Marvin Cohen (American writer)

Marvin Cohen (born July 6, 1931) is an American essayist, novelist, playwright, poet, humorist, and surrealist. He is the author of nine published books, two of which were published by New Directions Publishing, and several plays. His shorter writings — stories, parables, allegories, and essays — have appeared in more than 80 publications, including The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Village Voice, The Nation, Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Fiction, The Hudson Review, Quarterly Review of Literature, Transatlantic Review and New Directions annuals. His 1980 play The Don Juan and the Non-Don Juan was first performed at the New York Shakespeare Festival as part of the Poets at the Public Series. Staged readings of the play have featured actors Richard Dreyfuss, Keith Carradine, Wallace Shawn, Jill Eikenberry, Larry Pine, and Mimi Kennedy.

Cohen was born in Brooklyn, New York City. He has described himself as one who has "risen from lower-class background to lower-class foreground." He studied art at Cooper Union but left college to focus on writing. He supported himself with a series of odd jobs including mink farmer and merchant seaman. Although not typically associated with the Beat Generation, his first published piece appeared in The Beat Scene (Corinth Books, 1960) along with works by Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Gregory Corso, and Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Cohen also taught creative writing at The New School, the City College of New York, C.W. Post of Long Island University, and Adelphi University. He is married and currently lives with his wife in New York City.

Books

• The Self-Devoted Friend (1967) New Directions Publishing
• Dialogues (1967) Turret Books
• The Monday Rhetoric of the Love Club and Other Parables (1973) New Directions Publishing
• Baseball the Beautiful: Decoding the Diamond (1974) Links Books
• Fables at Life's Expense (1975) Serendipity Books
• Others, Including Morstive Sternbump (1976) Bobbs-Merrill Company
• The Inconvenience of Living (1977) Urizen Books
• How the Snake Emerged from the Bamboo Pole but Man Emerged from Both (1978) Oasis Books / Earthgrip Press
• Aesthetics in Life and Art (1982) Gull Books
• How to Outthink a Wall: An Anthology (2016) Verbivoracious Press
• Others, Including Morstive Sternbump: 40th Anniversary Edition (2016) Tough Poets Press

Plays

• The Don Juan and the Non-Don Juan (1980)
• Necessary Ends (1982)
• Topsy-Turvy (1986)
• Phonies (1988)
• Love Unfairly Tested (1988)