Richard Duerden - The Fork

After reading The Fork, letterpressed by Graham Mackintosh in an editon of 500 copies, I am more interested in Richard Duerden as a mimeographer than I am as a poet. In fact, the color of the cover of The Fork to my eyes refers to Duerden's mimeo work. Duerden published two mimeos during what might be considered the golden age of San Francisco mimeo: the early 1960s. The Rivoli Review ran for only two issues. The first issue (1963) featured a cover by Jess Collins and poems by Duerden, James Koller, Robert Duncan, Lorenzo Thomas, Ron Loewinsohn, Denise Levertov, Philip Whalen and others. Not a bad line-up and one representative of the San Francisco scene of the time. The Rivoli Review was issued from 130 Rivoli Street. In form and content it is pure mimeo: Lorenzo Thomas’ Grass or Loewinsohn’s Fuck You Roger Maris help set the tone. Duerden also published Foot which ran for eight issues until 1980. When people think of San Francisco small publishing in the 1960s, one turns to presses like Auerhahn, White Rabbit, Oyez, and Black Sparrow, but there was a vibrant mimeo scene that rivals those in New York City and Cleveland for strength of content and cohesiveness of community. Just as Ted Berrigan and da levy provided the center in their respective cities, Jack Spicer was the catalyst in the Paris of the West. Spicer might not be in the first issue of Rivoli Review but his footprints are all over it.