Davidson Garrett

Davidson Garrett is a native of Shreveport, Louisiana. He trained for the theater at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts and graduated from The City College of New York in 1988, with an M.S. in Education. A member of Screen Actor's Guild/AFTRA and Actors' Equity, he worked in theater, film and television for many years. As an actor, he appeared on All My Children, As the World Turns, The Guiding Light, Spin City, New York Undercover, Oz, and Law and Order. He also acted in 12 theater productions in New York City, and toured throughout the U.S. and Europe.

His poetry, fiction and articles have been published in The New York Times, The Episcopal New Yorker, Xavier Review (New Orleans), Sensations Magazine, Third Wednesday, Marco Polo Arts Mag, Big City Lit, The Stillwater Review, 2 Bridges Review, the website of The Beat Museum in San Francisco and in Podium, the online literary journal of the 92nd Street Y. Davidson is the author of the poetry collection: King Lear of the Taxi published by Advent Purple Press. Poetry from that collection was featured in the short film Taxi Driver by Flashgun Films of Great Britain, which was screened at London's Portabello Film Festival in 2008.

In 2011, Davidson was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and in May 2013, he was invited to read at Joe's Pub in New York City as part of the Taxi Drivers' Workshop for the PEN World Voices Festival. His chapbook, To Tell The Truth I Wanted To Be Kitty Carlisle and Other Poems was published in 2013 by Finishing Line Press. In 2014, Davidson was awarded 1st Prize for the 2nd Annual Juanita Torrence-Thompson International Poetry Award sponsored by Amulet Poetry Magazine, and judged by Juanita Torrence-Thompson.  In 2015, Advent Purple Press published his latest chapbook, Southern Low Protestant Departure: A Funeral Poem. In 2016, excerpts from the funeral poems were published in the literary journal, 2 Bridges Review, from the City University of New York. In 2017, Advent Purple Press published Davidson's chapbook, What Happened to The Man Who Taught Me Beowulf and Other Poems. 

In the summer of 2018, Boog City Poets Theater presented Davidson's spoken word play, "Conspiracy Theory: The Mysterious Death of Dorothy Kilgallen," which was staged in New York's East Village. 

In 2019, Davidson was the subject of the short film: The Taxicab Poet: Davidson Garrett, by filmaker, Zardon Richardson. The film was screened at the Jerome L. Greene Performance Space at WNYC Radio, as a part of the PEN World Voices Festival.

In 2020, Kelsay Books published his collection of poems, Arias of a Rhapsodic Spirit. In 2022, his chapbook, Cabaletta: Poems of a New York City Taxi Driver, was published by Finishing Line Press. All of his books are available on amazon. Davidson is a retired New York City taxi driver who drove for 40 years to help subsidize his art.

In 2025, Davidson Garrett was the subject of an oral history interview by the American LGBTQ Museum's "Queer Legacies Project," Episode 4  which can be viewed on You Tube.