Poet, editor, critic, anthologist. Credited with bringing poetry to more people than any other American writer of his generation. A high school dropout, Untermeyer spent twenty years working in his family's jewelry manufacturing business while devoting much of his free time to his writing and the publication of seven volumes of poetry and parody. Over a span of five decades he continued to write poetry and anthologies, with over ninety published works to his credit, most notable being the 1922 companion volumes "Modern American Poetry" and "Modern British Poetry". He also developed friendships with such authors and poets as Carl Sandburg, Ezra Pound, Stephen Vincent Benet and D.H. Lawrence. As a critic, he said "America's three finest poets were Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost. His close friendship with Frost culminated in 1963's publication of his collection of " The Letters of Robert Frost to Louis Untermeyer". As a poet, Untermeyer described poetry as "...an effort to express the inexpressable in terms of the unforgettable...". Together with his wife, Bryna Ivens Untermeyer, an editor, published numerous volumes of poetry and books for young readers under the Golden Treasury of Children's Literature. An unhappy part of his career came in the 1950's. Known for his wit, love of parody and puns and his in-depth knowledge on many subjects, he was selected as one of the original panelists on TV's "What's My Line?", but was removed after the first season when nervous advertisers discovered he had been named during the hearings by the House Committee on Un-American Activities which was investigating communist subversives. Despite unfounded accusations, he was blacklisted by the entertainment industry and lived as a recluse for almost two years. He later regained the respect and recognition he deserved by receiving honors such as Phi Beta Kappa poet at Harvard University in 1955; member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters; the gold medal for distinguished service to poetry from the Poetry Society of America; served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, 1961-1963. Of himself he said, "I find it difficult to think of myself as any kind of a celebrity. My craft is to write, and it is no more to be wondered at than the man who builds a house or a bridge or any other craft that is part of the world's work." Louis Untermeyer died at the age of 92 at his beloved "Great Hill" estate where he had lived since 1948. Following his wishes, he was cremated and there was no formal funeral, memorial or burial service. His wife's niece confirmed to me that his ashes we're scattered on the family's estate. (Bio by Nan)