Robert Woodruff Anderson (1917 - 2009)

Playwright, Screenwriter. He is best known for his play “Tea and Sympathy” (1953 to 1955), which was made into a successful motion picture in 1956. Born in New York City, New York, Anderson was educated at Harvard University. After serving in the United States Navy during World War II, he studied at the Dramatic Workshop […]

Maxwell Anderson (1888 - 1959)

American Journalist, Author, Playwright, and Pulitzer Prize Winner.  He became one of the first modern playwrights to use blank verse extensively in his literary works. Born in Atlantic, Pennsylvania, he was the son of a Baptist minister, whose family frequently relocated throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, and North Dakota to follow the father’s ministerial posts. Sickly as […]

Jack Northman Anderson (1922 - 2005)

Pulitzer Prize-winning Newspaper Reporter. He is best remembered for his muck-racking column “Washington Merry-Go-Round,” which he took over from his mentor and column founder, Drew Pearson. He won the 1972 Pulitzer Prize for his news reporting. Born Jackson Northman Anderson in Long Beach, California, he grew up in Murray, a suburb of Salt Lake City, […]

Isabel Anderson (1876 - 1948)

Author. Her known books are “Topsy Turvy and the Gold Star,” “Circling Africa,” “Zigzagging the South Seas,” among several others. Besides being a noted author, she was an Ambassador to Japan, and during World War I she was with the District of Columbia Red Cross Refreshment Corp. During World War II, she was a volunteer […]

Hans Christian Andersen (1805 - 1875)

Writer. Famous for his fairy tales. His father was a poor shoemaker and literate, who believed he was of aristocratic origin. Andersen’s mother worked as washerwoman. He declined into alcoholism and died in 1833 in a charitable old people’s home. Andersen’s half-sister Karen Marie worked as a prostitute for some time. She contacted her famous […]

Cleveland Amory (1917 - 1998)

Author, Social Reformer. He wrote “The Best Cat Ever,” “The Cat Who Came For Christmas,” and “The Cat and the Curmudgeon.” Devoted his life to animal rights, founding The Fund For Animals in 1967 and serving as its president until his death. He is buried next to his cat, Polar Bear, on his ranch in […]

Eduardo Blanco Amor (1897 - 1979)

Author. Born in Orense, Spain, he lived in Argentina between 1919 and 1965.  He wrote “Poema en Catro Tempos” (1931), “A Esmorga” (1959), “Os Biosbardos” (1962), “Xente Ao Lonxe” (1972), and the plays “Farsas Para Títeres” (1973) and “Teatro pra a Xente” (1975).

Sir Kingsley Amis (1922 - 1995)

Author, Poet. He is probably best remembered for his novel “Lucky Jim.”  Family links:  Spouse:  Elizabeth Jane Howard (1923 – 2014)*  Children:  Sally Myfanwy Amis (1954 – 2000)* *Calculated relationship

Jean Hans Mayer Amery (1912 - 1978)

Author. An Austrian writer and commentator on current affairs, he was in the concentration camps at Auschwitz, Buchenwald and Bregen Belsen, in the years 1943 to 1945. His works fight against the violations of humanity. Cause of death: suicide

Stephen Edward Ambrose (1936 - 2002)

Author, Historian. Best selling author of over 30 books, Historian and History Teacher. Most remembered for his books on World War II, however he wrote on a variety of subjects in American History. He came to national prominence as the historical consultant for Steven Spielberg’s movie “Saving Private Ryan” and for when his book “Band […]

Clarence Walworth Alvord (1868 - 1928)

Historian. He studied at Williams College, the University of Berlin, and the University of Chicago before earning his PhD in 1908 from the University of Illinois, where he continued as a professor until 1920. During his time there, he became the founder of the Mississippi Valley Historical Association, was the editor of a number of […]

Joseph Alexander Altsheler (1862 - 1919)

Author. He wrote novels of adventure and mystery, predecessors of the popular “Hardy Boys” and “Nancy Drew” series. He was voted Most Popular Writer of Boy’s Stories in 1918.  Family links:  Parents:  Joseph Altsheler (1826 – 1881)  Lucy C Snoddy Altsheler (1830 – 1902)  Spouse:  Sarah Boles Altsheler (1862 – 1964)*  Children:  Sydney B Altsheler […]

Manuel Altolaguirre (1905 - 1959)

Poet, Literary Editor. He was born in Málaga (Andalucía, Spain) and died in Burgos (Castilla-León, Spain). He was a member of the Generation of 1927, along with Federico García Lorca, Rafael Alberti or Vicente Aleixandre. In 1926, he along with writer Emilio Prados founded the prestigious magazine Litoral and began his literary career. In 1933, […]

Peter Altenberg (1859 - 1919)

Author.  He was a well-known Viennese literary figure in the years before World War I.  Altenberg noted the world around him with witty,  aphoristic little sketches that blurred the line between poetry and prose.  To keep them brief he often composed them on the backs of postcards.  Typical of his observations are “There is only […]

