Bob McGowan, 2nd oldest brother of the Harriet Tubman Journal editor, Jim McGowan, is the author of one publication, "A Game of Tag" (1974, Thom Hendricks Associates), a thin volume of 15 poems selected and compiled and sent to press by Jim, who had continually but unsuccessfully propted Bob to copyright his poetry and get it published.

Since then Bob has continued writing prolifically what he calls "prose poetry." However, he was also a staff writer and interviewer for the Cytotechnology Newsletter, a Medical Laboratory publication with an international circulation of more than 5,500 cytotechnologists.

In the mid and late 1950's, Bob took on and completed 7 full humanity courses with The University of Chicago Home Study Department, earning straight A's on 6 of the courses and a B+ on the other one.

Having written over 100 volumes of "prose poetry," in the last 7 yeears alone, Bob still has not seriously sought publication, despite the urgent prompts from friends and his brother Jim. "Nobody probably believes me," Bob explains, "but I am more entrenched in writing poetry than in getting it read by others, even though I have to admit to appreciating the flatterey when someone says they like what I wrote because they have experienced something 'just like that!'"

At 78, Bob retired 7 years ago from 32 consecutive years of child-care counseling and supervising as well as being the director of a group home. His wife, Helen, 69, has also retired but as a NYC telecommunications co-ordinator, and their daughter, Aminah, 30, currently lives in Oklahoma with her husband, Yuan Qi.

Bob and Helen make their home in the Bronx, New York.

E-mail: Bob McGowan