Hugh Wheeler was one of the most unique playwrights of all time. He was innovative in his storytelling skills and could challenge the most prolific writer. In his life, he wrote numerous plays and over 30 mystery novels under three different pseudonyms. However, his award winning works included the play Sweeney Todd, Candide, and A Little Night Music. Take a look at Wheeler’s life and also, look at each of these works. See inside the man and the brilliant playwright.
Hugh Wheeler was born on March 19, 1912 to parents, Harold, who was a civil servant in the Office of the Public Trustee and Florence Wheeler, whose parents were in truck manufacturing. He was born in Northwood, Middlesex, England, (Obituary) and lived there until he was 22 years old. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of London in 1932 (Gale). After receiving his degree, he decided to move to the United States and pursue his love of writing. He served in the American armed forces in World War II. He also became a naturalized American citizen in 1942. He remained in the United States until his death in 1987 (Obituary). There are few details of Wheeler’s personal life except that he never married and lived privately (Document). He was well respected in the literary world, in which he accumulated a variety of awards.
As private as Wheeler was a person, you can only speculate as to why he wrote over 40 books under three different pseudonyms. His seemingly quiet private life may have been vicariously lived through the lives of the many characters he created in his mystery novels. The series of Puzzle novels were his most popular and were written under the pseudonym Patrick Quentin and collaborated with Richard Webb (Obituar...
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...udonyms. When he became tired of writing novels, he decided to become an award winning playwright, winning awards for such works as Sweeney Todd, Candide and A Little Night Music. Hugh Wheeler was a very private man and one of the most brilliant playwrights of all time.
Works Cited
Billington, Michael. "A Little Night Music." The Guardian 8 April 2009.
Document, Gale. "No 55 Hugh Wheeler." Independent on Sunday 13 June 2010.
Gale. "Hugh Callingham Wheeler." Contemporary Authors Online 28 March 2011.
Hampton, Wilborn. "Hugh Wheeler, Award Winning Playwright." New York Times 28 July 1987.
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"Obituary(Web)." Variety 29 July 1987.
"Obituary(Web)." The Times, London, England 30 July 1987.
Wheeler, Hugh. Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. New York: Dodd, Meade and Company, 1979.
As a child, Ray Bradbury loved to read fantasy novels. Inspired by his favorite writers, he longed to become a fantasy writer himself. Bradbury lived during the Great Depression with very little money, therefore he could not put himself through school. Instead, Bradbury went to the library every other day for ten years. During this time, he realized that he wanted to pursue his dream of becoming a writer. To get money, Bradbury started publishing his works in a newspaper. Because he wanted practice, he used several pseudonyms to make it look like he had several authors publishing their stories in his newspaper, but in fact, it was written entirely by Bradbury himself. “Bradbury uses [his] stories not only to entertain, but to cause readers to think about their own lives” (Clark, Tracy). He focused more on the message of his story than the popularity of it. “When ask...
When he was fifteen years old his mother died from appendicitis. From fifteen years of age to his college years he lived in an all-white neighborhood. From 1914-1917, he shifted from many colleges and academic courses of study as well as he changed his cultural identity growing up. He studied physical education, agriculture, and literature at a total of six colleges and universities from Wisconsin to New York. Although he never completed a degree, his educational pursuits laid the foundation for his writing career. He had the knowledge of philosophy and psychology. He attempted to write when he was a youth, but he made a choice to pursue a literary career in 1919. After he published Cane he became part of New York literary circles. He objected both rivalries that prevailed in the fraternity of writers and to attempts to promote him as a black writer (Clay...
working up to the later writings such as the Four Quartets and Murder in the
Wright, Richard. "The Man Who Was Almost a Man." Literature and the Writing Process. Ed.
When discussing 19th century authors, critics are sure to discuss a name that brought a new feel to the local color writing scene. After amassing a great amount of wealth and signing the largest contract of his time it can be argued that Bret Harte was the greatest writer of his time. Some would argue that his work was dry, but others would agree that his thought provoking work really reflected who he was and where he came from.
Tennessee Williams was born Thomas Lanier Williams in 1911. As a successful playwright, his career was greatly influenced by events in his life. He was noted for bringing the reader "a slice of his own life and the feel of southern culture", as his primary sources of inspiration were "the writers he grew up with, his family, and the South." The connection between his life and his work can be seen in several of his plays.
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reputation as one of the finest American writers of all time. A man of towering
Tennessee Williams is widely known as one of the greatest playwrights in American history. Tennessee Williams's personal life and experiences have been the direct subject matter for his dramas. He uses his experiences and universalize them through the means of the stage. His life is utilized over and over again in the creation of his dramas.
Robinson, Daniel. "Getting It Right: The Short Fiction of Tim O'Brien." Studies in Contemporary Fiction. 40.3 (1999): 257. Expanded Academic ASAP.
Hirsch, Foster. A Portrait of the Artist-The Plays of Tennessee Williams. London: Kennikat Press, 1979.
Pattee, Fred Lewis. A History of American Literature Since 1870 . Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1992.
Works Cited “American Literature 1865-1914.” Baym 1271. Baym, Nina et al. Ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature.
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