Stewart Alsop (1914 - 1974)

Journalist. He became widely acclaimed for his political news reporting and commentary. His career lasted from 1945 to 1974, and he wrote for the “New York Herald Tribune”, the “Saturday Evening Post”, and “Newsweek”. He was the younger brother of journalist Joseph Wright Alsop.  Family links:  Parents:  Joseph Wright Alsop (1876 – 1953)  Corinne Douglas […]

Joseph Wright Alsop (1910 - 1989)

Journalist. Educated at Harvard University, he has a newspaper journalism career that thirty-seven years, obtained a following beginning with his reportage of the 1934 Lindbergh baby kidnapping case. During World War II, he served in the United States Navy with the “Flying Tigers”.  Known for being a powerbroker through his varied political connections, as well […]

Dámaso Alonso (1898 - 1990)

Author. He was member of Generation of 1927. He is remembered for his books “Hijos de la Ira,” “Gozos de la Vista” and “Hombre y Dios.” He wrote essays about Góngora, Lope de Vega and San Juan de la Cruz.  Family links:  Spouse:  Eulalia Galvarriato (1904 – 1997)* *Calculated relationship

Carl Jonas Love Almqvist (1793 - 1866)

Composer, Author. He died in Bremen, Germany and was first buried there. The body was moved to Solna in 1901 and reburied there.

Miguel Almereyda (1883 - 1917)

Journalist, Social Radical. He was the founder and editor of the radical weekly journal “La Guerre Sociale”(1906 to 1913) and the socialist daily “Le Bonnet Rouge”(1913 to 1917), he made many enemies in the French government during World War I. On August 6, 1917, Almereyda was arrested for treason, allegedly for receiving funds from Germany […]

Almafuerte (1854 - 1917)

Poet. Born Pedro Bonifacio Palacios, he was a humble teacher, despite his intellectual production, he lived and died poor.  He wrote two books: “Lamentaciones,” and “Almafuerte y la Guerra de 1914.”

Aaron Dale Allston (1960 - 2014)

Author. He is the author of 13 Star Wars novels as well as many other science fiction, game based fiction and mystery novels, short stories and technical guides for writers. He was a widely sought out speaker and lecturer for state and national conferences and traveled extensively throughout the country teaching and mentoring aspiring writers. […]

William Allingham (1824 - 1889)

Poet. Prominent Anglo-Irish poetry figure.  Family links:  Spouse:  Helen Patterson Allingham (1848 – 1926)* *Calculated relationship

Frederick Lewis Allen (1890 - 1954)

Historian. He is best remembered as an American historian of the first half of the 20th century. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and received his primary education at Groton School, a private school in Groton, Massachusetts. He enrolled in Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts and graduated in 1912 with a Bachelor’s Degree followed by a […]

Dante Alighieri (1265 - 1321)

Author. Born Durante Alighieri in Florence, Italy the son of Alighiero di Bellincione Alighieri, a notary, and his first wife. His studies included rhetoric, grammar, philosophy, literature , theology, philosophy, and theology. In 1293 he joined the guild of physicians and apothecaries in order to gain entry into the political life of the city. About […]

Nelson Algren (1909 - 1981)

Author. Born Nelson Ahlgren Abraham in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of three, he moved to the South Side of Chicago, Illinois and when he was eight, the family moved to the North Side. He graduated from what is now known as Roosevelt High School, then attended The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He received […]

Thomas Bailey Aldrich (1836 - 1907)

Author, Poet, Editor. Aldrich was an only child and his father often moved the whole family as he followed business opportunities. Shortly after his birth, the family moved from New Hampshire to New York for four years, then to New Orleans for about three years. He would later fictionalize these experiences of his childhood in […]

Eliseo “Lichi” Alberto (1951 - 2011)

Writer, Author. Born Eliseo Alberto de Diego Garcia Marruz, he was the recipient of the Premio Alfaguara de Novela, an international Spanish-language literary award in 1998 for the melancholic novel ‘Caracol Beach’. Other novels include ‘La Fábula de José (José’s Fable)’ and ‘La Eternidad Por Fin Comienza en Lunes (Eternity Finally Begins on a Monday). […]

Alain (1868 - 1951)

Philosopher.

Bella Akhmadulina (1937 - 2010)

Poetess. She created several well received collections of verse which often dealt with the mundane events of everyday life while trying to avoid the political difficulties of writing in the Soviet Union. Born Izabella Akhatovna Akhmadulina, she was raised initially in Moscow then lived with her family in Kazan during World War II; starting to […]

Harrison Ainsworth (1805 - 1882)

Author.  Born on King Street, Manchester, he was educated at the Manchester Grammar School and, at the age of sixteen, was articled to a solicitor. In 1824 his father died, and he went to London to study at the Inner Temple. In 1826 he married daughter of a publisher who was also the Manager of […]