Editing Wynken, Blynken, and Nod

{{Short description|Poem by Eugene Field}}
{{about|the poem|the 1938 animated short film|Wynken, Blynken and Nod (film)}}
{{Infobox poem
|name                = Wynken, Blynken, and Nod
|image               = 2006-03-30 Wynken.jpg
|image_size          = 150px
|caption             = ''Wynken, Blynken, and Nod'' by [[Mabel Landrum Torrey]], 1918, formerly a fountain in [[Washington Park, Denver]]<ref>Mabel Landrum's original sculpture was exhibited to critical acclaim at the [[Art Institute of Chicago]]. Denver Mayor [[Robert W. Speer]] commissioned a marble version in 1918, and a bronze copy is a fountain on the Green in [[Wellsboro, Pennsylvania]], dedicated on September 23, 1938.</ref>
|subtitle            = 
|author              = [[Eugene Field]]
|original_title      = 
|original_title_lang = 
|translator          = 
|written             = 
|first               = 
|illustrator         = 
|cover_artist        = 
|country             = 
|language            = [[English language|English]]
|series              = 
|subject             = 
|genre               = 
|form                = 
|meter               = 
|rhyme               = 
|publisher           = 
|publication_date    = 
|media_type          = 
|lines               = 
|pages               = 
|size_weight         = 
|isbn                = 
|oclc                = 
|preceded_by         = 
|followed_by         = 
|wikisource          = 
|orig_lang_code      = 
|native_wikisource   = 
}}
"'''Wynken, Blynken, and Nod'''" is a poem for children written by American writer and poet [[Eugene Field]] and published on March 9, 1889.{{cn|date=December 2024}} The original title was "Dutch Lullaby". The poem is a [[fantasy]] bed-time story about three children sailing and fishing among the stars from a boat which is a wooden shoe. The names suggest a sleepy child's blinking eyes and nodding head. The spelling of the names, and the "wooden shoe," suggest Dutch language and names, as hinted in the original title.

==Text==
<blockquote><poem>
Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night
  sailed off in a wooden shoe —
Sailed on a river of crystal light,
  into a sea of dew.
"Where are you going, and what do you wish?"
  the old moon asked the three.
"We have come to fish for the herring fish
  that live in this beautiful sea;
Nets of silver and gold have we!"
  said Wynken, Blynken, and Nod.

The old moon laughed and sang a song,
  as they rocked in the wooden shoe,
And the wind that sped them all night long
  ruffled the waves of dew.
The little stars were the herring fish
  that lived in that beautiful sea —
"Now cast your nets wherever you wish —
  never afraid are we";
So cried the stars to the fishermen three:
  Wynken, Blynken, and Nod.

All night long their nets they threw
  to the stars in the twinkling foam —
Then down from the skies came the wooden shoe,
  bringing the fishermen home;
'Twas all so pretty a sail, it seemed
  as if it could not be,
And some folks thought 'twas a dream they'd dreamed
  of sailing that beautiful sea —
But I shall name you the fishermen three:
  Wynken, Blynken, and Nod.

Wynken and Blynken are two little eyes,
  and Nod is a little head,
And the wooden shoe that sailed the skies
  is a wee one's [[Trundle bed|trundle-bed]].
So shut your eyes while Mother sings
  of wonderful sights that be,
And you shall see the beautiful things
  as you rock in the misty sea,
Where the old shoe rocked the fishermen three:
  Wynken, Blynken, and Nod.
</poem></blockquote>

==Musical adaptations==
By 1890, the lyrics had been set to music, by American pianist and composer [[Ethelbert Woodbridge Nevin]]. [[Dan Hornsby]] recorded this song for Victor BS-037380 RCA (BlueBird) Records released in 1929. David Gude performed the song on his 1961 Vanguard album ''New Folks''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://secondhandsongs.com/release/88310 |title=Tracks on New Folks - various artists (November 1961) &#124; SecondHandSongs |website=secondhandsongs.com |access-date=May 5, 2020}}</ref>

