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Rare Book & Manuscript Library |
Summary InformationAbstract
At a Glance
ArrangementArrangementThis collection is arranged in 6 series.
DescriptionSummaryThe Gregory Corso Papers contains correspondence, artwork, and published and unpublished writings, as well as photographs and sound recordings of Corso and fellow beat writers. Many of the items in the collection include explanatory notes or annotations that Corso added when preparing to sell these papers.
Using the CollectionRare Book and Manuscript Library Restrictions on AccessYou will need to make an appointment in advance to use this collection material in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room. You can schedule an appointment once you've submitted your request through your Special Collections Research Account. This collection is located on-site. This collection has no restrictions. Unique time-based media items have been reformatted and are available onsite via links in the container list. Commercial materials are not routinely digitized. Email rbml@columbia.edu for more information. Terms Governing Use and ReproductionSingle photocopies may be made for research purposes. The RBML maintains ownership of the physical material only. Copyright remains with the creator and his/her heirs. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron. Preferred CitationIdentification of specific item; Date (if known); Gregory Corso papers; Box and Folder; Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University Library. Related Material-- At ColumbiaReminiscences of Gregory Nunzio Corso: Oral History, Columbia University Oral History Research Office Allen Ginsberg Papers, 1943-1991 Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Columbia University. Gregory Corso Collection, 1890-1978, Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, University of Texas. AccrualsMaterials may have been added to the collection since this finding aid was prepared. Contact rbml@columbia.edu for more information. Immediate Source of AcquisitionMethod of acquisition--Purchase (26312E; 28027E; 09853F; 637912; 297-5/9/80); Date of acquisition--1980. Accession number--M-80. Typescript and galley proofs of MINDFIELDS: Source of acquisition--Gotham Book Mart. Method of acquisition--293 (Gen); Date of acquisition--10/02/89. Accession number--M-89-10-02. About the Finding Aid / Processing InformationColumbia University Libraries, Rare Book and Manuscript Library Processing InformationCataloged 05/09/89 Christina Hilton Fenn Typescript and galley proofs of MINDFIELDS. Processed 01/12/90 PL Collection processed October 2009 by Carrie Hintz Finding Aid written November 2009 by Carrie Hintz Revision Description2009-11-12 File created. 2009-11-24 xml document instance created by Carrie Hintz 2019-05-20 EAD was imported spring 2019 as part of the ArchivesSpace Phase II migration. Subject HeadingsThe subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches at Columbia University through the Archival Collections Portal and through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, as well as ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives. All links open new windows. Genre/Form
Subject
History / Biographical NoteBiographical / HistoricalGregory Nunzio Corso, born to very young Italian immigrants in New York's Greenwich Village, had a troubled childhood. His mother left Corso's father and her son within a year of Gregory's birth, and he spent most of his youth moving between different foster homes and orphanages or living on the street. As a teenager, he landed briefly in jail and spent three months under psychiatric evaluation at Bellevue, but it was his three years incarcerated in New York's Clinton State Prison (as a repeat offender for theft) that proved to be transformative for Corso. In the prison library he discovered Rimbaud and Percy Shelley and it was during this stint in jail that he began to write poetry. In 1950, upon his release from prison, Corso again began to frequent the bars and cafés of Greenwich Village. It was here that he met Allen Ginsberg who introduced the young poet to Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs, Neal Cassady, and the rest of the original members of the Beat Generation. Corso's commitment to creating spontaneous poetry fit in well with the beats' "New Vision" for American poetry and Corso was quickly integrated into the group of friends, traveling with them to give poetry readings in San Francisco and collaborating with them on various creative projects. Corso's first book of poetry, The Vestal Lady on Brattle was published in 1955 and gained Corso some critical acclaim and enough money to fund his travels through abroad. He traveled through Europe and set up residence in the Paris boarding house later christened the Beat Hotel and, along with Ginsberg, Orlovsky, and Kerouac, traveled to Tangier to help William Burroughs edit the Naked Lunch manuscript. Corso returned to New York in 1958 in time to see his book of poetry, Gasoline, published as part of City Lights' Pocket Poet series. Though he did write some plays and some prose, most notably the novel The American Express, his prime focus was always on his poetry and he published a number of books of poetry throughout his career and lectured on creative writing and poetry. Gregory Corso died of complications from prostate cancer in 2001. He was 70 years old. |