ELWYN B. ROBINSON DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
CHESTER FRITZ LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA
GRAND FORKS, NORTH DAKOTA 58202
COLLECTION: OGL #1387
DATES: 1973-1991
SIZE: 1.75 linear feet
ACQUISITION: The James McKenzie Papers were deposited in the Orin G. Libby Manuscript Collection by James McKenzie, Department of English, on May 21, 1999 and May 21 and 28, 2004 (Acc.#99-2324 and Acc.#2004-2677).
ACCESS: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Department of Special Collections.
RELATED COLLECTION: UA #92, English Department Records
RELATED PUBLICATIONS:
The Beat Diary edited by Arthur & Kit Knight,
California, PA : A. and K. Knight, 1977.
Call Number: PS228.B6 B38 1977
The Beat Journey edited by Arthur & Kit Knight, California, PA: A. and K.
Knight, 1978.
Call Number: PS228.B6 B44
James (Jim) McKenzie received his Bachelor’s of Arts degree from Duquense University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1966. He received a PhD in English from the University of Notre Dame in 1971. His dissertation was entitled, “A New American Nature Poetry: Theodore Roethke, James Dickey, and James Wright”.
McKenzie arrived at the University of North Dakota in the Fall of 1971. In 1987 he became the advisory editor for the North Dakota Quarterly and the director of the UND Annual Writer’s Conference in 1997. He has received many awards throughout his career including the UND Foundation McDermott Award of Individual Excellence in Teaching in 1998 and 1999 and the 1993 Larry Remele Fellowship Award.
The James McKenzie Papers date from 1973-1991 and consist of materials from the 1974 Writer’s Conference, McKenzie’s students’ journals, and miscellaneous documents. The 5th Annual University of North Dakota’s Writer’s Conference, “City Lights in North Dakota”, was held in March 1974. The featured authors/artists were Gregory Corso, Allan Ginsberg, Michael McClure, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Gary Snyder, and Peter Orlovsky. The Writer’s Conference material consists of newspaper articles in the Dakota Student and Grand Forks Herald, and an article in the North American Review about the week-long event. Also included is biographical information, correspondence, and interviews of the featured authors as well as materials from their readings. Interviews with Ginsberg, Orlovsky, and McClure were published in The Beat Journey, while an interview by McKenzie of Gary Snyder was published in The Beat Diary.
Secondly, are 27 journals written by students in McKenzie's classes. Four journals are reactions, feelings, and thoughts to books, movies, and poetry from a Black American Writers class. Nine journals are from Composition I and II classes. They are reactions to books, poems, plays, and movies that the student read or saw. Twelve journals are from Humanities courses and contain cultural event reactions and also personal thoughts, feelings, and opinions as they came up throughout the semester. Lastly, is one journal containing reactions and feelings to Modern American Poetry the student read. The size and frequency of the entries vary. Most journals have at least weekly entries and are at least ½-1 page in length. The student’s names have been removed from the journals.
Miscellaneous materials include an article written by James McKenzie entitled, "Pole Vaulting in Top Hats: A Public Conversation with John Barth, William Gass, and Ishmael Reed" which was published in Modern Fiction Studies.
Box 1
Folder
1974 Writers Conference Materials
Student Journals
Box 2
Folder
Miscellaneous
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