Best known as a poet and performance artist, John Giorno rose to prominence in 1960s New York, where he would continue to have a wide-ranging impact on cultural life for six decades. He starred in Andy Warhol’s film Sleep in 1963 and soon began to draw on Pop art’s sensibilities to reimagine contemporary poetry. While Giorno published twenty printed volumes, as well as a memoir, he also helped devise and promote new mediums for experiencing poetry. In 1968 he debuted Dial-a-Poem, allowing audiences to hear recorded readings via telephone. Around that time, in order to continue to advance innovative ways of bringing poetry to the public, he formed Giorno Poetry Systems, collaborating with luminaries such as Laurie Anderson, William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsburg, Philip Glass, and Patti Smith. Giorno expanded his nonprofit in 1985 to include the AIDS Treatment Project, an organization offering assistance to individuals suffering from HIV/AIDS.