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Mal Morgan

Mal Morgan (1935-1999) was an Australian poet. He convened the La Mama poetry readings at La Mama Theatre in Carlton from 1985 to 1991 and directed the Montsalvat National Poetry and Song Festival from 1991 to 1993. His publications included: Poemsstones (1976), Statues Don't Bleed (1984), A Handshake with the Moon (1987), Once Father and God (1992), Throwaway Moon: New and selected poems (1995), and Beautiful Veins (1999).

Mal Morgan reviews ‘Poems From a Peach Melba Hat’ by Shelton Lead

April 1986, no. 79 16 April 1986
The only real depth a novel, short-story, or book of poems can have for me is the authenticity of the writer and his ability to accurately capture the experience. Shelton Lea’s Poems From A Peach Melba Hat do exactly that, and in the process thump the reader with the quick left hook of rhyme. There is violence in the poet’s experience, a recklessness, and he can get away with being a buffoon ... (read more)

‘From La Mama On: A Personal Perspective’ By Mal Morgan

May 1985, no. 70 01 May 1985
Sometimes I feel like quitting the whole scene. There’s so much hype and petty politicking. But that goes on in your own backyard. So there I am again – up there on stage, with Mike, wearing my Greek sailor’s cap, and my heart having stopped thumping now, because I’m reading what I really (may I be anachronistic?) dig, and am serious about – POETRY! I mean Gene Wilder really works hard a ... (read more)

Mal Morgan reviews 'No Collars No Cuffs' by Geoff Goodfellow and 'The Bay of Salamis and Other Poems' by John Bray

February–March 1986, no. 78 01 February 1986
No Collars No Cuffs, plenty of fisticuffs, and you’ll probably get K.O.’d by all this, after a round or two of three or four poems each. You may need someone in your corner to bolster you, for as Geoff Good­fellow writes in ‘Skin Deep’, a women’s prison poem: Prison lawns are manicured            rose bushes pruneda photographer’s dream    ... (read more)