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Gerald Stern
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{{Short description|American poet, essayist, educator (1925β2022)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}} {{Use American English|date=October 2022}} {{Infobox writer | name = Gerald Stern | image = Stern, Gerald (Portrait).jpg | caption = Stern at the [[Miami Book Fair International]] in 2011 | alt = Image of Gerald Stern wearing a hat | birth_date = {{Birth date|1925|02|22|}} | birth_place = [[Pittsburgh]], Pennsylvania, U.S. | occupation = {{cslist | Poet | essayist | educator}} | death_date = {{Death date and age|2022|10|27|1925|02|22}} | death_place = New York City, U.S. | education = {{Plain list| * [[University of Pittsburgh]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]]) * [[Columbia University]] ([[Master of Arts|MA]]) * [[University of Paris]]}} | notableworks = | spouse = {{marriage|Patricia Miller|1952||end=divorced}} | partner = [[Anne Marie Macari]] | children = 2 }} '''Gerald Daniel Stern''' (February 22, 1925 β October 27, 2022) was an American poet, essayist, and educator. The author of twenty collections of poetry and four books of essays, he taught literature and creative writing at [[Temple University]], [[Indiana University of Pennsylvania]], [[Raritan Valley Community College]] and the [[Iowa Writers' Workshop]]. From 2009 until his death, he was a distinguished poet-in-residence and faculty member of [[Drew University]]'s graduate program for a [[Master of Fine Arts]] (MFA) in poetry. Stern was a graduate of the [[University of Pittsburgh]] and [[Columbia University]] and attended the [[University of Paris]] for post-graduate study. He received the [[National Book Award for Poetry]] in 1998 for ''This Time: New and Selected Poems'' and was named a finalist for the [[Pulitzer Prize in Poetry]] in 1991 for ''Leaving Another Kingdom: Selected Poems''. In 2000, Governor [[Christine Todd Whitman]] appointed him the first [[Poet Laureate of New Jersey]]. ==Early life== Stern was born in [[Pittsburgh]], Pennsylvania, on February 22, 1925.<ref name="NYT obit">{{cite news|title=Gerald Stern, Poet of Wistfulness, Anger and Humor, Dies at 97|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/29/books/gerald-stern-dead.html|first=Neil|last=Genzlinger|date=October 29, 2022|access-date=October 29, 2022|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref><ref name="conauth">{{Cite book |editor-last1=May |editor-first1=Hal |editor-last2=Lesniak |editor-first2=James G. |title=Contemporary Authors |title-link=Contemporary Authors |year=1990 |isbn=0-8103-1982-9 |publisher=[[Gale (publisher)|Gale]] |oclc=1028565620 |pages=[[iarchive:contemporaryauth0028mayh/page/449/mode/1up|449β450]] |issn=0275-7176 }}</ref> His parents, Harry and Ida Barach Stern, were Jewish and immigrated to the United States from Ukraine and Poland, respectively, in 1905. They owned several clothing stores and sold other items including cigars.<ref name="NYT obit"/> Stern attended [[Taylor Allderdice High School]] in his hometown, graduating in 1942.<ref name="NYT obit"/><ref>{{Cite news|date=October 22, 2015 |url=http://jewishchronicle.timesofisrael.com/at-90-poet-gerald-stern-honored-at-pitt-this-feels-terrific/ |title=At 90, poet Gerald Stern honored at Pitt: 'This feels terrific' |website=[[Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle]] }}</ref> He was initially rejected from military service due to his poor eyesight, but served in the [[United States Army Air Forces|Army Air Forces]] from 1946 to 1947 after the military re-examined him. He studied at the [[University of Pittsburgh]], graduating with a [[Bachelor of Arts]] in 1947. Two years later, he obtained a [[Master of Arts]] from [[Columbia University]].<ref name="NYT obit"/><ref name="Stern">{{cite web|last=Stern|first=Gerald|title= Gerald Stern's Papers|url=https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3AUS-PPiU-sc200704/viewer|publisher=Special Collections Department, University of Pittsburgh|access-date=November 14, 2013}}</ref> ==Career== [[File:Stern & Pinsky.jpg|thumb|Stern with [[Robert Pinsky]]]] After earning his master's degree, Stern relocated to Europe to undertake doctoral studies at the [[University of Paris]].<ref name="NYT obit"/><ref>{{cite news|title=Two award-winning poets on tap in Frostic Reading Series|url=https://wmich.edu/news/2016/04/31504|date=April 7, 2016|access-date=October 29, 2022|publisher=[[Western Michigan University]]}}</ref> However, he did not finish his degree and spent his twenties traveling between New York City and Europe.