Poet James Ragan studied at St. Vincent College before attending Ohio University (OU) to receive his M.A. (1967) and Ph.D. (1971) in English Literature. He later served on the OU faculty as an assistant professor of English and creative writing. Ragan then acted as the director of the University of Southern California's Professional Writing Program for 25 years. He has read his poetry for five heads of state, including Mikhail Gorbachev and Czech President Vaclav Havel. In 1985 he was one of three Americans, including Robert Bly and Bob Dylan, invited to perform at the First International Poetry Festival in Moscow. Ragan has performed his poetry all over the world, including Tokyo, Hong Kong, Beijing, Bangkok, London, Paris, Athens, Stockholm, Sofia, Warsaw, Moscow, Prague, and Sao Paulo. Ragan has also written for the stage and film, and worked in various production capacities on movies.
From the guide to the James Ragan papers, 1970-2000, (Ohio University)
