Chronology – Professor Joseph Tusiani

Chronology of Professor Joseph Tusiani’s Life

Adapted from In 4 Lingue: Antologia di Joseph Tusiani, A cura di Cosma Siani (Roma: Edizioni Cofine, 2001.)

Printable Chronology (PDF)

1924 Joseph Tusiani was born on January 14^th in San Marco in Lamis in the province of Foggia, son of Maria Pisone (b. 1903, seamstress), and Michele (b. 1901, a shoemaker) who immigrated to North America the prior year.
1930-1934 Tusiani attended the elementary school in San Marco, and an early teacher was Luigi Martino, a lover of poetry and author of verse collections.
1934-1940 Intending to become a missionary, Prof. Tusiani attended the Comboni seminaries of Troia (FG), Brescia and Venegono Superiore (VA). He secretly read the works of poet Gabriele D’Annunzio. At the time, the author was forbidden to be read because of his political affiliations. In 1937, Prof. Tusiani met d’Annunzio in Gardone and had him read one of his poems. In June 1940, Prof. Tusiani abandoned his priestly intentions and returned to San Marco.
1941 Tusiani enrolled in the Regio Liceo classico, “M. Tondi” of San Severo, near San Marco. After the first year, he took an exam which advanced him to the third year. He graduated brilliantly in 1943. In San Severo he met and was befriended by the poet Umberto Fraccacreta. He read voraciously and indiscriminately whatever came into his hands.
1943 Tusiani enrolled in the Faculty of Letters at the University of Naples. The Franciscan priest and friend, P. Ciro Soccio, published the professor’s poem, Amedeo di Savoia, his first publication.
1944-1946 Tusiani taught art history weekly in the separate section of the Liceo Classico “M. Tondi” that had opened in his hometown. He gave private lessons to supplement the family budget while writing poems, stories, and taking notes on readings.
1946 The publication of the collection of poems, Flora, was arranged by his father who was living in New York. Another collection, Amore e Morte, was also published in San Marco.
1947 Tusiani graduated in letters from the University of Naples, discussing his thesis “La natura nella poesia di William Wordsworth,” with speaker Cesare Foligno. He also left with his mother for New York, arriving on September 6^th and meeting his father for the first time. He then looked for university work.
1948 Tusiani taught Italian literature at the College of Mount Saint Vincent in the Bronx. He remained there until 1971, reaching the rank of full professor. His brother Michael was born and his book of poetry, Petali sull’onda was published.
1949 Tusiani’s collection of poems, Peccato e Luce was published with a preface by Cesare Foligno, professor, and author.
1950 Tusiani’s essay, “La poesia amorosa di Emily Dickinson” was published. Throughout the early 1950s, he maintained intense relations with his homeland, sending many of his works to local newspapers, while also publishing in local New York periodicals. At this time, he wrote largely in Italian.
1950-1962 Tusiani was a lecturer of Italian literature at Hunter College, Manhattan.
1951 Tusiani frequented the Leonardo da Vinci Art School of the sculptor, Onorio Ruotolo. He met the trade unionist and poet, Arturo Giovannitti, and writers Frances Winwar, and G. A. Borgese. He began an intense collaboration with the magazine La Parola del Popolo of Chicago and started to write in English. His work, “Two Critical Essays on Emily Dickinson” was published by the Venetian Press.
1952 Tusiani translated G. A. Borgese’s English poems into Italian, which only appeared in a 1994 publication. The Professor’s novel, Dante in Licenza, and his translation of Wordsworthiana from English into Italian, were both published. The latter has an introduction by Alfredo Galletti, Italian literary critic.
1953 Frances Winwar, then a well-known writer and biographer, became Prof. Tusiani’s intellectual guide and emotional confidante. She encouraged him to detach himself from the circle of Ruotolo and from Little Italy and master the English language. She also introduced him into American literary circles. His essay with anthology, Poesia Missionaria in Inghilterra e in America was published.
