Russell Atkins facts for kids

Russell Atkins (born February 25, 1926 – died August 15, 2024) was a talented American poet, writer for plays, and music maker from Cleveland, Ohio. He was famous for his special kind of poetry called avant garde, which means it was new and experimental. Russell Atkins was born in Cleveland and lived there most of his life. He was adopted by three women who raised him on the east side of the city. He lived in his family home until 2010. Later, he moved to a care home where he stayed until he passed away.

Russell Atkins' Life Story

Russell Atkins was a very creative person. He learned to play music and create art. He studied at several places in Cleveland, including the Cleveland Music School Settlement and the Cleveland Institute of Music. He also attended Karamu House and the Cleveland School of Art.

His first plays were shown to the public in 1954. Before that, in 1950, he started a magazine called Free Lance, A Magazine of Poetry and Prose. He created it with his friend, Adelaide Simon. The very first issue of the magazine had a special introduction written by the famous poet Langston Hughes.

Free Lance magazine became very popular. Writers from all over the world sent their work to be published in it. A magazine called Black World even said it was "the only Black literary magazine of national importance." This shows how important Free Lance was for Black writers at the time.

In 1959, the Free Lance Press started publishing books. One of their first books was a collection of poems by Conrad Kent Rivers. Russell Atkins led Free Lance for over 20 years. This allowed him to connect with many writers across the country.

To honor his contributions, the City of Cleveland named a part of Grand Avenue "Russell Atkins Way" in 2017. Russell Atkins passed away on August 15, 2024, when he was 98 years old.

Russell Atkins' Creative Works

Russell Atkins was one of the first "Concrete poets" in the United States. Concrete poetry is a special type of poem where the way the words are arranged on the page helps show the poem's meaning. He also created new ways of writing plays using poetry. Much of his work was published in The Free Lance literary journal, which was put out by Free Lance Press in Cleveland.

Famous writers like Langston Hughes and Carl Van Vechten helped introduce Atkins' poems to different magazines. Langston Hughes read his poems at the University of Michigan and the University of Chicago. Another poet, Marianne Moore, even read his poems on the radio in 1951.

Russell Atkins wrote several books of poetry. Some of his books include Phenomena (published in 1961), Objects (1963), Heretofore (1968), Maleficum (1971), and Objects 2 (1973). His book Here in The (1976) is his only full-length collection of poems.