1. Fran Bollinger

2. Born: March 22 nd, 19841 In New York City, New York Grew up in Queens and White Plains Inspired by his mother, Katherine, at an early age Causing a love for word both written and spoken Able to recite poetry on any subject

3. Graduated high school at Archbishop Stepinac High School College of the Holy Cross - Worcester, Massachusetts Bachelor's in English 1963 University of California - Riverside Both a MA and PhD in Romantic Poetry

4. Taught at many Colleges Columbia University Sarah Lawrence College City University of New York Lehman College Co-founded the Mid-Atlantic Review With friend and co-owner Michael Shannon 1975

5. 1 st book: Pokerface 1977 Video Poems 1980 The Apple that Astonished Paris 1988 Selected by National Poetry Series The Art of Drowning 1995 Finalist for the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize

6. Picnic, Lightning 1998 Questions About Angels 1991 What made him famous National Poetry Society elected poems 2001 Sailing Alone Around the Room: New and Selected Poems 2001 Most Recent- Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems 2013

7. Chosen multiple times for Best American Poetry Series Mark Twain Prize- humor in poetry New York Foundation of Art The National Endowment for the Arts The Guggenheim Foundation Award “Literary Lion” New York Public Library 1992

8. Said to be the “Most Popular Poet in America” by the New York Times Known for his humor and observations of every day life “ If ever there were a spring day so perfect, so uplifted by a warm intermittent breeze that it made you want to throw open all the windows in the house and unlatch the door to the canary's cage, indeed, rip the little door from its jamb, “ - Today, Billy Collins

9. Alive and Well! Lives in Somers, New York Professor of English At Lehman College Over 30 years (since 1963) Bronx, New York

10. "Billy Collins: Online Resources." - Library of Congress Bibliographies, Research Guides,and Finding Aids (Virtual Programs&Services, Library of Congress). N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Aug. 2014. "Billy Collins." Poetry Foundation. Poetry Foundation, n.d. Web. 30 Aug. 2014. "Billy Collins." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 09 Feb. 2014. Web. 06 Sept. 2014. Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, n.d. Web. 30 Aug. 2014 Picture from Slide 1 http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YJzj-ji3ivM/Tfn6_k174jI/AAAAAAAAAAY/731fjCImKJU/s1600/billy-collins.jpg Picture from Slide 3 http://www.ebay.com/itm/University-of-California-Riverside-Highlanders-Flag-UCR-Large-3x5-/320897640459 Pictures from Slide 5 http://www.amazon.com/The-Apple-That-Astonished-Paris/dp/1557288232 http://mookseandgripes.com/reviews/2008/11/27/billy-collinss-picnic-lightning/ http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/5722341 Pictures from Slide 6 http://wwwhttp://www.poetryarchive.org/poet/billy-collins. amazon.com/Aimless-Love-A-Selection-Poems/dp/0385366396 Picture from Slide 7 http://www.nashvillescene.com/nashville/billy-collins-takes-his-appeal-for-accessible-poetry-to-the-fugitives- citadel/Content?oid=2635857 Pictures from Slide 9 http://danspapers.com/2012/07/whos-here-billy-collins-poet/