Dead Poets Society of America

Deadline For Photo & Video Contest Extended

The Deadline for the Grand Tombstone Photo and Video Contest has been extended to April 23rd, 2011. That means there is more time to take some creative film or digital footage in order to win some of the $4,000 in prizes.

Lorine Niedecker: A Reminiscence (video)

When the Dead Poets Grand Tour 2010 rolled through the hills of Wisconsin, we stopped in Ft. Atkinson at the grave of Lorine Niedecker. One of the young poets who read that day is Margaret, and she and her mother have put together a great, homesgrown, homespun video reminiscence of Niedecker. It is very well done.

200th Grave Reached!

After more than 2 years of a long, strange and wonderful journey (living on deds, Vitamin B, and caffeine), I found my 200th poet's grave yesterday-- in New Jersey, of all places. YAHOO and Praise the Lord!

it was raining, I was tired, but the life and poetry of Afred Gibbs Campbell seemed to be calling from the grave, and I just happened to drive into the entrance to a Party Store. So.....sometime around 5 PM, in ye olde Presbyterian graveyard in Mercerville, we had a happy deadday party, complete with Carvel ice cream, a top hat, shiny red beads, candles and a party popper that shot confetti into the grey, rainy sky.

Then, as the clock struck six, and the lovely old hymns came melodiously flowing from the weather-beaten steeple, we sent up to Alred  a ballon saying "Welcome Home" It was a great way to celebrate a Grand Finale to roughly 20,000 miles of good times and good friends in search of the graves of America's poets (those buried East of the Mississippi)

I would like to thank all of those fabulous people I met along the way who made dead poets come alive by your readings, and for showing me that poetry lives through your lives.

What's next? Well, since you asked....if you don't mind funding it I will lead you next summer  on a one month journey through Ireland, England, France, Italy, Poland and Austria to visit the graves of American poets buried abroad. (See, the map is already done)

Dedgar & Crew Break World Literary Land Speed Record!

At 5:30 PM, at the grave of James Russell Lowell, in Mt. Auburn Cemetery, the crew of the USS Starship DEDGAR smashed the world literary land speed record by visiting the graves of 26 poets within 12 hours!

This epic journey, which had  a sunrise start at the grave of Stanley Kunitz, in Provincetown, MA, was traveling at an average speed of 52 GPD (Graves Per Day), or, more than 2 GPH (Graves Per Hour).

Along the way we managed to visit two poetry landmarks: the Longfellow House and the Woodberry Poetry Room, both in Cambridge, MA. It was a truly phenomenal way to go out with a BANG on the Great Grand Tour 2010.

Dead Poets Remembrance Day Announced

Shakespeare is Dancing in His Grave!!

The debut of the Dead Poets Remembrance Day is finally here....On October 7th, Celebrate America's dead poets with your neighbors.

Grab your camera or video and do some digging for a poets' grave...You could win $1,000. 

While we want want this celebration to spread around the Globe like a contagious happy virus, we don't have maps for Canadian poets. If you are Canadian and live near the border of the US, you are welcome to track down an US poets' grave and enter the Grant Tombstone competition.

The New Lorine?

The New Lorine, from Ft. Atkinson? You never know.

$4,000 in Prizes Announced in Search for Poets' Graves

(The ending date for the competition has moved to April 23rd, 2011. Still plenty of time to take photos and do videos)

At the 1st Dead Poets Bash in Portland, Maine, the Dead Poets Society of America announced $4,000 in prize money for people who take the best photos and videos related to a poet's grave.

It's called the Grand Tombstone Competition, and 8 resourceful winners will share the awards, with a $1,000 1st place award in BOTH the photo and the video category.

Official rules and judging criteria will be posted on May 1. Let the Digging Begin!

Keep Comments and Suggestions Coming

Thanks to all who are writing comments and suggesting new poets to add to our list. Please understand that with the pace of our road trip we may not be able to respond quickly. Rest assured that we read and appreciate the feedback, and will add names to lists when we can. Thanx :)

Historic Grand Tour 2010 Announced

On April 23rd the Dead Poets Grand Tour 2010 will kick-off a 34-day, 21-state trip from Portland, Maine. Along the way 13 State Poets Laureate will be meeting the Tour and holding public readings, where we'll announce some very exciting news about a new national literary holiday. Be on the lookout for a Dead Poets Bash near you!

Here is the map of the route with the dates of the stops.