For those who don’t know the original slam, The Uptown Poetry Slam at the Green Mill in Chicago, continues to this day, and I’m pretty sure that it’s the longest running weekly entertainment in Chicago. Twenty-three and half years. That’s about 1200 shows playing to full houses almost every night. Damn amazing for a poetry event.

Tonight’s guest poet is ROB STURMA. Rob has performed for a number of years under the monicker Ratpack Slim, and during those years, he was on the Los Feliz Slam Team two years running (2003-2004), made it to the finals stage with Team Hollywood in 2005, and as slammaster of Western Regional slam team Gang Green, took three teams to Big Sur, rocking nationally ranked teams outta their seats.

He was the host of the seminal Los Angeles open mic Green from 2003-2007, featuring everyone from Jack Hirschmann to Andrea Gibson (Buddy Wakefield and Mike McGee neck in neck for most repeat features). He was the poetry editor for GetUnderground.com and Kotori Magazine, did a series of webstories called “Children of Slam” for kcet.org, was seen in the documentary Sp!t, and on the BET show “The Way We Do It”.

David Alan Grier gave him a 9.5 in a Comedy Central slam pilot. Snakes On A Plane/ Wolverine producer Jeff Katz called Rob’s poetry “outstanding” and Hardcore Wrestling Legend Mick Foley said Sturma’s poem about him “gave him goosebumps”. His new collection of poems Miles of Hallelujah will be available on Write Bloody Press in Fall 2009.

That’s a lot of credentials which isn’t uncommon for slammers these days. But credentials don’t mean much in Chicago. We’re hoping he rocks the house and he probably will. If you’re nearby come out and see for yourself.

Chicago Slam Works engineered another successful event this past weekend — initiating the banking public in the art of writing haiku at a promotional program sponsored by Chase Bank. Lots of new people exposed to the better side of slam.

And by the way congrats and hoorays go out to Henry Sampson (and Maria) and all the volunteers at the 2009 National Poetry Slam in West Palm Beach. They made it happen and Henry garnered the Spirit of Slam Award — much deserved.

Finally, this coming Sunday the Mighty Mike McGee will be the featured guest at the Green Mill show along with Welsh novelist Niall Griffiths — should be a good night. I’ll be back from playing hooky and the Rootabaga band with guest pianist Doctor Flippo will wound up and ready to spin out of control.

As some folks know, I’ve been taking time off from most slam things. (I’m even taking Sundays off now and then.) For the next couple weeks I’ll be hiding out in upstate Michigan and I hope to pay a visit to Terry Wooten’s Stone Circle reading near Traverse Bay. Terry has keeping the oral tradition (storytelling and poetry) alive for decades. I can’t wait to sit around the Stone Circle fire and listen.

This Sunday, while I’m gone, the Speak’Easy Ensemble will take complete command of the Green Mill show. Knowing them it will be anything goes fly by the seat of their pantaloons night, but a good anything goes.

Other news is that Chicago Slam Works, the new non-profit umbrella for all things slam in Chicago, is in full gear. Bold new adventures ahead.

Okay, I’m off to breakfast (isn’t that what bogs and twitters are for — telling strangers and friends when you’re eating breakfast) and then up to Michigan.

bye bye

More and more I’m taking Sunday nights off to travel and to stay (working my butt off) at my rehab houses in Savanna, Illinois. (Two I’m restoring and one I’m tearing down. All on Walnut Street. Drop by some time.) And while I’m truant from the show I have a great crew of Chicago slammers to fill in as hosts. Two Sunday ago it was Robbie Q. I hear he did a great job. Decide for yourself:

I plan to be back hosting Sundays for the rest of July and August, but don’t be surprised if you find me not there, playing hooky. This week is the 23rd anniversary of the Green Mill slam. I think I’m entitled to a few nights off.

One of my greatest sources of joy is to hear of the great literary accomplishment of those folks who unselfishly dedicated themselves to advancing the slam community’s cause. And here’s one to howl about. Allen Wolf has won a BIG AWARD.

ZANE’S TRACE (Candlewick Press) by Allen Wolf has just been awarded the 2009 North Carolina School Library Media Association Young Adult Book Award. The winners were chosen by North Carolina students themselves. Much joy in camp.

http://www.ncslma.org/BookCompetitions/YAaward/Booklist09-10.html

Hooray!

Getting a lot of ink these days. It’s wild. Sometimes the shortest interviews produce the best results. Lauren Viera’s article in Tribune today is a gem. (check it out at http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/chi-0604-poetry-slamjun04,0,7524276.story ) Laura the bartender’s perspective takes center stage. And what does she mean when she says, “He’s really good at handling a crowd and defusing the situation. When things got a little out of hand, those were my favorite times.” She means Marc losing control and yelling at people in the crowd who are too absorbed in themselves and their loud-ass conversation (and their cocktails) to realize that someone’s one stage baring a battered soul via performance poetry.

Of course, there are also those times when Marc starts screaming at innocent bystanders and makes an ass of himself. Those moments are especially fun to witness.

Another front page funny picture of Marc at the Green Mill and another quote of Amiri Baraka calling the slam a “carnival … commercial showiness, emphasizing the most backward elements” of poetry. Is he speaking of Slam or Jam? Or are his opinions just old guy wham?

Here’s a link to the article if you want to check it out:

http://bit.ly/ysAuH

Be sure to listen to the audio/slide show. It’ll give you a deeper sense of what goes on at the Green Mill every Sunday night.

Last night Andi Kauth rocked the house. Her debut feature performance at the Green Mill was a celebration of her 21st birthday. She was downing tequila sunrises as the sun set on her U21 slammin’ career.

Andi may only be 21 but she’s already pro. She has toured the country sharing slam stages with the best. She paid honor to her Fremd High School creative writing program by upholding the integrity of her texts — they were (are) exquisite. There are dozens of high profile slammers spittin’ cliche after cliche shouting the same ol’ same ol’ as if it were direct communication from the gods. They should shut up a few moments and take note of this young woman who can say more in short series of sonnets than they do in three minutes of “I … I … I” ranting.

And how about our new found treasure — virgin Clapping Dave! Was he wonderful or what! If anybody took a cell phone video of Clapping Dave, please send it to me. Now that I’m into the blogging (which I still think is a bunch egocentric crap) I’m going to have to start taking photos and get videos of what happens at the Mill every Sunday night so you can see and hear what I’m raving about.

Another Sunday is in the can and it was a good one.

ANTI-SUPER BOWL SUNDAY 
at the Green Mill Uptown Poetry Slam    
FEB.3

Come join us for first attempt at dowsing SUPER BOWL MANIA WITH POETRY  Participate and win some money.

Click here for the details:   FLIER   Press Release

The Annual Halloween Conjuring of the Weird Sisters is coming up on Sunday October 28. If you’re in Chicago on that weekend you won’t want to miss it.

These aren’t the WEIRD SISTERS; they’re fans who enjoyed the conjuring a few years back. Go to www.weirdsisters.net to learn how Zarek first conjured them at the Psychic Cafe almost a decade ago.  Zarek comes back every year at Halloween to conjured them again. Sometimes he sets fire to the place.

What does this have to do with poetry? It’s all poetry, man!

slampapi says so.