In 1963, songwriter [[Lucy Simon]] wrote a setting (she claimed it was "the first song I ever wrote")<ref>{{cite web|url=https://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2013/07/18/i-found-other-wynken-blynken-and-nod-performances-by-simon-sisters-on-youtube/|title=I Found Other "Wynken Blynken and Nod" Performances by Simon Sisters on YouTube|date=18 July 2013|publisher=}}</ref> that she recorded with her sister [[Carly Simon|Carly]] as [[the Simon Sisters]]. Appearing on their debut album ''[[Meet the Simon Sisters]]'' (1964), the song became a minor hit for the duo, reaching No. 73 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'']] Pop singles chart<ref>''Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990'' - {{ISBN|0-89820-089-X}}</ref> and No. 20 in Canada.<ref>[http://chumtribute.com/64-05-18-chart.jpg CHUM Hit Parade, May 18, 1964]</ref> The song has been recorded by many artists, including: [[The Big 3 (folk group)|The Big 3]] featuring [[Cass Elliot]] (1963); [[The Irish Rovers]] on their album ''[[The Life of the Rover]]'' (1969); [[Roger Whittaker]] on his children's album ''[[The Magical World of Roger Whittaker (album)|The Magical World of Roger Whittaker]]'' (1975);<ref>This album was only released on [[LP album|LP]] and only in [[Canada]].</ref> [[Joanie Bartels]], on her album "Lullaby Magic" (1985); Canadian children's entertainer [[Fred Penner]] on his album ''The Cat Came Back'' (1979);<ref>[https://www.discogs.com/release/7907883 Discogs ~ ''The Cat Came Back'' 1979 vinyl, Meow Records (MEOW-01) Canada ~ side_01 track_04: "Winken, Blinken & Nod"]</ref> and [[the Doobie Brothers]] for the children's music compilation ''[[In Harmony (compilation albums)|In Harmony]]'' (1980). Their version also became a minor hit, reaching No. 76 on the ''Billboard'' Pop singles chart<ref>''Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990'' - {{ISBN|0-89820-089-X}}</ref> and No. 31 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary chart.<ref>{{cite book|first= Joel |last= Whitburn |author-link= Joel Whitburn |year= 1993 |title= Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993 |publisher= Record Research |page=75}}</ref>

[[Donovan]] wrote and sang a musical setting on his children's album ''[[HMS Donovan (album)|H.M.S. Donovan]]'' (1971).<ref>and recorded it again for his 2002 children's album ''[[Pied Piper (Donovan album)|Pied Piper]]''</ref>

[[Buffy Saint-Marie]] wrote and sang a version on ''[[Sesame Street]]'' in 1975, and on her album ''[[Sweet America]]'' (1976).

Children's entertainer [[Joanie Bartels]] sang a rendition on her premiere album, "Lullaby Magic." (1985)

Producer David Bernard Wolf set the poem for the ''[[Barney & Friends]]'' 1995 album ''Barney's Sleepytime Songs''.

[[Kevin Roth]] created a version for his album ''[[Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep]]'' (1996).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/now-i-lay-me-down-to-sleep-mw0000091363|title=Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep - Kevin Roth - Songs, Reviews, Credits - AllMusic|website=AllMusic}}</ref>

[[Tatiana Cameron]] sings her version on her lullaby album ''A Chance to Dream'' (2006).

David Tamulevich (of the folk duo Mustard's Retreat) wrote new original music to the poem, which was subsequently released in 2011 on the Mustard's Retreat CD ''Living in the Dream''. (2011)

Composer [http://ChristopherKlaich.com Christopher Klaich] composed a contemporary lullaby concert setting for soprano Bianca Showalter which has piano or alternatively chamber orchestral accompaniment (circa 2013).
 
Composer Stephen DeCesare composed an [[SATB]] version of the poem, (2013).

Valentine Wolfe released a heavy metal version in their album ''A Child's Bestiary'', (2016).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.valentinewolfe.com/listen/s/wynken_blynken_and_nod|title=Valentine Wolfe - valentinewolfe.com - Audio : Wynken, Blynken, And Nod|website=www.valentinewolfe.com}}</ref>

