Ogden Nash

Ogden Nash Poems

Isabel met an enormous bear,
Isabel, Isabel, didn't care;
The bear was hungry, the bear was ravenous,
The bear's big mouth was cruel and cavernous.
...

To keep your marriage brimming
With love in the loving cup,
...

Praise the spells and bless the charms,
I found April in my arms.
April golden, April cloudy,
Gracious, cruel, tender, rowdy;
...

Go hang yourself, you old M.D.!
You shall not sneer at me.
Pick up your hat and stethoscope,
Go wash your mouth with laundry soap;
...

Belinda lived in a little white house,
With a little black kitten and a little gray mouse,
And a little yellow dog and a little red wagon,
And a realio, trulio, little pet dragon.
...

Unwillingly Miranda wakes,
Feels the sun with terror,
One unwilling step she takes,
Shuddering to the mirror.
...

This is a song to celebrate banks,
Because they are full of money and you go into them and all
you hear is clinks and clanks,
Or maybe a sound like the wind in the trees on the hills,
...

There is something about a Martini,
A tingle remarkably pleasant;
A yellow, a mellow Martini;
I wish I had one at present.
...

I didn't go to church today,
I trust the Lord to understand.
The surf was swirling blue and white,
The children swirling on the sand.
...

More than a catbird hates a cat,
Or a criminal hates a clue,
Or the Axis hates the United States,
That's how much I love you.
...

May I join you in the doghouse, Rover?
I wish to retire till the party's over.
Since three o'clock I've done my best
To entertain each tiny guest. My conscience now I've left behind me,
...

Tell me, O Octopus, I begs
Is those things arms, or is they legs?
...

People expect old men to die,
They do not really mourn old men.
Old men are different. People look
At them with eyes that wonder when…
...

FIRST

Be it a girl, or one of the boys,
It is scarlet all over its avoirdupois,
...

The hands of the clock were reaching high
In an old midtown hotel;
I name no name, but its sordid fame
Is table talk in hell.
...

People live forever in Jacksonville and St. Petersburg and Tampa,
But you don't have to live forever to become a grampa.
The entrance requirements for grampahood are comparatively mild,
You only have to live until your child has a child.
...

Ogden Nash Biography

Ogden Nash was an American poet known for his witty and humorous verse. He was born on August 19, 1902, in Rye, New York, and grew up in a wealthy family. His father was a successful businessman, and his mother was a socialite and amateur poet. Nash attended Harvard University but dropped out after a year and a half. He worked various jobs, including advertising and editorial work, before he began writing poetry full-time. Nash's first book of poetry, "Hard Lines," was published in 1931 and was an instant success. He went on to publish numerous other collections of poetry, including "I'm a Stranger Here Myself," "Good Intentions," and "Versus." Nash's poetry is characterized by its clever wordplay, absurdity, and irreverent humor. He often wrote about everyday life and human foibles, and his poetry was popular with both adults and children. In addition to his poetry, Nash wrote lyrics for musicals and films, including "One Touch of Venus" and "The Shining Hour." He also wrote essays and articles for various publications, including The New Yorker and Life magazine. Nash was married twice and had two children. He died of complications from Crohn's disease on May 19, 1971, in Baltimore, Maryland. He is remembered as one of America's most beloved and humorous poets, whose unique style and humor continue to entertain and delight readers today.

Life of Ogden Nash

An ancestor, General Francis Nash, gave his name to Nashville, Tennessee. Raised in Rye, New York and Savannah, Georgia. Educated at St. George's School in Rhode Island and, briefly, Harvard University. Started work writing advertising copy for Doubleday, Page Publishing, New York, in 1925. Published first book for children, The Cricket of Caradon in 1925. First published poem Spring Comes to Murray Hill appears in New Yorker magazine in 1930. Joins staff at New Yorker in 1932. Married Frances Rider Leonard on June 6, 1933. Published 19 books of poetry. Collaborated, in 1943, in the musical comedy, One Touch of Venus Elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters in 1950. Lived in New York but his principal home was in Baltimore, Maryland, where he died on May 19, 1971. He was buried in North Hampton, New Hampshire.)

