Jack Foley was born in August 1940 in Neptune, New Jersey. As an excellent student, and with the aid of his local library, Foley read widely and soon exploring the works of various poets. At fifteen he realized that, whatever else he was, he was now and forever a poet. Foley's parents could not afford to send him to college, but he surprised them by winning scholarship money that enabled him to attend first Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and then The University of California at Berkeley.Foley worked hard as a graduate student at Berkeley and tried to keep his poetry going amid all the furor of "the sixties." Eventually, he dropped out of school. He wanted to become a poet. Foley also developed various techniques for writing and presenting poetry.He persuaded his wife Adelle to help him perform what he called "choruses"--a word that conjured up both the ancient Greeks and the world of musical comedy.Foley created a "tap dance" poem which featured not only his words but a bit of the art his father taught him. Over the years, Foley published a multitude of books with various publishers-books of poetry, but books of essays as well. Foley continues to write, perform, and think about poetry. 1955 to 2025 is a long journey in which Jack Foley had chosen poetry and writing for his "breathing". His presence in print and online media is commendable. He writes poetry, prose, essays, stories, dramas and had his signature in all genres of literature. Performance of Choruses and tap dance poems are innovative in the literature world.During 1992-1995, he was awarded Poetry Grant from Oakland Arts Council .In 2010, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Berkeley Poetry Festival, and June 5, 2010 was designated Jack Foley Day in Berkeley, California.In 2018, he became the recipient of the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award.In 2021, he became the first K M Anthru International Literature Award for his comprehensive contribution to literature from K M Anthru Foundation, India. After Adelle's death in 2016, Foley has found a new love and performance partner in Sangye Land, daughter of poet Julie Rogers and stepdaughter of poet David Meltzer. Since 1988, he has hosted a show of interviews and poetry presentations on Berkeley radio station, KPFA.In 2019, Monongahela Books released Foley's "Unmanageable Masterpiece", edited by Dana Gioia and Peter Whitfield. The book discusses and celebrates Foley's Visions & Affiliations:Real Magazine Productions, the unique publishers from Kerala, India, presented his final book "Telling it Slant", to the world in 2024. We were planning to have his another book published in 2025 when, Jack Foley left this world, early thhis November.
The readers will certainly find Jack Foley as the Synonym to Creativity and also as the Unquestioning master at Poetry.Through this book " Lantern Walking Ahead", his friends and fellow poets pay tribute to Late Jack Foley. Shajil Anthru , Chairman of K M Anthru Foundation and Chief Editor of Litterateur Redefining World edits this emotional and meaningful tribute to Late Jack Foley.
The Silent Bond - Shajil Anthru, Atque Vale - Christopher Bernard, Your Gift - Yumiko Tsumura, JACK! - Andreas Weiland, Two poems - Rafael Jesús González, POETIC HABITAT - Xanthi Hondrou-Hill, A Pairing - debora Ewing, The Space Around Jack Foley - Jovelyn D. Richard, JACK FOLEY IS HERE - Emilija Todorova, MVP - Jack Foley, Most Valuable Poet - Elizabeth Nisperos, Two poems and a note - Anthony Holdsworth, A Jack Foley related commentary - Nina Serrano, Tapdance (for Jack Foley) - Dale Jensen, The Golden Autumn Is Infinitely Beautiful - Hadaa Sendoo, DOLORIO (3 sinsonetos) - Arturo Dávila S, Striking the Set - Olchar E. Lindsann,Jack the Poet Laureate - Judy Grahn , The Jook Joint - Maw Shein Win, Dear Jack, St. Jacques, Frère Jacques,- Judy Wells and "Babuji and Uncle on tour to Mars -Roshni Shajil features in this tribute anthology
