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Moore (Richard O.) papers
BANC MSS 2014/210
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
The Bancroft Library
Title: Richard O. Moore papers
Creator:
Moore, Richard O.
Identifier/Call Number: BANC MSS 2014/210
Physical Description:
9 Linear Feet
7 cartons, 1 oversize folder, 1 portfolio
Date (inclusive): 1945-2013
Abstract: This collection contains the papers of the American poet, documentarian, producer, and public radio pioneer Richard O. Moore.
It includes correspondence; manuscripts for poetry and prose; notebooks containing poetry and journal entries; and material
documenting Moore’s involvement with KPFA public radio and the Pacifica Foundation, KQED-TV in San Francisco, KTCA-TV in Minneapolis/St.
Paul, and the San Francisco Renaissance. Also included are portraits and production photographs from Moore’s work on various
television series about American writing and poetry, and broadcast masters and other audiovisual recordings from various programs
that Moore worked on.
Language of Material: Collection materials are in English.
Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information
on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Collection is open for research, with the exception of unprocessed digital material.
Portfolio 1: NEGATIVES RESTRICTED. Available for use by appointment only.
Materials in this collection may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction
of some materials may be restricted by terms of University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions,
privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond
that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for
any use rests exclusively with the user.
All requests to reproduce, publish, quote from, or otherwise use collection materials must be submitted in writing to the
Head of Public Services, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley 94720-6000. See: http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/reference/permissions.html.
[Identification of item], The Richard O. Moore papers, BANC MSS 2014/210, The Bancroft Library, University of California,
Berkeley.
There are no alternate forms for this collection.
Digital materials have been transferred to the Digital Collections Unit of the Bancroft Library.
The Richard Moore papers were given to The Bancroft Library by Richard O. Moore on September 24, 2014.
No additions are expected.
Arranged to the folder level.
Processed by Lori Dedeyan in 2017.
Richard O. Moore was born in Alliance, Ohio on February 26, 1920, the only child of Harold Ellsworth Moore and Frances Elizabeth.
The family was drastically impacted by the Wall Street Crash of 1929 and lived with various relatives before moving to California
in 1934. Frances Elizabeth’s death of tuberculosis in 1938 devastated her son and was a pivotal event in the formation of
his worldview.
Moore attended the University of California, Berkeley from 1940-1941, studying poetry and briefly editing its student literary
magazine. During this time, he led campus anti-war demonstrations, was introduced to his friend and mentor, the poet Kenneth
Rexroth, and became an active member of the San Francisco Renaissance. Moore was expelled from UC Berkeley in 1941 for failing
to complete courses and moved to San Francisco. During this time, he studied dance with May O'Donnell and José Limón. He
continued to write poetry and was a vocal pacifist, counseling young men seeking to apply for Conscientious Objector status
during World War II.
He applied for re-admittance to UC Berkeley and received his bachelor’s degree in 1949, with an emphasis on English Literature
and Medieval History. In 1949, Moore helped found the Pacifica Foundation and KPFA in Berkeley with Eleanor McKinney and
Lewis Hill, with the intent to devote the station to the principles of nonviolence and pacifism. KPFA went on the air on
April 15, 1949 and was the first non- commercial, listener- supported radio station in the United States.
Moore left KPFA in 1952 and in 1954 began a career in television broadcasting as an early staff member of KQED in San Francisco,
becoming its Director of Public Affairs. Moore attended the graduation division of Columbia University from 1960 as a CBS
Public Affairs Fellow, with an emphasis on Philosophy of Science. In 1961 he returned to KQED, directing over 100 documentary
films on a variety of topics, including a film entitled
Take This Hammer with James Baldwin. From 1969-1973, Moore served as President and General Manager of KQED, Inc. In 1975, Moore helped found
PTV Productions, where he produced and directed independent films and television series, including
The Writer in America(1978) and
On Death and Dying (1980), and consulted with CPB, PBS, and various other foundations. In 1981, he joined KTCA in Minneapolis-St. Paul as head
of Special Projects. Moore retired in 1990 and returned to California to concentrate on his poetry.
While living in Point Arena on the Northern California coast, Moore began to assemble his poetry. At the Squaw Valley Writer’s
Conference, he met poet Brenda Hillman, who encouraged him to publish. After the death of his wife, Ruth Margaret, in 1997,
he left Point Arena and visited Claremont in Southern California, where he audited philosophy seminars on Wittgenstein at
Claremont Graduate University. In 2003, he returned to The Redwoods in Mill Valley, where the editing of a selection of poems
took place. This selection was published as a book,
Writing the Silences: selected poems 1946-2008, by the University of California Press in 2010. A second volume,
Particulars of Place, was published by Omnidawn in 2015. Moore also published chapbooks, such as
A Selection for Ruth (1997),
China Diary (2012),
Outcry (2014), and
In Passing (2015).
Moore had six children. He died on March 25, 2015.
This collection contains the papers of the American poet, documentarian, producer, and public radio pioneer Richard O. Moore.
It includes correspondence; manuscripts for poetry and prose; notebooks containing poetry and journal entries; and material
documenting Moore’s involvement with KPFA public radio and the Pacifica Foundation, KQED-TV in San Francisco, KTCA-TV in Minneapolis/St.
Paul, and the San Francisco Renaissance. Also included are portraits and production photographs from Moore’s work on various
television series about American writing and poetry, and broadcast masters and other audiovisual recordings from various programs
that Moore worked on.
The collection is divided into six series:
Series 1 (Correspondence) includes incoming and outgoing correspondence with family, friends, and colleagues.
Series 2 (Writing) includes typescripts for various collections of poetry, notebooks containing manuscript poetry and prose,
screenplays for various television programs, and text for various lectures.
Series 3 (Professional career) largely includes material relating to Moore's work at KCTA-TV in Minneapolis/ St. Paul.
Series 4 (Personal) includes class notes from Columbia University and Claremont Graduate University, various notes, and collected
material.
Series 5 (Photographs) contains portraits and production photographs from Moore's television programs, such as The Writer
in America (1978) and The Story of Route 66 (1982). It includes writers such as John Ashberry, Robert Duncan, Allen Ginsberg,
Denise Levertov, Ross MacDonald, Wright Morris, Toni Morrison, Muriel Rukeyser, Anne Sexton, Eudora Welty, and others.
Series 6 (Audiovisual) contains broadcast recordings and other videos from Moore's life and work.
Digital materials include drafts and copies of poetry, including delete, :IT:, Over Time, and late and new poems dated from
the 1990s. This material is unavailable until processed.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Poets, American--20th century--California
Poets, American--California--San Francisco Bay Area
Public television--United States
Public radio--United States
Public radio--San Francisco Bay Area (Calif.)
Pacifists--United States
Moore, Richard O.