Repository:

Kent State University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives.

Title:

Marc Kaminsky papers

Inclusive Date(s):

1960-2009

Author:

Finding aid prepared by Craig S. Simpson, June 2008

Creation:

Finding aid encoded by Craig S. Simpson using the OhioLINK EAD Application in 2008

Description Rules:

Finding aid prepared using DACS

Origination:

Kaminsky, Marc, 1943-

Extent:

23 cubic feet (23 record storage boxes)

Physical Location:

11th floor. Oversized materials are housed in the 12th floor map case.

Finding Aid Identifier:

OhKeUSC0059

Abstract:

Marc Kaminsky is a professional poet, teacher, editor, essayist and psychotherapist, living in New York City, noted for his work with the elderly. His papers contain manuscripts, personal and professional correspondence, published articles, and business records from institutions such as the Brookdale Center on Aging, the Jewish Association for Services for the Aged (JASA), and the Myerhoff Center.

Revision(s):

February 3, 2010 - Some materials were added and revisions were made to various series, and a new Audio-Visual series was created.

Language(s):

The records are in English.

Biography of Marc Kaminsky

Marc Kaminsky was born in New York City in 1943. He attended Columbia University, earning his B.A. in 1964 and his M.A. in 1967. He earned an M.S.W. from the Hunter College School of Social Work in 1978. Between 1972 and 1977, Kaminsky worked for the the Jewish Association for Services for the Aged (JASA), where he was director of the West Side Senior Center. At JASA, he organized and conducted the first writing and reminiscing groups for older adults, developing a model for what has become a standard in gerontological settings. From 1978 to 1981, Kaminsky worked at Teachers & Writers Collaborative, where he founded and directed the Artists & Elders Project. Later, he became founding co-director of the Institute on the Humanities, Arts and Aging at the Brookdale Center on Aging of Hunter College and, along with Deena Metzger, co-founding director of the Myerhoff Center, named after the late, renowned anthropologist Barbara Myerhoff. He is currently a psychotherapist in private practice.

Kaminsky has published seven books of poems, including A Table with People, Daily Bread, and Shadow Traffic. His long narrative poem, The Road from Hiroshima, was produced as a play for National Public Radio and won the Art of Peace Award. He is the author and editor of six books on aging in the culture of Yiddishkeit, including What's Inside You It Shines Out of You and The Uses of Reminiscence. More recently, he edited Remembered Lives, a volume of Myerhoff's essays on again, and he co-edited Stories as Equipment for Living, a posthumous collection of her late talks and tales. Kaminsky's poems and essays have appeared in numerous literary magazines, clinical and scholarly journals, and poetry anthologies. In 2009, Kaminsky was inducted into the Hunter (College) Hall of Fame for contributions to the fields of gerontology and literature.

Scope and Content

The Marc Kaminsky papers include manuscripts, correspondence, business records, articles, periodicals, class materials, catalogs and pamphlets, audio-visual materials, and oversized items. Manuscripts comprise the bulk of the collection and contain Kaminsky's poetry, fiction, theater pieces, and gerontological studies, as well as earlier works from his college years. Business records contain reports and proposals from the Brookdale Center on Aging, JASA, the Myerhoff Center, and the Teachers & Writers Collaborative. Also included in the Kaminsky papers are materials pertaining to Barbara Myerhoff and the poet and novelist Deena Metzger.

Statement of Arrangement

The Marc Kaminsky papers are arranged according to the following series and subseries:

• Series 1: Manuscripts and Accompanying Materials
• Subseries 1A: Gerontology
• Subseries 1B: Poetry and Fiction
• Subseries 1C: Theater
• Subseries 1D: Juvenilia
• Subseries 1E: Poembooks
• Subseries 1F: Notebooks
• Subseries 1G: College Essays
• Subseries 1H: Miscellaneous Manuscripts
• Series 2: Correspondence
• Series 3: Business Records
• Series 4: Published Articles
• Series 5: Periodicals
• Series 6: Course Materials
• Series 7: Abstracts, Catalogs, Flyers, Pamphlets, Speeches
• Series 8: Oversized
• Series 9: Audio-Visual

Related Material

Additional materials pertaining to the theatrical production Terminal can be found in the Susan Yankowitz papers.

Restrictions on Access

Some business records and correspondence have been restricted.

Preferred Citation

Marc Kaminsky papers. Kent State University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives.

Subject Headings

The following subjects are found in this collection:

Subjects:

• Kaminsky, Marc, 1943-
• American poetry -- 20th century
• Writers' workshops -- New York (State) -- New York
• Older people's writings, American
• Creative ability in old age
• Gerontology -- New York (State) -- New York
• Older people -- Psychology
• Old age in literature
• Right on (East Harlem, New York, N.Y.)

Persons:

• Kaminsky, Marc, 1943-
• Myerhoff, Barbara G.
• Metzger, Deena

Organizations/Corporations:

• Brookdale Center on Aging (Hunter College)
• Jewish Association for Services for the Aged (New York, N.Y.)
• Artists & Elders Project (New York, N.Y.)
• Teachers & Writers Collaborative
• Open Theater

Functions:

• Authorship
• Arts administration

Places:

• New York (N.Y.)

Occupations:

• Poets
• Arts administrators
• Psychotherapists
• Jewish authors

Material Types:

• Correspondence
• Personal correspondence
• Manuscripts, American
• Notebooks
• Juvenilia
• Business records
• Periodicals

Detailed Description of The Collection