Happy Deathday, Mr. Wilde!

“This wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death. One of us has to go”

             

Happy Deathday Mr. Williams!

On February 25th in 1983, American playwright Tennessee Williams died at the age of 71 from a choking accident, involving the cap from an eye drop bottle. (Though- it was indicated that intoxication was a factor in his death).

Williams won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his most recognized work “A Streetcar Named Desire” in 1948. He won the Pulitzer again in 1955 for “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”. He was awarded the Tony Award for best play for his 1952 play “The Rose Tattoo”. And in 1980 he was even presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Jimmy Carter!

Though Williams, like many writers, suffered with the vice of drinking and struggled with depression, the impact he had on American drama is invaluable and will never be forgotten. “The Glass Menagerie”, published in 1945, remains one of our very favorite plays to this day.

In 2009, Williams was inducted into the Poet’s Corner at St. John the Divine Episcopalian Church! If you’d like to read a little bit about that, just click the picture of his gravestone below.

You may notice something interesting about the post we have linked to the picture above…did you notice? That was our very first “deathday” post here at DWC!

Today, have a drink… hell… have two or three… (but be responsible), put your feet up, crack open some Tennessee Williams and get lost in the Southern Gothic recesses of your mind. Succumb to the drama.

Write on in peace, Mr. Williams!

Happy Deathday Ms. Kerr!

American author and playwright,  Jean Kerr, died on this day in 2003 at the age of 80 from pneumonia.

Jean Kerr is often best remembered for her collection of humorous essays entitled Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, which we highly recommend if you’ve not already read it- particularly if you are a parent or have ever lived in suburbia. The book was published in 1957 and later adapted for the screen, starring Doris Day and David Niven.

In 1961, she won the Tony Award for her play King of Hearts and wrote several other highly acclaimed and well received plays.

If you like Kerr’s style, you’ll definitely want to check out one of our favorite books by her called, How I Got to Be Perfect. If you like irreverent wit and observational humor, you will highly enjoy Ms. Kerr’s writing.

Today, why not do a little observational ranting and writing of your own?  Look around your town, city, office, family…. what do you see? What makes you laugh?

Write on in peace, Ms. Kerr!

Happy Deathday Mr. Beckett!

Irish avant-garde playwright and poet Samuel Beckett died on this day in 1989 of respiratory failure. The writer was 83 years old and is buried at the Cimetière de Montparnasse, in Paris.

Beckett is best remembered for his play Waiting for Godot. Interestingly, this play was riginally dismissed by some critics as a strange play in which nothing happens. In case you’ve not read it, we’ll not spoil it here but we will put in our two cents as to Beckett’s style. He frequently wrote of dark events, fear, lack of identity, death and even purposelessness. This is not to say that there are not brilliant bursts of comedy throughout his work, for there are. 

An interesting little tidbit about Beckett… he is probably the only writer on Earth that was “appalled” at winning the Nobel Prize for Literature (1969). You see, he was afraid that it would possibly make him famous. In fact, he sent a friend to accept it on his behalf!

Some other works by Beckett which we have enjoyed in the past include The Unnamble (1953), Act Without Words (1956), Footfalls (1975) and a collection of poems entitled Echo’s Bones, published in 1935. He has an extensive collection of plays that are not to be missed, particularly if you are a fan of less conventional theatre.

Today, remember this accomplished writer by… well… why not try waiting for Godot yourself.

Write on in peace, Mr. Beckett!

Happy Deathday Mr. Wilde!

Notorious playwright and wit Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde died of “infection” on this day in 1900 at the age of 46.

Let’s face it, anybody who is anybody knows who good ole Oscar Wilde is! We’ll not list here his accomplishments or the impact his work has had on popular culture, theatre and aspiring “fame whores” everywhere… it would simply take up too much bandwidth! Oscar Wilde was, without a doubt, a truly gifted writer- but it was his personality that propelled him ever forward into the spotlight during his life. He lived large.

Unfortunately, this lavish lifestyle and flamboyant conduct led to rumors and then scandal. For those of you who do not know it, Mr. Wilde was sentenced to two years of hard labor, which broke not only his spirit but his body as well. He died only a few years after being released from prison. And what did he go to prison for? For being himself. Mr. Wilde was officially sentenced for what was referred to as “gross indecency”. To put it plainly, he was a homosexual. Wilde lost everything; his money, his children…his wife and most of his friends, who upon Wilde’s release, avoided him like the plague.

Since his death, he has been immortalized in Great Britain with sculptures and various monuments. His face can be found on tshirts, bookstore walls and even action figures!

If you are new to Wilde and his writings, first let us say we are so sorry to hear you have been so unjustly deprived. Secondly, let us direct you to a wonderful little website for all things Oscar : http://www.oscarwildecollection.com/. We cannot choose his best works, for they are all superb but we will point out a few of our favorites; The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Happy Prince, and The Importance of Being Earnest!

