I have a friend, and his father is a very-famous actor. And, this friend was named after his very-famous actor father. He has the good/bad luck of being 'II' aka 'Jr'. You might well imagine the doors that have been opened (seldom the ones you'd want opened) and the doors that have been closed (seldom the ones you'd want closed), due to his parent's choice of names. So it was, being born a Millay; specifically, Bill Millay, who wrote. It's like begging for impossible comparisons. Or so it seemed, for quite awhile (until I ignored the whole subject and got on with things).

If you know who Edna St Vincent Millay was (one of the 3 most famous poets of the 20th century), then all this may make sense to you. If you don't know, are you ready for a walk in the garden? If you can't be bothered, then I guess I'm 'off the comparison hook', aren't I?

There are 2 great books about Edna (aka 'Vincent' to some friends and family, back in the day):

(1) What Lips my Lips Have Kissed: The Loves and Love Poems of Edna St. Vincent Millay. Epstein, Daniel Mark (2001)

(2) Savage Beauty: The Life of Edna St. Vincent Millay. Milford, Nancy (2001). This one was 'authorised' by Norma Millay Ellis (her sister) in the early 1970s (but not released until 2001!)

Plus, there are many editions of Edna's own writings available. Check all of these out on eBay, Amazon, etc.

OK, right about now some of you are about to say "I would read those books, but I don't have time to read... my eyesight's bad...etc"

If you don't read (or can't read), then maybe some of these keywords (about Edna) will titillate you: Greenwich Village, Bohemian Lifestyle, Saphos, Bi-Sexual, Open Marriage, Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, etc.

By the way, if you claimed (above) that you can't read, then how did you get this far down the page?