Finding aid to the Richard O. Moore papers BANC MSS 2014/210
Lori Dedeyan
The Bancroft Library
2017
The Bancroft Library
University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000
bancref@library.berkeley.edu
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.
Access
Collection is open for research, with the exception of unprocessed digital material.
Portfolio 1: NEGATIVES RESTRICTED. Available for use by appointment only.
Publication Rights
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.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], The Richard O. Moore papers, BANC MSS 2014/210, The Bancroft Library, University of California,
Berkeley.
Alternate Forms Available
There are no alternate forms for this collection.
Separated Materials
Digital materials have been transferred to the Digital Collections Unit of the Bancroft Library.
Acquisition Information
The Richard Moore papers were given to The Bancroft Library by Richard O. Moore on September 24, 2014.
Accruals
No additions are expected.
Arrangement
Arranged to the folder level.
Processing Information
Processed by Lori Dedeyan in 2017.
Biographical / Historical
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.
Scope and Contents
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.
Series 1.
Correspondence
1945-2009
Physical Description: Carton 1, folders 1-17, 33
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by correspondent.
Scope and Contents
Ingoing and outgoing correspondence with colleagues, family, and friends.
carton 1, folder 1
Family
1963, 1979, 1997-2007
carton 1, folder 2
Foster, Ed (editor, Talisman House)
1992-1995
carton 1, folder 4
It (poetry collection)
1997-1999
carton 1, folder 5
Kessler, Stephen
2000-2003
carton 1, Folders 8-10
Nathan, Leonard- letters and writing
1977, 1992-2004
carton 1, Folders 11-13
Parkinson, Thomas- letters and writing
circa 1945-1985
carton 1, Folders 15-16
UC Press- Writing the Silences
2006-2009
carton 1, folder 17
Writers' photos
1978-1981, 2007-2008
Series 2.
Writing
1945-2013
Physical Description: Carton 1, folders 18-32; Cartons 2-3; Carton 4, folders 1-15; Carton 5, folder 1
Arrangement
Arranged into categories of writing and alphabetically within each category.
Scope and Contents
Includes typescripts for collections of poetry, essays and short stories, screenplays, lectures, and journals.
carton 1, folder 18
The Book of Quotations
1986
carton 1, Folders 26-28
Lenses of Perceptions
circa 2000-2001
carton 1, folder 29
The Making of an American Wasp
undated
carton 1, folder 32
Particulars of Place
undated
carton 2, Folders 1-3
The Place Where Forgetting Begins
circa 1980
carton 2, Folders 7-12
Writing the Silences
circa 2010
carton 2, Folders 13
Fragments and untitled poems
undated
carton 2, Folders 14
Poems and poetry prizes
1949
carton 2, Folders 15-16
Poem typescripts
circa 1951-1979
carton 2, Folders 18
Poem typescripts and copies
circa 1990-2001
carton 2, Folders 19
Late poetry- Claremont
circa 2001
carton 2, Folders 20-24
Poem typescripts
1991, circa 2001-2012
Scope and Contents
Includes fragments of: Distances, Games, Illusions of Light, Particulars of Place, and Standing Here.
carton 2, Folders 25
Published poetry and articles
2002
carton 2, folder 28
Essays
1980, circa 2003-2012
carton 5, folder 1
China travel diary and poems
1979, 2012
carton 3, folder 1
Milan journal and poetry
1978
carton 3, folder 2
Journal entries
1985, 2000
carton 3, folder 19
The Beauty of Things- Robinson Jeffers film essay proposal (KQED)
undated
carton 3, folder 20
James Joyce: A Film Biography
1980
carton 3, Folders 21-24
John Dos Passos: "Swallowing America Whole"
1981
carton 4, folder 1
Lewis Thomas TV series
1978
carton 4, folder 2
The Wide Net (Eudora Welty script)
undated
carton 4, Folders 3-13
Mill Valley Seniors for Peace lectures
2003-2012
Scope and Contents
Includes lectures: Fever and Dreams (2003); The United Nations "past or passing to come?" (2004); The Inauguration (2004);
The Bush Doctrine (2004); Iraq: Withdrawal and Consequences (2006); Israel-Palestine: An Historical Overview (2006); Post
Election: 11/13/06 (2006); reports and updates on Iraq (2007); reports on Iraq and the Middle East (2008); The Economy and
Foreign Policy (2008); What Now? (2008); Corporations, Obama, and Change (2009); Populism, Pragmatism, and Politics (2009);
The War on Terror: Who is the Enemy? (2011), Visual: Map of Middle East and North Africa (2011); A Meditation on War and the
Legacy of Iraq (2012); and various other untitled lectures.
carton 4, folder 15
"Poetry and Politics" (St. Mary's College)
2011
Series 3.