The Best Poem Of Ogden Nash

Adventures Of Isabel

Isabel met an enormous bear,
Isabel, Isabel, didn't care;
The bear was hungry, the bear was ravenous,
The bear's big mouth was cruel and cavernous.
The bear said, Isabel, glad to meet you,
How do, Isabel, now I'll eat you!
Isabel, Isabel, didn't worry.
Isabel didn't scream or scurry.
She washed her hands and she straightened her hair up,
Then Isabel quietly ate the bear up.
Once in a night as black as pitch
Isabel met a wicked old witch.
the witch's face was cross and wrinkled,
The witch's gums with teeth were sprinkled.
Ho, ho, Isabel! the old witch crowed,
I'll turn you into an ugly toad!
Isabel, Isabel, didn't worry,
Isabel didn't scream or scurry,
She showed no rage and she showed no rancor,
But she turned the witch into milk and drank her.
Isabel met a hideous giant,
Isabel continued self reliant.
The giant was hairy, the giant was horrid,
He had one eye in the middle of his forhead.
Good morning, Isabel, the giant said,
I'll grind your bones to make my bread.
Isabel, Isabel, didn't worry,
Isabel didn't scream or scurry.
She nibled the zwieback that she always fed off,
And when it was gone, she cut the giant's head off.
Isabel met a troublesome doctor,
He punched and he poked till he really shocked her.
The doctor's talk was of coughs and chills
And the doctor's satchel bulged with pills.
The doctor said unto Isabel,
Swallow this, it will make you well.
Isabel, Isabel, didn't worry,
Isabel didn't scream or scurry.
She took those pills from the pill concocter,
And Isabel calmly cured the doctor.

Ogden Nash Comments

Richard Walker 07 July 2007

To Ogden Nash My Mentore- Your rhymes were so geniously simplistly eloquent. Better than anything before you came, or since you wuent. They gave new meaning to the word ‘intent’. I often wonder as I ponder – If Ogden Nash had lived to be a hundred and ninety-three the world of poetry would certainly have been blessed with a masterfully myriadical montage of wittirhymes and verseilines and perponderings in excessed! (and he wouldn’t be dead yet either)

204 144 Reply
Arushi Agarwal 26 June 2012

ogden nash is an osum poet...! ! i just luv his poemzz...my most fav. poem is the muddlehead.....! ! ! srsly a classic poem he is.....! ! ! ! ..[3[3

143 157 Reply
Molaire Jules 28 June 2007

''A classic poet! ''

174 111 Reply
Milla Elphaba 12 October 2006

Mr.Nash delivers quite nicely making use of comedy and also being a bit ice-y He puts it down bluntly and some poems are quite stunt-ly

136 83 Reply
Rex R Shryock 05 March 2022

Anyone remember the poem about esso and inexpensive car tires? Please. Help with name of poem!

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i like girls 20 October 2021

I am looking for a poem about a birtday

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Vincent 24 June 2021

I am looking for a poem about a guy who is complaining about his girlfriend always being late. It ends with the line we'll be the oldest couple to get there if we ever do

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Vincent 24 June 2021

I am looking for a poem about a guy complaining about his girlfriend only fault is always being late

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Michael Horowitz 19 December 2020

I'm searching for an Ogden Nash birthday poem, one of whose lines is (or is something like) " May all your divorces be good divorces" and the word divorces rhymes with the word " horses" on a prior line. my email address is horowitz.mikejgmail, and I'd be much grateful to anyone who can help. Thnx - MH

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Maureen 01 March 2021

I am looking for the same poem. I was sure it is called 'Lines to be written on somebody's elses 30th birthday.

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Ogden Nash Quotes

I think remorse ought to stop biting the consciences that feed it.

One man's remorse is another man's reminiscence.

Remorse is a violent dyspepsia of the mind.

A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of.

I do not like to get the news, because there has never been an era when so many things were going so right for so many of the wrong persons.

Every New Year is the direct descendant, isn't it, of a long line of proven criminals?

Middle age is when you've met so many people that every new person you meet reminds you of someone else. . . .

The most exciting happiness is the happiness generated by forces beyond your control.

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