$ &u((lement, H1 January /010, p, 1A, &ubse:uently !ited as ;L&,

C, 9enneth 9o!h, re.iew o" T!e Collected Poems, T!e New Re(u8lic, / and A January /01H=
rpt, in &E DK,

1, ;he "irst edition )Al"red A, 9nop", /01/* supposedly re+ained in print but prospe!ti.e
readers had a hard ti+e lo!ating !opies and it ne.er !a+e out in paperba!%, ;he ?ali"ornia edition o" /00G has a!!ordingly "illed a real need8 to date, a!!ording to Fonald Allen, it has gone through three printings and sold o.er GGEE !opies,

A, ?arroll ;errell, a pro"essor o" English at the Mni.ersity o" Maine and the "ounder o" the
E-ra Pound &o!iety, the Pound >ournal Paideuma, and the two(.olu+e Com(anion to t!e Cantos, organi-ed, "or +any years, an annual Pound !on"eren!e at Orono, is su!!essor 5urton atlen, who put together the "i"ties !on"eren!e, is the editor o" &agetrie8, a >ournal de.oted to poets o" the Pound(Willia+s( ,F, tradition,

0, ;hese are, in order, 2;i+othy F, Waples, 2Fran% O' ara's #er.e8 ;he Indi.idual Artist's
&ta%e in ?old War ?ultural Politi!s2= Andrew Epstein, 2';he Ine'orable Produ!t o" My Own ;i+e'28 Fran% O' ara's Poetry and the ?ine+a2= &!ott Penney, 2?a+p and the &ubli+e in Fran% O' ara's '5iother+'= and &te.e E.ans, 2Fran% O' ara and the Politi!s o" E+ergen!e,2 E.ans's re+ar%able paper "o!used on 2Ode8 &alute to the Fren!h #egro Poets2= another e'!ellent paper on ra!e issues was 5en>a+in Friedlander's 2';he Most Fi""i!ult Relationship'28 Fran% O' ara on Ra!e in the /0GEs,2 Friedlander has also written an intriguing poeti! te't !alled Aetting 5 Commit t!e 5mmortal &(ark: &i>t$.nine Parts o) an #ssa$ on Frank O'Hara"or a new series o" .olu+es on poeti!s to be published by &M#$ Press, under the auspie!es o" the &M#$ 5u""alo Poeti!s Progra+,

/E, ?aleb ?rain, 2Fran% O' ara's 'Fired' &el",2 American iterar$ Histor$, 0, no, H )&u++er //,/001*8 HA1(DEA, see p, HA1, &ubse:uently !ited in the te't as AL , /H, ?rain is again relying on 2Personis+,2 whi!h, a!!ording to O' ara 2was "ounded by +e
a"ter lun!h with LeRoi Jones on August H1, /0G0, a day in whi!h I was in lo.e with so+eone )not Roy, by the way, a blond*, I went ba!% to wor% and wrote a poe+ "or this person2 )?P K00*,

/D, Ja+es E, 5, 5reslin, 2Fran% O' ara,2 From 6odern to Contem(orar$: American Poetr$'
*+B4.*+,4 )?hi!ago8 Mni.ersity o" ?hi!ago Press, /0AK*, p, HHH, 5reslin's !hapter on O' ara is one o" the best treat+ents o" the poetry to date,

/K, Andrew Ross, 2;he Feath o" Lady Fay,2 Poetics Aournal A )June /0A0*8 CA(11= rpt, in
JE DAE(0/,

/G, In the +ythology o" the "i"ties, +oreo.er, as Robert Fa.ido"" has re+inded +e in
!on.ersation, 2shoeshine2 designates +ale gla+our, as in the popular Fred Astaire song, 2;here's a shine on +y shoe 3 And a +elody in +y heart,3 What a wonder"ul way 3 ;o start the day, , , ,2

/C, In an eerie sense, 2stillwagon2 also anti!ipates the Fire Island bea!h buggy that was to
%ill Fran% O' ara,

/1, &ee &tuart 5yron, 2Fran% O' ara8 Poeti! 'Jueertal%',2 re.iew o" T!e &elected Poems o)
Frank O'Hara, Real Pa(er, HK April /01K, HE(H/= rpt, &E CK(C0= p, C1,

/A, ;ho+as Meyer, 24listening ;orsos, &andwi!hes, and ?o!a(?ola,2 re.iew o"
O' ara,#arl$ %riting, Poems Retrieved, and Mar>orie Perlo"", Frank O'Hara: Poet Among Painters,Parnassus C )Fall(Winter /011*8 HK/(G1= rpt, in &E AG(/EH= see p, AC,

