Diane Rose di Prima (1934-2020), America’s most influential female poet of the past three-quarter-century, lived, wrote, taught, and worked in San Francisco from 1968 until her passing in 2020. She was the author of approximately 50 books of poetry, drama, and prose. Diane di Prima was named Poet Laureate of San Francisco in 2009 and retained that...

Diane di Prima, a prolific poet who pursued the life of a Beat and rose to the position of San Francisco poet laureate, died Sunday, Oct. 25. For eight years, di Prima had battled Parkinson’s disease, a progressive disorder of the central nervous system, and Sjogren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease characterized by dry eyes and mouth. She also had...