Oscar Williams  (1900–1964) LINKS No links at this time. BIOGRAPHY Williams was born in Brooklyn, New York and worked at various advertising agencies between 1921 and 1937. His first book of poetry, The Golden Darkness, won the Yale Series of Younger Poets Award in 1921. Although his own poetic productivity was modest, he carved himself a special niche as an editor and anthologizer. Since his anthologies were frequently used as textbooks in university courses, he exercised significant influence on the mainstream of Western poetry from the 1940s until his death.