Today, we ask that you hold your head high today and proclaim “I am Me”! Be proud of who you are and never make any apologies for it! Live large today, dear readers, and do try to be as witty as possible in all that you do!

Wit on on peace, Mr. Wilde.

We Do Not Do This Very Often, But…

… Happy Birthday Mr. Wilde!

How could we possibly resist wishing our very dear friend, Oscar Wilde, a happy 156th Birthday!!

Wilde is a man who needs no formal introduction, though he would most likely give himself one, were he here. Of course, we will be honoring him further on his deathday, this November, but as we do host an annual birthday party for this literary rockstar, we felt it befitting to give him a proverbial “shout out” here at our humble little blog.

Even Google is paying their respects to the notorious Irish writer today with a special logo tribute to Dorian Gray!

So- we strongly suggest our readers take a minute to wish Mr. Wilde a lovely birthday and proceed to celebrate in whichever debaucherous fashion you see fit. Be responsible and make no apologies for your own timeless loveliness… Oscar certainly wouldn’t have.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde!

Happy Deathday Mr. Lorca!!

Today is the deathday of Spanish poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca. He died on August 19th in 1936 at the age of 38. It is speculated that he was shot and killed by the Nationalist militia in Granada in the early months of Spain’s Civil War. Some speculate he was shot because of his sexual orientation.Whatever the reason for his death, we are quite sure that the literary world is the poorer for his untimely demise.

We here at Dead Writers have a tremendous respect for Lorca’s work. He definitely a favorite. Some of our favorite poems by Lorca include Ballad of the Sleepwalker, Gacela of the Dead Child, Ditty of the First Desire and Song of the Barren Orange Tree.

His early work was influenced by flamenco and gypsy culture, and he later joined a group of poets and artists known as the Generation of 27. The group included the surrealist painter Salvador Dali and filmmaker Luis Bunuel.

Following his death, many of Lorca’s works were blacklisted and banned. This was largely due to the political undertones found in some of his plays. Unfortunately, there is also evidence to suggest that some of his poems/sonnets were misplaced and have never been found. 

Just last year Lorca’s body was set to be exhumed from a mass grave site. However, the grave turned up empty and many believed Francisco Franco had the poet’s body relocated.

For more information on Lorca please visit the Lorca Foundation, which was set up by Lorca’s niece Laura Garcia Lorca.

Today, please honor this wonderful poet by following your own heart’s truest desires! Live your dreams and boldest fantasies! Be a heart!

Write on in peace, Mr. Lorca!

Happy Deathday George Sand!!

On this day in 1876, Amandine-Aurore-Lucile Dupin or George Sand, died in France at the age of 71.

George Sand is, without a doubt, the most prolific female author in the literary history of France. No small feat to be sure.  Though some critics have accused her of being little more than a glorified romance novelist, if one reads between the adventurous and colorful lines, one is bound to see Sand as a fiercely independent thinker with a desire to rebel against the political and social stagnation of her time and class. A word must also be said of George Sand as a playwright. In fact, Sand dramatized several of her novels with some success.

From her torrid love affairs to her liberal lyrics… we think George Sand was a tremendous talent. Our favorite books include Indiana (1832) and Mauprat (1837), though she certainly has quite the extensive body of work to choose from!

We encourage our readers to entertain all sorts of sordid liasons today and be as passionate as you want to be! After all, in the words of Sand, “There is only one happiness in this life, to love and be loved”.

Write on in peace, Ms. Sand!

Happy Deathday Mr. Williams!

27 years ago today Tennessee Williams died from what appeared to be an overdose. Though his funeral was not until March 3rd, we’d like to celebrate the life, writing and death of a tremendous talent who changed American drama forever.

Williams won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his most recognized work “A Streetcar Named Desire” in 1948. He won the Pulitzer again in 1955 for “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”. He was awarded the Tony Award for best play for his 1952 play “The Rose Tattoo”. And in 1980 he was even presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Jimmy Carter!

Though Tennessee Williams struggled his whole life with alcohol and depression, (what writer does’t?) he still managed to leave his mark. And… wouldn’t ya know it…26 years after his death, in 2009, he was inducted into the Poet’s Corner at St. John the Divine Episcopalian Church!

According to Wikipedia:

The ceremony seemed geared to elevate the poet and playwright into the pantheon of great English Language writers, including William Faulkner and William Shakespeare. The purpose of the ceremony seemed to be a prayer for the poets fire to continually burn on Earth, as it would in heaven, and included elements choral music, tributes, readings, personal anecdotes from friends, and overall a tone and deliberate selections of choral music and prayer that offered acceptance and forgiveness which seemed to address certain prejudices which may have arisen against the poet in his lifetime so that the man’s work could, going forward, be more fully accepted and explored.

At the time of his death, Williams had been working on a final play entitled “In Masks Outrageous and Austere”. It has been rumored that the play may be heading to Broadway at some point!

Anyway… we hope you will light a few candles, drink a few shots and read a little Streetcar today in remembrance of this brilliant American writer.

Tennessee Williams, write on in peace!