THOUSAND OAKS : Poets and Patrons Save Popular Spot

When a 36-hour marathon of storytelling, rhymes and verse ended Thursday at midnight, poets and their patrons had saved a popular Thousand Oaks gathering spot for artists. But just barely.

John Gorham, the Poetry Shop’s owner and wordsmith-in-residence, said at two minutes to midnight Thursday that supporters were $546 short of their goal.

Suddenly, a friend of Gorham’s, who asked not to be a identified, stood up and wrote a check for the remaining amount. The 32-year-old Thousand Oaks resident, who called himself a “closet poet,” said his act was motivated by something he had seen on a sitcom.

“It was like that last ‘Cheers’ episode,” the friend said. “This guy comes to the door and Sam says, ‘We’re closed.’ I kept thinking about that last scene. I couldn’t let that happen.”

The last-minute donation pushed the amount raised over $10,000--the sum Gorham needed to cover back rent and overdue bills. If Gorham, 32, failed to come up with the cash by Friday, the property manager had planned to evict Gorham’s store from the Thousand Oaks Boulevard space.

Gorham said he makes enough to operate the store from fees he charges to record poetry readings and publish writers’ works. But he said permits and other start-up costs had saddled him with debts.

Another benefactor, a businessman who also asked to remain anonymous, pitched in nearly $5,000 Thursday after pledging to double the amount that had already been donated.

Reached by phone Friday afternoon, Gorham said he was amazed by the community’s efforts to save his shop, where readings, storytelling and musical performances take place in a cozy 1,200-square-foot space.

“It was incredible,” Gorham said, referring to the fund-raising marathon that began Wednesday at noon. “I have never seen a bigger outpouring of love. We had calls from Santa Barbara, Orange County, from all over.”