A poet, critic, journalist, playwright, and educator, Eugene B. Redmond is counted among the number of significant black literary figures who shaped the black arts movement of the late 1960s.

Born on 1 December 1937 in St. Louis, Missouri, to John Henry and Emma Jean Hutchinson Redmond, the young Redmond was raised in East St. Louis, Illinois. Redmond told Contemporary Authors: "Motherless and fatherless at age [nine], I was raised in part by a grandmother and a group of neighborhood fathers--friends of my older brother and members of the Seventh Day Adventist Church I attended ...." Redmond's interest in writing stems partly from his activities on the Lincoln Senior High School newspaper and yearbook projects, and partly from composing songs for several neighborhood "doo-waa" groups. His fascination with the oral delivery of words, which is evident in his mature work, began with his performances in high school and church plays.

After...