<ref name=gug /><ref name=Norman>{{cite news|title=Poet Gerald Stern remains riveting|url=https://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/tony-norman/2015/10/13/Tony-Norman-3/stories/201510130058|first=Tony|last=Norman|date=October 12, 2015|access-date=October 29, 2022|newspaper=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20221030052711/https://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/tony-norman/2015/10/13/Tony-Norman-3/stories/201510130058|archivedate=October 30, 2022}}</ref> It was during this time that he started to write and publish poetry.<ref name="NYT obit"/> Stern went back to the US in 1956 and started teaching at [[Temple University]].<ref name="NYT obit"/> He remained there for seven years and left after being unable to receive [[Academic tenure|tenure]]. He subsequently taught at [[Indiana University of Pennsylvania]] for four years.<ref name=Norman/> After a period of [[paid leave]], he taught at [[Raritan Valley Community College]] in New Jersey,<ref name=Norman/><ref name=Cutler>{{cite news|title=Gerald Stern: A Q&A with New Jersey's former poet laureate|url=https://www.nj.com/entertainment/arts/2012/11/gerald_stern_a_qa_with_new_jer.html|first=Jacqueline|last=Cutler|date=November 18, 2012|access-date=October 29, 2022|newspaper=[[NJ.com]]}}</ref> before briefly working at Pittsburgh (his alma mater) in 1979.<ref name=Norman/> He then went to the [[University of Iowa]] at the behest of the [[Iowa Writers' Workshop]], and taught there for 14 years until his retirement in 1996. Stern came out of retirement to teach at [[Sarah Lawrence College]] for a while.<ref name=Norman/> Stern published his first poem, "The Pineys", in 1969 in ''The Journal of the Rutgers University Library''. Four years later, he released his first [[poetry collection]] titled ''Rejoicings''.<ref name="NYT obit"/> His work became widely recognized after the 1977 publication of his second collection, ''Lucky Life'',<ref name="NYT obit"/> which was that year's [[Lamont Poetry Selection]],<ref>{{cite news|title=Gerald Stern to Read His Poems at the Library of Congress|url=https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-01-057/gerald-stern-to-read-his-poems-at-the-library-of-congress/2001-04-10/|date=April 10, 2001|access-date=October 29, 2022|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]}}</ref> and was nominated for the [[National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry]].<ref name="NYT obit"/> He also authored a series of essays on writing poetry in ''[[American Poetry Review]].'' He went on to receive several awards for his writing, including the 1996 [[Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize]], the 1998 [[National Book Award]] for ''This Time: New and Selected Poems,''<ref name=nba1998/> and the 2012 [[Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry|Library of Congress Rebekah Johnson Bobbitt National Award]]<ref name="Bobbitt" /> for ''Early Collected Poems: 1965β1992.'' He was [[Poet Laureate of New Jersey]] from 2000 to 2002,<ref name=aap /><ref>[https://www.loc.gov/rr/main/poets/newjersey.html Library of Congress > accessed May 16, 2008]</ref> and received the [[Wallace Stevens Award]] from the [[Academy of American Poets]] in 2005. From 2006 on Stern was a chancellor of the [[Academy of American Poets]].<ref name=aap>{{Cite web|url=https://poets.org/poet/gerald-stern |title=About Gerald Stern |publisher=[[Academy of American Poets]]}}</ref> In addition to the aforementioned academic institutions, Stern also taught at [[Rutgers University]].<ref name=Cutler/> During the mid-1970s, he was a literature consultant for both New Jersey and Pennsylvania Council of the Arts as well as a coordinator for Pennsylvania's poetry in schools program.<ref name="Stern"/> Stern was a faculty member and co-founder of [[New England College]]'s [[Master of Fine Arts]] Program in Poetry. ==Personal life== Stern married Patricia Miller in 1952. They had two children together. They divorced in the 1980s.<ref name="NYT obit"/> He was in a domestic partnership with poet [[Anne Marie Macari]] during the last 25 years of his life, and he lived in New York City and [[Miami Beach, Florida]].<ref name="NYT obit"/><ref name="gug">{{Cite web |title=Gerald Stern |url=https://www.gf.org/fellows/all-fellows/gerald-stern/ |access-date=October 30, 2022 |publisher=[[Guggenheim Fellowship]] }}</ref> Stern died on October 27, 2022, at the Calvary Hospice in [[New York City]]. He was 97 years old.