Professional career
1979-2013
Physical Description: Carton 4, folders 16-23
Scope and Contents
Includes material related to Moore's career in public television.
carton 4, folder 16
KPFA oral history transcript
1995
carton 4, folder 17
"Public Television and the Future... A Different Approach"
circa 1979
carton 4, folder 18
Twin Cities Public television
2007-2008
carton 4, folder 20
Minnesota TeleCenter publicity
1989
carton 4, folder 21
KCTA potential programming material
circa 1983
Series 4.
Personal material
1960-2012
Physical Description: Carton 4, folders 23-38; Carton 5, folders 2-9
Arrangement
Arranged in a roughly chronological order.
Scope and Contents
Includes classwork from Columbia University and Claremont School of Religion, as well as personal notes and collected reading.
carton 4, folder 23
Classwork: Philosophy 9 (Columbia University)
circa 1960
Carton 4, folder 24
Classwork: Philosophy 106, 214 (Columbia University)
circa 1960
Carton 4, folder 25
Classwork: Philosophy 107 (Columbia University)
circa 1960
Carton 4, folder 26
Classwork: Philosophy 125 (Columbia University)
circa 1960
Carton 4, folder 27
Classwork: Philosophy 161, 162 (Columbia University)
circa 1960
Carton 4, folder 28
Classwork: Physics (Columbia University)
circa 1960
Carton 4, folder 29
Classwork: Gnosticism, NT 492 (Claremont School of Religion)
2001
Carton 4, folder 30
Classwork: Religion 363 (Claremont School of Religion)
2001
Carton 4, folder 31
Classwork: Philosophy 77 (Claremont School of Religion)
circa 2001
Carton 4, folder 32
Classwork: Wittgenstein on religion
circa 2001
Carton 4, folder 33
Classwork: philosophy and religion
circa 2001
Carton 4, folder 34
Classwork: philosophy and religion
2002
Carton 4, folder 35
Classwork: Kierkegaard- Phillips
2002
Carton 4, folder 36
Classwork: Wittgenstein- Phillips
2002
Carton 4, folder 38
Comments on 'Sharing the Earth' by Nelson Foote
circa 2009
carton 5, folder 2
Therapy session logs
2004
carton 5, folder 4
Collected articles and issues of Muir Beach Beachcomber
1979-2008
carton 5, Folders 6-7
Sharing the Earth, by Nelson N. Foote (typescript)
circa 2011
carton 5, folder 8
Some Truths from Helican (possibly by Leonard Nathan)
undated
carton 5, folder 9
Writing by Carol Nathan
undated
Series 5.
Photographs
1956-2009
Physical Description: Carton 5, folders 10-23; Oversize folder 1; Portfolio 1
Arrangement
Arranged by project.
Scope and Contents
Includes production photographs of various programs that Moore worked on, such as "Route 66" and "The Writer in America".
Also includes portraits of Moore and various other writers.
carton 5, folder 10
Going Somewhere: the story of Route 66. KTCA
circa 1982
carton 5, folder 11
The Writer in America: Robert Duncan
circa 1978
carton 5, folder 12
The Writer in America: John Gardner, Randall Jarrell, Muriel Rukeyser, Anne Sexton
circa 1978
carton 5, folder 13
The Writer in America: Janet Flanner
circa 1978
carton 5, folder 14
The Writer in America: Ross MacDonald
circa 1978
oversize_folder 1
The Writer in America: Ross MacDonald (oversize production photo)
1977
Note
16" x 20". Includes production crew: Phil Greene, Dick Moore, Susan Wengraf, Mark Berger. Photograph G. Suddarth Kelly.
