Poetic Obituaries: In the 1950s, Mrs. [Maxine] Cassin and Richard Ashman,

a Tulane University philosophy professor, founded The New Orleans Poetry Journal Press. They joined local poet Everette Maddox to edit the first edition of The Maple Leaf Rag, a local poetry anthology.

Ralph Adamo, a New Orleans poet, said Mrs. Cassin used her press to publish the works of poets in whom she believed, including James Wright, John Gery and Vassar Miller. After Miller's death in 1998, Mrs. Cassin established a poetry award in her honor for graduate students at the University of New Orleans.

There are four compilations of Mrs. Cassin's poetry: "A Touch of Recognition," "Turnip's Blood," "The Other Side of Sleep" and "Against the Clock."

from The Times-Picayune: Joseph and Maxine Cassin, married 55 years, die days apart

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