Edward G Pettit

If you couldn't make it to the Keltz and McKenna-Uff shows today at the Philly Free Library (see previous post), there are lots more events this week to help you celebrate the Edgar Allan Poe Bicentennial (Poe's actual birthday is Jan 19). Of course, you won't want to miss the Great Poe Debate on Tue, but there are other events in Philly, as well. I'll be at some of them (and participating in some), so if you see the Philly Poe Guy, be sure to say hello.

Tuesday January 13, The Great Poe Debate 7:30 PM Baltimore Poe House Curator Jeff Jerome, Boston College Professor Paul Lewis and Philly Poe Guy Edward Pettit debate which city best represents the Legacy of Edgar Allan Poe. Moderated by Grover Silcox. Free Library of Philadelphia, 901 Vine St. Free and open to the public.

Thursday January 15, A Murder of Ravens 5:00 PM at the Kelly Writers House at the University of Pennsylvania 3805 Locust Walk, featuring multiple readings of "The Raven" to mark Poe's 200th birthday.
Hosted by Thomas Devaney, the program will include readings of "The Raven" by Daniel Hoffman, Shonni Enelow (reading Baudelaire's translation of the poem), and Jay Kirk; a group adaptation of the poem by Michael Tom Vassallo, Kaegan Sparks, and Thomson Guster; and an excerpted screening of the infamous rendition by The Simpsons.
Thomas Devaney's essay "The Absolute Literary Case" is being published to coincide with the Free Library of Philadelphia's current exhibition on Poe.
Shonni Enelow is a playwright and doctoral student in Comparative Literature and Literary Theory at the University of Pennsylvania.
Daniel Hoffman is author of the book Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe, which remains a classic study on Poe and was nominated for the National Book Award in 1971. He is also the author of The Whole Nine Yards: Longer Poems.
Jay Kirk teaches in the Creative Writing Program at Penn, and is included in the anthology Submersion Journalism (The New Press, 2008).
Kelly Writers House at the University of Pennsylvania, 3805 Locust Walk Philadelphia, PA 19104
tel: 215-573-WRIT

Friday January 16, The Official Friends of Poe Bicentennial Birthday Party! 5:30 PM The festivities will include a special preview of the new permanent exhibit at the Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site. The exhibit, Edgar Allan Poe: the Many Sides of Genius, will focus on the incredible life and literary legacy of Edgar Allan Poe. Other key program features will include a visit by "Poe," unveiling the official Poe Bicentennial Poster, and a wine-tasting reception of vintages mentioned in Poe's works. Registration Fee: $10 for members; $15 for non-members. Please register by phone at 215-597-7919 or e-mail to reservations@friendsofindependence.org

Festivities will take place at the German Society, 7th and Spring Garden Streets, across the street from the Poe House. Actors and Park Rangers Paul Campbell and Helen McKenna-Uff will perform an original piece "Doppelganger Poes,"also featuring Rangers Eric Knight and Steve Medeiros and the Philly Poe Guy, Edward Pettit. There will be a wine-tasting of vintages mentioned in Poe’s works and a preview of the new exhibits

Friday January 16, The Medicine of Poe 7-9 PM. At the Mütter Museum, Grover Silcox explores how mid-19th-century medicine influenced the dark author's life and work. The curious event includes a keynote speech from UPenn Hospital internist Michael Cirigliano, as well as a Q&A session with the requisite Poe impersonator. Registration required. $12, College of Physicians of Philadelphia, 19 S. 22nd St., 215-563-3737, collphyphil.org

Saturday January 17, Official opening of new Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site exhibits 2:00 PM Daniel Hoffman, poet and Poe scholar, will offer a talk on Poe’s influence on women writers like Joyce Carol Oates. Celebrate the 200th birthday of Edgar Allan Poe and the grand opening of the site with all new exhibits and events, 532 N. 7th Street (7th & Spring Garden Sts)