carton 5, folder 15
The Writer in America: Wright Morris
circa 1978
carton 5, folder 16
The Writer in America: Toni Morrison
circa 1978
carton 5, folder 17
The Writer in Ameria: Eudora Welty
circa 1978
carton 5, folder 18
Moore and various writers
circa 1956-1978
Scope and Contents
Includes John Ashberry, Robert Duncan, Stanley Kunitz, Denise Levertov, and others.
carton 5, folder 19
Portraits of Tom Wolfe, Thomas Parkinson, and a portrait of Gertrude Stein by Imogen Cunningham
undated
carton 5, folder 20
Images of Allen Ginsberg
undated
carton 5, folder 21
Portraits of Moore
circa 1989
carton 5, folder 22
Moore with unidentified group
2009
carton 5, folder 23
Unlabeled photographs
undated
portfolio 1
Negatives
circa 1956-1982
Conditions Governing Use
NEGATIVES RESTRICTED. Available for use by appointment only.
Scope and Contents
Contains matching negatives for much of the photographic print material. Includes images of American writers and production
shots from Going Somewhere: the story of Route 66 (KTCA, 1982); The Writer in America (1975); material from KQED; and other
programs. Included are John Ashberry, Robert Duncan, Denise Levertov, Ross MacDonald, Wright Morris, Muriel Rukeyser, Anne
Sexton, Eudora Welty, Louis Zukofsky, and others.
Series 6.
Audiovisual
1983-2001
Physical Description: Cartons 6-7
Scope and Contents
Largely contains video recordings of educational television programs worked on or received by Moore. Also includes some personal
recordings.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Special equipment or further processing may be required to access this material. Please contact the reference desk in advance
of your visit.
Carton 6
Lannan Literary Series (VHS)
1989
Scope and Contents
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 1: Louise Gluck. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 2: Galway Kinnell. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 3: W.S. Merwin. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 4: Lucille Clifton. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 5: Philip Levine. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 6: Czeslaw Milosz. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 8 v. 1: Gary Snyder. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 8 v. 2: Gary Snyder. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 9: Allen Ginsberg. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 10: Yehuda Amichai. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
The Lannan Literary Series, no. 11: Joy Harjo. Los Angeles: Lannan Foundation, 1989
Carton 6
The Writer In America (KTCA2/KTCI17) master tapes (VHS)
1986
Scope and Contents
The Writer in America: Janet Flanner. 1/2/86. 30:00
The Writer in America: John Gardner. 1/2/86. 30:00
The Writer in America: Ross MacDonald. 1/2/86/. 30:00
The Writer in America: Wright Morris. 1/2/86. 30:00
The Writer in America: Toni Morrison. 1/2/86. 30:00
The Writer in America: Muriel Rukeyser. 1/2/86. 30:00
The Writer in America: Eudora Welty. 1/2/86. 30:00
Carton 6
Various recordings (VHS)
1991-2001
Scope and Contents
China Tour '99 Master.
Voices and Visions: Ezra Pound (South Carolina Educational Television Network).
The British Embassy Players' Old- Time Music Hall 2000. For Richard.
The Mysteries. Patricia Olson. 1999.
For Richard and Ruth Moore. Ap. 91. Guitar?
Eugene McCarthy: I'm Sorry I Was Right. St. Paul: The Center for International Education. 2001.
Dorothea Lange: A Visual Life. dir. Meg Partridge. Valley Ford, CA: Pacific Pictures. 1994.
Bay Window: Making the Grade. A KQED Production. 1999.
John Coltrane in Ralph Gleason's Jazz Casual. Los Angeles: Rhino Home Video. 1995.
Carton 7
KCET broadcast videocassettes (U-matic)
1983
Scope and Contents
KCET. LA Arts 83.
KCET.(Address label belonging to Mary jane O'Donnell)
KCET. Wasted Young (R 1 of 2). Recorded 11-3-83.
KCET. Wasted Young (R 2 of 2). Recorded 11-3-83.
KCET. Wasted Young (segment 2 and 3).
KCET. Journal. Episode 5. Recorded 4-2-83.