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A poet in the making
Born in NYC, NY. Katherine Collins, Billy's mother, quits her job as a nurse to raise him full time. She could recite verses on many topics and in doing so inspired Billy's love for words. Billy goes on to attend Archbishop Stepinac Highschool in White Plains, NY. -
College Career
Receives B.A. from College of the Holy Cross. Goes on to earn his M.A. and PhD from Univeristy of California-Riverside. -
Teaching Career
Begins teaching at Lehman College. He has also taught at Sarah Lawrence and Columbia University. -
Mid-Atlantic Review
Co-founds the Mid-Atlantic Review with Michael Shannon -
Literary Lion
Chosen by the New York Public Library to serve as Literary Lion. -
Poet of the Year
U.S. magazine Poetry recognizes Collins as Poet of the Year. -
The Best Cigarette
Releases CD titled The Best Cigarette featuring 34 of his poems. -
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Poet Laureate
Serves 2 terms as U.S. Poet Laureate -
The Names
Billy Collins is asked to write a poem commemorating the 1st anniversary fo the fall of the twin towers. He writes The Names and gives a reading of the poem in fron of a joint session of Congress held outside of Washington, DC on 10/06/2002. -
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Poet Laureate
Serves as New York State Poet Laureate -
Funny Guy
Wins the Mark Twain Prize for Humor in Poetry. -
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Current life
Lives in Somers, NY. He currently serves on the Editorial Board of the Alaska Quarterly Review as well as the Advisory Board at the Southern Review.