1954 Tusiani returned to Italy for the first time accompanied by Frances Winwar, to complete research for his biography of D’Annunzio. The visit to Gargano inspired his writing the long poem, ”The Return.” Prof. Tusiani’s collection of essays, Sonettisti Americani, with an introduction by Frances Winwar, was also published.
1955 Tusiani’s collection of poems in the Gargano dialect, Làcreme e Sciure; and his poems in Latin, Melos Cordis, were published.
1956 Tusiani became an American citizen. He received the Greenwood Prize from the Poetry Society of England for his poem, “The Return” (“M’ascolti tu mia terra?”) – the first American to ever receive this award. He became a member of the Poetry Society of America and would subsequently be elected vice-president; and in February, received its prize for his poem, “Anticipation.” He joined the Catholic Poetry Society of America, and his collection of poems, Lo Speco Celeste, was published.
1956–1964 Tusiani was a Visiting Associate Professor at New York University.
1957 He began to collaborate with Spirit, the magazine of the Catholic Poetry Society of America, where he published some one hundred poems and many reviews. His collection, Odi Sacre, with a preface by Alfredo Galletti, was published.
1958 Tusiani was President of the Catholic Poetry Society of America.
1960 The Complete Poems of Michelangelo was published. This was the first of a long series of Italian classics in an English poetic version.
1962 Tusiani’s first volume of English poetry, Rind and All, was published, and includes compositions that appeared in Spirit. Sixteen poems from this volume plus three poems not from the collection, “Cross my heart,” “How can I believe October,” and “Apologia,” were recorded by him for the Library of Congress at the request of President John F. Kennedy.
1963 Tusiani participated in the exhibit, “Poetry in Crystal” – sculpture in crystal inspired by poetic compositions – together with other noted authors: Conrad Aiken, W. H. Auden, Denise Levertov, William Carlos Williams. Lust and Liberty, Prof. Tusiani’s poetic translation of all of Machiavelli’s verses, and his essay, “The Translating of Poetry,” were published.
1963 – 1969 Tusiani was the Co-Director of Spirit until it ceased publication.
1964 Tusiani’s second collection of English poetry, The Fifth Season, was published.
1965 Tusiani’s novel, Envoy from Heaven, and his essay, Dante’s Inferno As Told for Young People, were published.
1968 The Poetry Society of America awarded Prof. Tusiani the Alice Fay di Castagnola prize for his drama in verse – a work in progress titled If Gold Should Rust. In this year, Prof. Tusiani’s essay, Dante’s Purgatorio As Told for Young People was published, as well.
1969 The Catholic Poetry Society conferred upon Prof. Tusiani the Spirit Gold Medal Award of Merit for poetry.
1970 Tusiani’s translation of Torquato Tasso’s Gerusalemme Liberata (Jerusalem Delivered) was published.
1971 Tusiani left the College of Mount Saint Vincent which conferred upon him a Litt. D., honoris causa. He then became a professor of Romance Languages at Herbert H. Lehman College of the City University of New York, where he taught until 1983. His translation of Boccaccio’s Ninfale Fiesolano (Nymphs of Fiesole), the anthology, Italian Poets of the Renaissance, and his essay with anthology, Influenza cristiana nella poesia negro-americana, were published.
1972 During the 1972-1973 academic year, he taught a course on Italian American contributions to the history of the United States at Lehman College. In conjunction with the rebirth of studies on immigrant communities, the ethnic trend of his poetic and prose production took shape. The regained social and cultural identity would subsequently produce his extensive autobiography in three volumes.
1974 Tusiani’s two anthologies of poetic translations were published: The Age of Dante, and From Marino to Marinetti.
1975 Tusiani’s translation of Vittorio Alfieri’s five odes (hymns), America the Free, was published.
1977 Tusiani’s father passed away.
1978 The third collection of Prof. Tusiani’s English poetry, Gente Mia and Other Poems, partially made up of ethnic poems, and his dialectal poems of Tìreca tàreca, were published.