<ref name="NYT obit"/><ref name=AP>{{cite news|title=Gerald Stern, prize-winning and lyrical poet, dies at 97|url=https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-new-york-pittsburgh-city-b1c19e6e5a16854ccc422c60632e57dd|first=Hillel|last=Italie|date=October 29, 2022|access-date=October 29, 2022|work=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> == Publications == {{Main article|Gerald Stern bibliography}} ==Honors and awards== * 1976 National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship<ref name=NEA>{{cite web|title=Literature Fellowships|url=https://www.arts.gov/grants/recent-grants/literature-fellowships?field_year_value=All&field_lit_fellows_type_value=3&title=Gerald+Stern|access-date=October 29, 2022|publisher=[[National Endowment for the Arts]]}}</ref> * 1977 Lamont Poetry Selection<ref name=aap /> * 1980 Guggenheim Fellowship<ref name=gug/> * 1981 Melville Caine Award<ref name=gug/> * 1982 National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship<ref name=NEA/> * 1987 National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship<ref name=NEA/><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.arts.gov/pub/NEA_lit.pdf|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060923033120/http://www.arts.gov/pub/NEA_lit.pdf|url-status=dead|title=NEA Literature Fellowships > 40 Years of Supporting American Writers|archivedate=September 23, 2006}}</ref> * 1991 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry Finalist<ref name=pulitzer>[http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/Poetry "Poetry"]. ''Past winners & finalists by category''. The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved April 8, 2012.</ref> * 1992 Paterson Poetry Prize<ref name=UGA>{{cite web|title=Poet Gerald Stern to give reading at UGA|url=https://news.uga.edu/041004stern/|date=October 4, 2004|access-date=October 29, 2022|work=UGA Today|publisher=[[University of Georgia]]}}</ref> * 1996 Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize<ref name=gug/> * 1998 [[National Book Award for Poetry]]<ref name=nba1998> [https://www.nationalbook.org/awards-prizes/national-book-awards-1998 "National Book Awards β 1972"]. [[National Book Foundation]]. Retrieved 2012-04-07. <br/>(With acceptance speech by Stern and essay by Ross Gay from the Awards 60-year anniversary blog.)</ref> * 2000β2002 Poet Laureate of New Jersey<ref name=AP/> * 2005 National Jewish Book Award in Poetry<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jewishbookcouncil.org/e107_plugins/njba_winners_menu/njba_winners.php?60 |title=Jewish Book Council |access-date=February 2, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100616034915/http://www.jewishbookcouncil.org/e107_plugins/njba_winners_menu/njba_winners.php?60 |archive-date=June 16, 2010 }} Jewish Book Council > National Jewish Book Award Winners]</ref> * 2005 Wallace Stevens Award<ref name=gug/> * 2012 [[Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry|Library of Congress Rebekah Johnson Bobbitt National Award]]<ref name="Bobbitt">{{cite web | title=Library of Congress Awards Gerald Stern The Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry, Jan. 24 | url=https://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2012/12-197.html | publisher=Library of Congress |access-date=October 23, 2012 | date=October 23, 2012}}</ref> ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== * [https://poets.org/poet/gerald-stern Gerald Stern] at the [[Academy of American Poets]] * [https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3AUS-PPiU-sc200704/viewer Gerald Stern papers] at the [[University of Pittsburgh]] Library System * {{imdb name|3167236}} {{NJ Poets Laureate|state=autocollapse}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Stern, Gerald}} [[Category:1925 births]] [[Category:2022 deaths]] [[Category:American male poets]] [[Category:Columbia University alumni]] [[Category:Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences]] [[Category:Iowa Writers' Workshop faculty]] [[Category:Jewish American poets]] [[Category:National Book Award winners]] [[Category:National Endowment for the Arts Fellows]] [[Category:New England College faculty]] [[Category:University of Iowa faculty]] [[Category:Temple University faculty]] [[Category:People from Lambertville, New Jersey]] [[Category:Poets from New Jersey]] [[Category:Poets laureate of New Jersey]] [[Category:The New Yorker people]] [[Category:University of Pittsburgh alumni]] [[Category:Military personnel from Pittsburgh]] [[Category:Writers from Pittsburgh]] [[Category:PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award winners]] [[Category:21st-century American Jews]] [[Category:20th-century American Jews]] [[Category:20th-century American poets]] [[Category:20th-century American male writers]] [[Category:21st-century American poets]] [[Category:21st-century American male writers]] [[Category:Writers from Hunterdon County, New Jersey]]
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