/0, It is interesting that O' ara's "ellow !urators at MOMA , his art gallery "riends, and the

painters the+sel.es ha.e largely a!!epted the !onne!tion, &ee, "or e'a+ple, Waldo Ras+ussen, 2Fran% O' ara In ;he Museu+,2 and Renee &, #eu, 2With Fran% At MOMA,2 inHomage to Frank O'Hara, ed, 5ill 5er%son L Joe Le&ueur )5er%eley8 ?reati.e Arts 5oo% ?o+pany, /0AE* pp, A/(0E, 0/(0H, &ubse:uently !ited in the te't as 55, And e.en Rudy 9i%el, in 2;he 4ay Fran% O' ara,2 ta%es the poet's !on!ern "or the i++edia!y o" A!tion Painting as a 2!hara!teristi! outgrowth o" an a!!epted gay sel",2 :a$ &uns!ine' C4 )Winter /01A*, rpt, &E DDK(K0, p, DDC,

HE, &ee pp, *B0.41, ;he other poe+s are 2What Appears to 5e $ours2 )/0CE, ?P DAE*,
2Fear Jap2 )/0CD, ?P K1E*, 2Poe+ );he ?a+bodian 4rass is ?rushed*2 )/0CD, ?P K1H*, and 25athroo+2 )/0CD, ?P K1D*,

H/, &ee pp, *-+ and "igure *1 on p, **1, ;he other art wor%s are 5n 6emor$ o) 6$
Feelings..Frank O'Hara, /0C/, B t!e News, /0CH, 6emor$ Piece ?Frank O'Hara*, /0C/(1E, and 6emor$ Piece ?Frank O'Hara*, /0C/, ;he latter is a plan and ele.ation .iew in in%, graphite, and pen!il o" a s!ulpture )6emor$ Piece* !ontaining a rubber !ast o" O' ara's "oot, !onstru!ted in &outh ?arolina "ro+ a !ast +ade in Johns's #ew $or% studio , In 2For Jap2 )see note /1 abo.e*, O' ara wrote, 2when I thin% o" you in &outh ?arolina I thin% o" +y "oot in the sand,2 &ee Marla Prather, #an Rosenthal, A+y Mi-rahi Sorn, 2?atalogue,2 T!e 7rawings o) Aas(er Ao!ns, ed, #an Rosenthal and Ruth E, Fine )Washington8 #ational 4allery o" Art, /00E*, p, /CC, 5oth the drawing and s!ulpture are reprodu!ed here,

HH, John ?age, 2Jasper Johns8 &tories and Ideas,2 A Year From 6onda$: New ectures and
%ritings )Middletown, ?;8 Wesleyan Mni.ersity Press, /0C1*, p, AK,

HD, Fred Orton, 2Present, the &!ene o" , , , &el.es, the O!!asion o" , , , Ruses,2 in Foirades D
FiEEles: #c!o and Allusion in t!e Art o) Aas(er Ao!ns, ed, Ja+es ?uno )Los Angeles8 ;he 4runewald ?enter "or the 4raphi! Arts and Wight Art 4allery at M?LA, /0A1*, pp, /10(AE, &ubse:uently !ited in the te't as FF,

HK, Leo &teinberg, 2Jasper Johns8 ;he First &e.en $ears o" is Art,2 Ot!er Criteria8
?on"rontations with ;wentieth(?entury Art )#ew $or%8 O'"ord, /01H*, pp, /1(0/, see p, KK,

HG, Ron Padgett and Fa.id &hapiro )eds,*, An Ant!olog$ o) New York Poets )#ew $or%8
Rando+ ouse, /01E*, p, H01, &ubse:uently !ited as #$P,

HC, ?harles 5ernstein, Content's 7ream, #ssa$s *+/4.*+0B )Los Angeles8 &un L Moon,
/0AC*, pp, KG(KC, &ubse:uently !ited in the te't as ?F,

H1, 5ob Perel+an, 2A False A!!ount o" ;al%ing with Fran% O' ara and Roland 5arthes in
Philadelphia,2 T!e 6arginaliEation o) Poetr$: anguage %riting and iterar$ Histor$)Prin!eton8 Prin!eton Mni.ersity Press, /00C*, pp, /GC(CG, see p, /C/, &ubse:uently !ited as MP,