1981-1983 The translation of Ugo Foscolo’s “Le Grazie” was published in the Canadian Journal of Italian Studies.
1982 Torquato Tasso’s Mondo Creato, (Creation of the World) the translation, was published in 1982 by Prof. Tusiani. Spurred on by the fact that it did not have a complete English version, he began to translate Luigi Pulci’s epic poem, Morgante.
1983 Tusiani retired from teaching as a Professor Emeritus of Italian Language and Literature.
1984 Tusiani was awarded the Congressional Medal of Merit by the United States Congress. Additionally, his collection of Latin poems, Rosa Rosarum, was published.
1985 Tusiani is included in the Czechoslovak dictionary of neo-Latin authors Slovník latinských spisovatelů; Frances Winwar passes away at the age of eighty-five, and Prof. Tusiani’s translation of Manzoni’s Inni Sacri, and his Latin poems, In Exilio Rerum, were published.
1987 Tusiani’s translation of Leopardi’s Canti first appeared in the Italian Quarterly in the Summer/Fall issue, (the volume was issued in 1998.) Also published in 1987 was the translation of Tasso’s essay, “Il Rogo amoroso” (The Amorous Pyre).
1988 La Parola Difficile, the first volume of the trilogy of Prof. Tusiani’s autobiography, was published.
1989 Tusiani’s Latin poetic collection, Confinia Lvcis et Vmbrae was published, and his collection of English lyrics, “A Luxury of Light,” was published in the Italian Quarterly.
1991 La Parola Nuova, the second volume of Prof. Tusiani’s autobiography, was published.
1992 Tusiani purchased a house in San Marco, on the same street and a few steps from the apartment where he lived before leaving for America. He returned to his hometown annually, between May and June. The third volume of his autobiography, La Parola Antica, was published, as were Dante’s Lyric Poems, and the collection of Italian poems, Il ritorno.
1994 For his seventieth birthday, a volume of studies on the Professor’s work was dedicated to him, Joseph Tusiani Poet Translator Humanist, which included commentaries from Europe and the United States. His play in verse, If Gold Should Rust was published, as were the collection of Latin verses, Carmina Latina, and poems in dialect, Annemale parlante.
1995 “From ‘A Poet’s Diary,’” Tusiani’s series of English verses, was published in the Italian Quarterly.
1996 Tusiani’s poemetto in 10 canti, La Poceide, was published.
1997 Tusiani moved from the Bronx to Manhattan. The Tusiani Book Collection is officially presented in Lecce. A collection of English verses, “A Garland for Manhattan” was published in the Italian Quarterly; and the fairy tale in 10 cantos in dialect, Na vota è ‘mpise Cola was published, as well.
1998 Tusiani’s mother passed away. The translation of Luigi Pulci’s Morgante by Prof. Tusiani was published, as was the collection of poems in dialect, Li quatte staggione.
1999 Governor Mario Cuomo of New York honored Prof. Tusiani with the Governor’s Award of Excellence, intended for Italian Americans who have distinguished themselves in various fields of study and work. The town of San Marco in Lamis dedicated a day of study to Tusiani’s work with interventions by American and European scholars. The town established the Tusiani Collection of his writings at the civic library. The dialectal poem, Lu deddù (poemetto in ottava rima) – in eight iambic pentameter lines, was published.
2000 The region of Puglia conferred upon Prof. Tusiani the Puglia Award given to non-Puglia residents who have distinguished themselves in the world. The collection of English poetry, Ethnicity, the anthology in Latin, Redicitus, and the dialectal poem Maste Peppe cantarine (fairy tale in seven canti in the Gargano dialect), were published.
