Sentence Correction

The author Herman Melville and the poet Walt Whitman are icons of American literature,
greatly beloved by generations past and present.
"¢ The author Herman Melville and the poet Walt Whitman are icons
"¢ Herman Melville the author and Walt Whitman the poet are icons
"¢ The author named Herman Melville and the poet named Walt Whitman are great icons
"¢ The author, Herman Melville, and the poet, Walt Whitman, are icons
"¢ Herman Melville, the author, and Walt Whitman, the poet, had been icons

OA after some discussion.

IMO A. It is the correct representation in a case where a person is modified by his occupation. There is no need of any comma between his profession and his name.

sandeep_thaparianz wrote:The author Herman Melville and the poet Walt Whitman are icons of American literature,
greatly beloved by generations past and present.
"¢ The author Herman Melville and the poet Walt Whitman are icons
"¢ Herman Melville the author and Walt Whitman the poet are icons
"¢ The author named Herman Melville and the poet named Walt Whitman are great icons
"¢ The author, Herman Melville, and the poet, Walt Whitman, are icons
"¢ Herman Melville, the author, and Walt Whitman, the poet, had been icons

OA after some discussion.

IMO B.

Am I right?

A is the OA

B is wrong because the author is non essential modifier hence needs to be offset by commas. Likewise the poet modifies Walt Whitman. Again it is acting as a non essential modifier.

If in last option had been is replaced by are then it is grammatically correct.