Cullen, Countee << kown TAY or kown TEE >> (1903-1946), was an African American poet and novelist known for his lyrical poetry. He established his reputation with his first published collection of poems, Color (1925). His other books of poetry include Copper Sun (1927) and The Black Christ (1929). He collected the poems by which he wished to be remembered in On These I Stand (1947). The Library of America published Cullen’s Collected Poems in 2013, after his death.
Cullen’s novel One Way to Heaven (1932) satirizes high society in the Harlem section of New York City. He and Arna Bontemps, an African American author, wrote the musical play St. Louis Woman (1946). Cullen also wrote two children’s books, The Lost Zoo (1940) and My Lives and How I Lost Them (1942).
Cullen was born on May 30, 1903, in New York City. He graduated from New York University and earned an M.A. in English literature from Harvard University. He spent much of his later life teaching. Cullen died on Jan. 9, 1946.
