Allen Ginsberg

Allen is born

Jun 3, 1926

Mother is Naomi Ginsberg, father is Louis Ginsberg

Allen goes to Columbia University

Jan 1, 1943

Here, Allen befriends William Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, who both become important Beat Writers with Allen

Allen goes to Cuba

Jan 3, 1956

Allen visits here as a correspondent for Evergreen Review and is later kicked out for insulting the University of Havana

Allen publishes "Howl"

Sep 16, 1956

This poem brought him to public attention for the first time

Allen travels to Czechoslovakia

Nov 20, 1956

Here, Allen is elected "King of May" by thousands of Czech citizens. He also is kicked out for being "sloppy and degenerate".

Allen's mother dies

Dec 18, 1956

After her death, allen wrote "Kaddish" to mourn her death.

Allen publishes "Kaddish"

Oct 17, 1961

In Kaddish, Allen mourns his mother, who was mentally unstable and lived in a mental hospital

Allen converts to Buddism

Oct 17, 1972

He had been believing in Buddhism for a while and incorporated it into the hippie movement.

Allen recieves the National Book Award

Oct 19, 1974

Allen got this award for his poem "The Fall of America"

Allen is arrested for sitting on train tracks

Oct 17, 1978

Allen sits on train tracks with Peter Orlovsky to stop a train full of radioactive waste from the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant in Colorado

Allen is awarded the "Golden Wreath"

Oct 19, 1986

In Macedonia at the Struga Poetry Evenings International Festival, Allen is given the Golden Wreath, making him the 2nd American poet to recieve this since WH Auden.

Allen dies

Apr 5, 1997

Allen had diabetes, chronic hepatitis, and liver cancer. Cause of death? A stroke that put him into a coma for 2 days before he finally died.