Poetry no longer has little cat feet. These days it stomps around the country like a mangy circus lion, finally let out of its cage, roaring loudly, demanding attention and occasionally making a mess.

		Related articles Poetry Month events 'Strong is Your Hold' by Galway Kinnell 'World Over Water' by Robert Gibb

The beast has grown so large that now it commands its own month -- April. Today is the kickoff of National Poetry Month 2007, with a countrywide plate of events and activities organized by the Academy of American Poets.

Formerly confined either to the rarefied rooms of academe or the folksy editorial pages of America's once thriving populist press, the creature gained new life in the 1990s, says Mary Gannon, editor of Poetry magazine.

"Over the past 40 years, poetry has become much more of a popularized art form," she said. "In the 1960s and '70s poetry did, indeed, register in mainstream culture, especially the work of confessional poets such as Anne Sexton and Robert Lowell, but these days the genre has become increasingly popularized and diverse."

She cited the "spoken word movement" that appeared in the past decade -- performance art-like poetry slams and even some forms of rap and hip-hop.

"Some would say they invigorated the form by emphasizing its aural qualities through performance," Gannon said. "In the new century, there are many more voices, representing a wider range of aesthetics and -- in part because of the rapid increase in MFA programs-- there are arguably many more poets, as well as a thriving small press publishing industry to publish their work."

Mike Simms' Autumn House Press is a Pittsburgh example that proves Gannon's point. The Texas-born writer and teacher started the publishing house in 1999 in an office on Mount Washington. Today, he says it's thriving.

Autumn House will expand its new releases to 12 titles next year, Simms said, doubling its output. Ten will be new poetry collections and two will be fiction.

In all, the press has released 22 books by 18 poets, including regional ones Samuel Hazo, Ed Ochester, Gerald Stern, Peter Blair and the late Patricia Dobler.

Simms has also compiled two anthologies on contemporary American poetry and American spiritual poetry.

"The press is still growing very quickly," Simms said, "and it's successful. We pay our bills and we have four paid employees. We do get some donations and grants, but we make our money through the sales of our books."

Simms says he started the operation after he noticed that the "large traditional commercial presses, had either been bought up or merged and were emphasizing literary titles less. I saw a need for a high-quality poetry press to fill that vacuum."

Autumn House is part of a small "poetry industry" that includes such quality houses as Copper Canyon Press, Greywolf, BOA Editions, New Directions and Milkweed Editions.

"This 'industry,' for want of a better word, is national in scope," Simms said, "but fairly small, so the presses that do good work are well known among poets."

As proof of Autumn House's recognition, Simms said he received more than 700 manuscripts last year.

Pittsburgh's place as a major player in the poetry industry is assured by the University of Pittsburgh Press, for 40 years the most active publisher of verse among the academic presses.

This month, it recognizes the contribution of the Pitt Poetry Series with its anthology, "American Poetry Now" edited by longtime editor Ochester.

"The University of Pittsburgh is by far the best university press for poetry in the country," said Tree Swenson, executive director of the Academy of American Poets. "And Pittsburgh is known for its many poets as well."

Swenson, formerly an editor at Copper Canyon Press, now touts National Poetry Month as "a broad grass-roots observance of poetry. The real goal is to let the public discover poetry and see its role in everyday life."

This year's budget is $150,000, she said, "a shoestring when you consider that National Poetry Month is marked all over the country."

Among academy's 2007 activities are its "PoetFan" Web page, presenting essays on favorite poets, and its celebrity-studded "Poetry & the Creative Mind" reading at Lincoln Center April 11.

Readers include Lauren Bacall, Alfre Woodard, Ethan Hawke, David Halberstam and Glenn Close. Details of "Poetry & the Creative Mind" and "PoetFan" are at www.poets.org.

The International Poetry Forum, founded by Hazo, marked its 30th season in the fall. It's a mainstay of poetry readings here, bringing a wide range of celebrated and emerging poets to the city.

Former U.S. poet laureate Ted Kooser will close the season April 11. Details are on the Poetry Month schedule.