2001 The dialectal poem Lu Ponte De Sòla (melodrama in dieci cantI in dialetto garganico), was published.
2002 Tusiani’s poem La Prima Cumpagnia and the drama in verse, L’ore de Gesù Bambine, were published.
2003 Tusiani’s translation into English of Lalla Romano’s, L’Autunno, was published, as were his Mother Cabrini and other Poems (English), and both La tomba de Patre Pi’, and the drama in verse, Lu Cunte de Pasqua (Gargano dialect), dedicated to his niece, Pamela Ann Tusiani.
2004 Collected Poems 1983-2004 which brought together the poetic mini collection of works in English with Italian translation, (except the play If Gold Should Rust), was published, as were the English poem, The Death of Lucan, and the dialectal collection of poetry, La Padula.
2005 Quaderno Del ’41: Poesie Liceali (1937-1942, (Prof. Tusiani’s poems written during his high school years and dedicated to his Italian teacher, Angela Pensato), as well as his Lu Scazzamuredde, and Skyscrapers, were all published.
2006 Storie dal Gargano – 1,400-page book of the Professor’s dialectal production was published, except for Sciusce de vente: Sonetti in dialetto garganico, which was later published in 2009.
2007 Tusiani’s following works were all published in 2007. Viaggio a Lugano Inno a Monte Brè, (inno in terzine alla montagna sul lago di Lugano]; Ricordo di Piero Bargellini, (memorial written in prose); In Nobis Caelum, (393 unpublished Latin passages, collected here for the first time and published in the series linked to the Journal of neo-Latin studies, Humanistica Lovaniensia; Joseph Tusiani tra le due sponde dell’oceano (Monographic issue of the magazine Il Giannone). It brings together the essays by Prof. Tusiani (1950-2006), several translations of Dante’s Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso, Gerolamo Savonarola’s De ruina ecclesiae, and Eugenio Montale’s Finisterre.
2009 Fragmenta Ad Aemilium, (Latin poetry), and If Gold Should Rust: A Play in Verse = Se Arrugginisce L’oro: Dramma in Versi, and Sciusce de vente: Sonetti in dialetto garganico, were published.
2010 Racconti: Traduzione e Saggio di Emilio Bandiera con testi originali (Translation of Prof. Tusiani’s short stories written in English.)
2011 Saluti da New York: Prose e poesie and I Grandi Italiani d’America, were published.
2012 Ninety Poems was published. The poems were selected by the poet himself and his brother Michael Tusiani arranged to have it published by Baroque Press in preparation for the Professor’s 90^th birthday.
2014 L’Arte della Traduzione Poetica: Antologia e due saggi, a cura di Cosma Siani, was published by Cofine, Rome.
2015 Dante in Licenza: Romanzo, Edited and with an essay by Delio De Martino, was published.
2016 In una casa un’altra casa trovo: Autobiografia di un poeta di due terre (a compilation of Prof. Tusiani’s autobiographical trilogy, La Parola Difficile, La Parola Nuova, La Parola Antica) was published by Bompiani, Milan; Gargano Mio: Conversazione con Antonio Motta and A Clarion Call were also published. Governor Andrew M. Cuomo named Prof. Joseph Tusiani New York State Poet Laureate Emeritus.
2018 Lux Vicit Carmina Latina, a series of 83 Latin lyrics written by Prof. Tusiani between 2014 and 2017, was published.
2019 Poesie per un anno (2014-2019) [poems selected from Prof. Tusiani’s final poetry collection in multiple languages], and La Gloria del Momento: Poesie in lingua Spagnola, were published.
2020 Quando la Daunia bruciava, a 382-page novel, was written by Prof. Tusiani between 1948 and 1949, but was not published until 2020.
2022 Orfeo e Euridice: Favola in versi. Written 1954-1955 but published posthumously in 2022.
2023 Poems to Francesca (Poesie per Francesca), a collection of poems written for Frances Winwar, who was instrumental in catapulting Prof. Tusiani’s career in the United States. Edited and translated into Italian by Cosma Siani with a preface by Raffaele Cera and published posthumously.