Dorothea "Dottie" Grossman (1937–2012) was an American poet active in Los Angeles, where she lived for more than 30 years.^[2] Grossman wrote short, often epigrammatic works, such as her series of "Henny Youngman poems," which imagined mundane and humorous glimpses of the Jewish comedian Henny Youngman.^[3] Grossman's poems have been published in four books as well as multiple poetry journals and magazines.^[2]

Biography

Grossman was born in Philadelphia^[1] and attended Temple University, where she studied with Gerald Stern.^[4]

Grossman read her work regularly throughout the Los Angeles area, and was noted for her collaborations with trombonist Michael Vlatkovich and other musicians. She and Vlatkovitch released a CD entitled Call and Response in 2003.^[2]

Grossman was married to avant-garde pianist Richard Grossman until his death in 1992.^[1] She frequently addressed her husband in the first person in her poems, and cited his music as well as a wide variety of other musical genres ranging from improvisational jazz to Top 40 radio as major inspirations in her work.^[4]

In 2010, Grossman won the J. Howard and Barbara M. J. Wood Prize, awarded by Poetry magazine.^[2]

Grossman died in West Los Angeles on May 6, 2012.^[1]

Selected works

• Cuttings (Tango Books, 1988)
• Poems from Cave 17: Selected Poems 1989-1996 (self-published, 1996)
• Museum of Rain (Take Out Press, 2001)
• The Fun of Speaking English (Coffeetown Press, 2012)

References