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A Literary Walking Tour of Eastside Iowa City, Spring 1990

Literary Walking Tour of Eastside of Iowa City Page 8

would cut the walk short, go back to my own apartment and work till dawn." (C Blaise, "The Literary Life," North American Review, Dec 1984, p 60). Blaise was director of the Emory University Summer Institute and Festival of Writing in Atlanta, Professor of Humanities at York University in Toronto, and alternating professor at Skidmore with his spouse, writer Bharti Mukherjee. He is the author of Lunar Attractions, Lusts, A North American Education, Tribal Justice, and Resident Alien.

Lee Blessing, MFA 1976, UI Writers' Workshop; MFA 1979, UI Playwrights Workshop. He lived at 317 N Lucas. In 1988 he received the Tony Award for his play, "A Walk in the Woods," and was runner-up for the Pulitzer Prize. In 1979 he received the top writing prize, the National Student Playwrighting Award for "The Authentic Life of Billy the Kid." Blessing writes, "A great virtue for me at Iowa was that I had an absolute total right to fail."

Vance Bourjaily, taught UI Writers' Workshop from 1957 until his resignation in the early 1980s when he and Donald Justice left Iowa in 'conspicuous protest' of the low faculty salaries; Bourjaily to Arizona and Justice to his home state of Florida. A teacher for 32 years (most of them at UI), a farmer, and a political activist, Bourjaily included colleagues and students in the many parties and pig roasts on his 'Red Bird' farm 10 miles southwest of Iowa City. In the late 1950s Ernest Hemingway described Bourjaily as "...the most talented writer we have under 50." Author of nine novels, two non-fiction works, and many short stories, his most recent novel is The Great Fake Book. In 1989 Bourjaily was appointed Director of the new MFA program at Louisiana State. (Dinty W. Moore, AWP Chronicle, Feb 1990)

T. Coraghessan Boyle, MFA 1974 UI Writers' Workshop; PhD 1977 UI, visiting professor UI Writers' Workshop, currently professor USC. He received the 1988 PEN Faulkner Award. "A Kurt Vonnegut type," (Des Moines Register, 4-29-88, Patrick Beach) Boyle's work appears in Esquire, The Paris Review, and The Atlantic. His story, "Women's Restaurant," has an Iowa City setting (currently the Saigon Restauran, 209 N Linn Street).

Anthony Burgess, Visiting lecturer in early 1970's in UI Dept of English. "...festive personality; ...while in Iowa City he conducted a symphony that he had composed, and played piano accompaniment to silent movies at the [then] annual film festival, 'Refocus'...he sold the rights to "Clockwork Orange" for a mere $500, plus he didn't get to write the film and he didn't much care for the movie." (David Overstreet, Seems Like Old Times) While in Iowa City Burgess lived at 119 W Park Road.

Raymond Carver, taught 1983 UI Writers' Workshop. He lived at the Iowa House. Before his death in 1989 he taught at Goddard College in Vermont. He was nominated in 1977 for the National Book Award, and was published in Pushcart Prize, American Short Stories, and O. Henry Prize Stories. Although Carver did not complete his MFA at UI Writers' Workshop, he did study at UI with his ido, John Gardner. His widow is poet Tess Gallagher.

John Casey, MFA 1968, 1989 National Book Award winner for Spartina, first book of a trilogy. He had a farm in Iowa, with wife, Jane Barnes Casey (author of I, Krupskaya,

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would cut the walk short, go back to my own apartment and work till dawn." (C Blaise, "The Literary Life," North American Review, Dec 1984, p 60). Blaise was director of the Emory University Summer Institute and Festival of Writing in Atlanta, Professor of Humanities at York University in Toronto, and alternating professor at Skidmore with his spouse, writer Bharti Mukherjee. He is the author of Lunar Attractions, Lusts, A North American Education, Tribal Justice, and Resident Alien. Lee Blessing, MFA 1976, UI Writers' Workshop; MFA 1979, UI Playwrights Workshop. He lived at 317 N Lucas. In 1988 he received the Tony Award for his play, "A Walk in the Woods," and was runner-up for the Pulitzer Prize. In 1979 he received the top writing prize, the National Student Playwrighting Award for "The Authentic Life of Billy the Kid." Blessing writes, "A great virtue for me at Iowa was that I had an absolute total right to fail." Vance Bourjaily, taught UI Writers' Workshop from 1957 until his resignation in the early 1980s when he and Donald Justice left Iowa in 'conspicuous protest' of the low faculty salaries; Bourjaily to Arizona and Justice to his home state of Florida. A teacher for 32 years (most of them at UI), a farmer, and a political activist, Bourjaily included colleagues and students in the many parties and pig roasts on his 'Red Bird' farm 10 miles southwest of Iowa City. In the late 1950s Ernest Hemingway described Bourjaily as "...the most talented writer we have under 50." Author of nine novels, two non-fiction works, and many short stories, his most recent novel is The Great Fake Book. In 1989 Bourjaily was appointed Director of the new MFA program at Louisiana State. (Dinty W. Moore, AWP Chronicle, Feb 1990) T. Coraghessan Boyle, MFA 1974 UI Writers' Workshop; PhD 1977 UI, visiting professor UI Writers' Workshop, currently professor USC. He received the 1988 PEN Faulkner Award. "A Kurt Vonnegut type," (Des Moines Register, 4-29-88, Patrick Beach) Boyle's work appears in Esquire, The Paris Review, and The Atlantic. His story, "Women's Restaurant," has an Iowa City setting (currently the Saigon Restauran, 209 N Linn Street). Anthony Burgess, Visiting lecturer in early 1970's in UI Dept of English. "...festive personality; ...while in Iowa City he conducted a symphony that he had composed, and played piano accompaniment to silent movies at the [then] annual film festival, 'Refocus'...he sold the rights to "Clockwork Orange" for a mere $500, plus he didn't get to write the film and he didn't much care for the movie." (David Overstreet, Seems Like Old Times) While in Iowa City Burgess lived at 119 W Park Road. Raymond Carver, taught 1983 UI Writers' Workshop. He lived at the Iowa House. Before his death in 1989 he taught at Goddard College in Vermont. He was nominated in 1977 for the National Book Award, and was published in Pushcart Prize, American Short Stories, and O. Henry Prize Stories. Although Carver did not complete his MFA at UI Writers' Workshop, he did study at UI with his ido, John Gardner. His widow is poet Tess Gallagher. John Casey, MFA 1968, 1989 National Book Award winner for Spartina, first book of a trilogy. He had a farm in Iowa, with wife, Jane Barnes Casey (author of I, Krupskaya,