Wright Morris | |
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| Born | (1910-01-06)January 6, 1910 Central City, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died | April 25, 1998(1998-04-25) (aged 88) Mill Valley, California, U.S. |
| Education | Pacific Union College Pomona College (BA) |
| Occupation(s) | Writer, photographer |
| Notable work | The Field of Vision Plains Song: For Female Voices |
| Spouses | |
| Awards | National Book Award, 1956 American Book Award, 1981 |
Wright Marion Morris (January 6, 1910 – April 25, 1998) was an American novelist, photographer, and essayist. He is known for his portrayals of the people and artifacts of theGreat Plains in words and pictures, as well as for experimenting with narrative forms.
Morris was born inCentral City, Nebraska; hisboyhood home is on theNational Register of Historic Places.[1] His mother, Grace Osborn Morris, died six days after he was born. His father, William Henry Morris, worked for theUnion Pacific Railroad. After Grace's death, Wright was cared for by a nanny, until his father made a trip toOmaha and returned with a young wife, Gertrude. InWill's Boy, Morris states, "Gertrude was closer to my age than to my father's".[2] Gertrude hated small-town life, but got along famously with Wright, as they shared many of the same childish tastes (both loved games, movies, and ice cream). In 1919, the family moved to Omaha, where they resided until 1924.
During that interlude, Morris spent two summers on his uncle's farm nearNorfolk, Nebraska.[3] Photographs of the farm, as well as the real-life characters of Uncle Harry and Aunt Clara, appear in Morris's books.
Morris moved toChicago in 1924.[4] Later that year, he accompanied his father on a road trip to the west coast that formed the basis for his first novel,My Uncle Dudley. He also lived briefly with his uncle in Texas before enrolling inPacific Union College in California. He graduated fromPomona College in 1933.[5] He married Mary Ellen Finfrock in 1934;[5] the couple divorced in 1959. He later married Josephine Mary Kantor.
Following college, Morris traveled through Europe on a "wanderjahr," which he later fictionalized inCause for Wonder.[6]
From 1944 to 1954, Morris lived in Philadelphia.[5] From 1954–1962, he divided his time between California and Mexico.[7] In 1963, he accepted a teaching position atSan Francisco State College. He retired from teaching in 1975.
Morris won theNational Book Award for TheField of Vision in 1956.[6] In 1981, he won the award a second time for his final novel,Plains Song.
Morris developed close friendships with several other American authors, most notablyJohn O'Hara andThornton Wilder, and was a pall bearer at O'Hara's funeral in 1970.[7] He also conducted a weekly correspondence with Scottish authorMuriel Spark from 1962 until his death.[8]
Morris died ofesophageal cancer inMill Valley, California in 1998. He is buried in the Chapman Cemetery.[9]
Morris received numerous honors in addition to the National Book Awards forThe Field of Vision[10] andPlains Song.[11][a]He was grantedGuggenheim Fellowships[12] in 1942, 1946, and 1954. In 1975, he won theMari Sandoz Award recognizing "significant, enduring contribution to the Nebraska book world".[13] In 1979, he received the Western Literature Association's Distinguished Achievement Award. In 1981, he won the Los Angeles Times' Book PrizeRobert Kirsch Award for lifetime achievement.[14] In 1982, a jury ofModern Language Association members selected him for theCommon Wealth Award for distinguished service in literature.[15] In 1985, he was one of the inaugural recipients of theWhiting Award.[16] In 1986, he was honored with a Creative Writing Fellowship from theNational Endowment for the Arts.[17]
The full archive of Wright Morris photographs is located at theCenter for Creative Photography (CCP) at theUniversity of Arizona inTucson, which also manages the copyright of these photographs.[18]
TheLincoln City Libraries of Lincoln, NE, houses some Morris correspondence and taped interviews inThe Gale E. Christianson Collection of Eiseley Research Materials andThe Wright Morris-Victor Musselman Correspondence collection.
TheUniversity of Nebraska–Lincoln Libraries houses a collection ofWright Morris papers, including material donated by Josephine Morris (1927-2002), widow of Wright Morris.
Wright Morris wrote about the places and lives he knew.[19] Here are a few of the most historic.
Includes an essay byHarold Augenbraum from the Awards 60-year anniversary blog.
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