richard joseph howard (born richard joseph orwitz; october 13, 1929 – march 31, 2022) was an american poet, literary critic, essayist, teacher, and translator. he was born in cleveland, ohio. he was awarded the pen translation prize in 1976 for his translation of e. m. cioran's "a short history of decay" and the national book award for his 1983 translation of baudelaire's "les fleurs du mal".