This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The special collections and archives at Utah State University's Merrill-Cazier Library became more Beat heavy last fall.
That's when poet Charles Potts donated an extensive archive of publications and literary correspondence from almost five decades of his career as poet and publisher. This week, Potts follows up his with two readings and a teaching seminar at Utah State University and in a Logan cafe.
A native of Mackay, Idaho, Potts has lived and worked in Salt Lake City, Seattle and Berkeley. Since he published his first poem in 1963, he has worked to promote poetry in a variety of ways. Labeled "the Jack Mormon equivalent of Groucho Marx," Potts corresponded with poetry legends ranging from Charles Bukowski to Charles Foster. He also established literary journals and publishing enterprises including Litmus, Inc. and The Temple, named after the Masonic structure in Walla Walla, Wash., where he lives today.
Although hesitant about being associated with any one school of poetry, Potts said he's often grouped with the "Black Mountain" poets, who eschewed foundational structures of verse in favor of intellectual rigor.
Potts chose USU for his archives due to the quality of its facilities, its existing archive of Beat poetry including Gary Snyder and Alan Ginsberg, plus his acquaintance with Brad Cole, the library's associate dean for special collections and archives.
Potts said his family also traces its Mormon pioneer roots back to the Cache Valley. "I didn't want to burden my children with the problem of what to do with my literary stuff," Potts said.
Donations of literary papers resonate especially in the digital age, when correspondence written on paper has become almost antique, Potts said.
"I think over time literary correspondence will become even more valuable," he said. "It's good for puzzling out what writers were going through, and how it might add greater context to their work. I've always said writing material worth reading is difficult, but also easy. All you have to do is write so well that people never forget it. I believe there's material in there that I've written or edited that makes the cut."
Cole said Potts' contributions to American poetry are unique because they came of age at the tail-end of the Beat era, bridging over to the height of Berkeley's Free Speech movement.
Potts was also a tireless champion of unknown and undiscovered poets. As part of the Babylon Theater improv group during his years in Salt Lake City, from 1968 to 1977 Potts brought poets Charles Bukowski, Andy Clausen, Richardo Sanchez and Edward Dorn into town for readings.
"He's been through almost every trend in contemporary poetry," Cole said.
Twitter:@Artsalt
Facebook.com/tribremix —
Potts reads at USU
P The poet will offer two readings at Utah State University on Sept. 7, 2 p.m. and Sept. 8, 7 p.m.
When and where • Sept. 7, 2 p.m., Room 101 of the Merrill-Cazier Library on Utah State University campus, 3000 Old Main Hill, Logan
When and where • Sept. 8, 7 p.m., True Aggie Café, 117 N. Main Street, Logan.
Info • Free. Call 435-797-0267 for more information.