==References in other artistic works==
* American sculptor [[Mabel Landrum Torrey]] created "Wynken, Blynken and Nod Fountain", dedicated in 1919 in [[Denver, Colorado|Denver]]'s [[Washington Park, Denver|Washington Park]].<ref>[https://history.denverlibrary.org/washington-park-neighborhood Denver Public Library - History ''Washington Park Neighborhood'']</ref>
* In 1938, [[Walt Disney Animation Studios|Walt Disney Productions]] released an eight-minute cartoon, ''[[Wynken, Blynken and Nod (film)|Wynken, Blynken and Nod]]'', which stylized the fishermen of the poem as three [[pajama]]-clad children playing and fishing (for star fish) among the stars.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0030988/ IMDB ~ ''Wynken, Blynken & Nod'' 1938-May-27th]</ref>
* "Wynkin, Blynkin and Nod" are mentioned in the epilogue of the 1945 recording of the ''[[Nutcracker Suite]]'' by [[Spike Jones and his City Slickers]]. 
* In 1960, American artist [[Arthur Kraft]] created a penguin sculpture named "Wynkin, Blynkin and Nod" for the [[Glendale Shopping Center]] in [[Indianapolis, Indiana|Indianapolis]]<ref>[https://arthurkraft.wordpress.com/tag/sculpture ''Arthur M Kraft - Tag Archives: sculpture'']</ref> It is currently on display at the [[Indianapolis Zoo]]<ref>[https://www.indystar.com/story/life/2016/07/22/where-did-glendale-penguins-go-answer-obvious/87358916 ''Where did Glendale penguins go? Answer is obvious'']</ref>
* In the 1963 episode, “Opie the Birdman”, of ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]'' series, Opie names his three pet birds: Wynken, Blynken, and Nod.
* In the 1973 episode, "Rated X", of ''[[Sanford and Son]]'' series, a cop refers to Fred, Lamont, and Rollo as "Wynken, Blynken, and Nod."
* [[Lou Reed]] references the trio in an early version of the song "[[Satellite of Love]]", performed by [[The Velvet Underground]]. The lyric is not present on the official release of the song on his later album ''[[Transformer (Lou Reed album)|Transformer]]''.
* In the 1993 film [[Dennis the Menace (1993 film)|''Dennis the Menace'']], Mrs. Wilson recites "Wynken, Blynken, and Nod" to [[Dennis the Menace (U.S. comics)|Dennis]] when she puts him to bed after babysitting him for the day. While she recites the poem, Dennis's parents: Henry and Alice, both of whom are away on business, think about their family from their respective hotel rooms, and the camera focuses on each one of them at the end of the poem, symbolizing Alice as Wynken, Henry as Blynken, and Dennis as Nod. <ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5T19DmXbug Dennis the Menace - "Wynkin, Blynkin and Nod" - YouTube]</ref>
* In 2007, an animated film based on the poem was released by [[Weston Woods Studios]].
* In the 2016-2019 series [[Preacher (TV series)|''Preacher'']], DeBlanc sings "Wynken, Blynken, and Nod" to Genesis in an attempt to coax it out of [[Jesse Custer]] and back into an empty can of ‘Old Timer’ brand coffee.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvSqdhIFTg4 Preacher - "Wynkin, Blynkin and Nod" - YouTube]
* Napoleon Solo from the 1960s TV spy series [[The Man from U.N.C.L.E.(TV series)]] mentions Wynkin, Blynkin and Nod in episode 2 of season 1.</ref>

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

{{wikisource}}

==External links==
*[http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/eugene_field/poems/9562 Read the poem on www.famouspoetsandpoems.com]
*[http://www.wellsboropa.com/pages/welcome/wbnpoem.php The Wellsboro, PA Chamber of Commerce - History of Wynken, Blynken, and Nod]
*[http://www.theparkpeople.com/wynken.htm The Denver Park People - Wynken, Blynken & Nod Sculpture]
*[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0030988/ Disney's Wynken, Blynken, and Nod]
*[http://www.compassrose.org/uptown/wynken-blynken-nod-eugene-field.html Text of Wynken, Blynken and Nod with Maxfield Parrish illustration]
*[http://quiver.knox.edu/wynkenblynken ''Wynken, Blynken, and Nod'', Knox College's children's and young adult literary publication] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070513063203/http://quiver.knox.edu/wynkenblynken/ |date=2007-05-13 }}
*[http://www.edmergentech.com/wynken_blynken_and_nod.html Books and Posters of Wynken, Blynken & Nod]
*[http://www.reelyredd.com/1001duel.htm ''The Duel'', aka ''The Gingham Dog and The Calico Cat''] hear song version of the poem
* {{librivox book | title=Wynken, Blynken, and Nod}} (multiple versions)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wynken, Blynken, And Nod}}
[[Category:1889 poems]]
[[Category:Literary characters introduced in 1889]]
[[Category:American poems]]
[[Category:Child characters in literature]]
[[Category:1964 songs]]
[[Category:1964 singles]]
[[Category:1981 singles]]
[[Category:Warner Records singles]]
[[Category:Carly Simon songs]]
[[Category:The Doobie Brothers songs]]
[[Category:Works about children]]
[[Category:Fantasy poetry]]