George Sessions Perry
Encyclopedia
George Sessions Perry was an American novelist, World War II correspondent and one of the highest paid popular magazine contributors of his time. He is remembered best for his 1941 novel Hold Autumn in Your Hand, which won the National Book Award
and the Texas Institute of Letters award in 1941. In 1945, famed French director Jean Renoit directed The Southerner, based on Hold Autumn in Your Hand, starring Zachary Scott and Beulah Bondi. The critical praise and comparisons to John Steinbeck
established Perry as one of the top writers of his era.
, he was the only son of Andrew Perry, a businessman who owned the local drug store, and Laura Perry, who set the social scene in Rockdale. After the death of his father in 1922 and the suicide of his mother a year later, George lived with his maternal grandmother Mai Van de Venter, whom he later immortalized in his book My Granny Van, and his Uncle Perry. He spent a year at Southwestern University
in nearby Georgetown, the first of three attempts at a college education that included stints at Southwestern, Purdue and the University of Houston
, never earning a degree. At Southwestern he met Claire Hodges, daughter of a Beaumont
medical doctor who rode out the devastating 1900 hurricane in Galveston, Texas
.
by a small inherited income, Perry spent the next six years writing six novels and more than fifty short stories about rural and small-town Texas and the semifeudal system of tenant farming
that prevailed at the time. Claire Perry acted as his typist, grammarian, and audience. Finally, in 1937, The Saturday Evening Post
published one of his stories, and soon thereafter Doubleday published his first book, Walls Rise Up, a comic novel about three vagrants living along the Brazos River
. In 1941 Perry firmly established his place on the Texas literary scene with Hold Autumn in Your Hand, a novel about a year in the life of a tenant farmer, perhaps the best agrarian novel about Texas. The book won the Texas Institute of Letters "Book of the Year" award in 1941 and, in 1942, became the first Texas book to win the National Book Award
.
George and Claire Perry acquired a second home in Guilford, Connecticut
in the late 1940s. He became one of the most popular writers in the nation in the postwar period as a correspondent for The Saturday Evening Post, particularly with the series "Cities of America" and "Families of America." To the consternation of many of his fans and literary critics, however, he never returned to novels. In declining physical and mental health in his later years, he disappeared on December 13, 1956 after walking into a river near his home there; his body was recovered some days later and a coroner
's inquest
ruled accidental drowning.
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...
and the Texas Institute of Letters award in 1941. In 1945, famed French director Jean Renoit directed The Southerner, based on Hold Autumn in Your Hand, starring Zachary Scott and Beulah Bondi. The critical praise and comparisons to John Steinbeck
John Steinbeck
John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr. was an American writer. He is widely known for the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden and the novella Of Mice and Men...
established Perry as one of the top writers of his era.
Early days
Born in Rockdale, TexasRockdale, Texas
Rockdale is a city in Milam County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,440 at the 2000 census.Rockdale was the site of a large Alcoa smelting operation, which could produce 1.67 million pounds of aluminum per day. The ALCOA plant was closed in late 2008 - early 2009.Author George Sessions...
, he was the only son of Andrew Perry, a businessman who owned the local drug store, and Laura Perry, who set the social scene in Rockdale. After the death of his father in 1922 and the suicide of his mother a year later, George lived with his maternal grandmother Mai Van de Venter, whom he later immortalized in his book My Granny Van, and his Uncle Perry. He spent a year at Southwestern University
Southwestern University
Southwestern University is a private, four-year, undergraduate, liberal arts college located in Georgetown, Texas, USA. Founded in 1840, Southwestern is the oldest university in Texas. The school is affiliated with the United Methodist Church although the curriculum is nonsectarian...
in nearby Georgetown, the first of three attempts at a college education that included stints at Southwestern, Purdue and the University of Houston
University of Houston
The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...
, never earning a degree. At Southwestern he met Claire Hodges, daughter of a Beaumont
Beaumont, Texas
Beaumont is a city in and county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 118,296 at the 2010 census. With Port Arthur and Orange, it forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the...
medical doctor who rode out the devastating 1900 hurricane in Galveston, Texas
Galveston, Texas
Galveston is a coastal city located on Galveston Island in the U.S. state of Texas. , the city had a total population of 47,743 within an area of...
.
Career
In 1931 he returned from traveling abroad to marry her and move back to Rockdale. Insulated from the worst effects of the Great DepressionGreat Depression in the United States
The Great Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of October, 1929 and rapidly spread worldwide. The market crash marked the beginning of a decade of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging farm incomes, and lost opportunities for economic growth and personal advancement...
by a small inherited income, Perry spent the next six years writing six novels and more than fifty short stories about rural and small-town Texas and the semifeudal system of tenant farming
Tenant farmer
A tenant farmer is one who resides on and farms land owned by a landlord. Tenant farming is an agricultural production system in which landowners contribute their land and often a measure of operating capital and management; while tenant farmers contribute their labor along with at times varying...
that prevailed at the time. Claire Perry acted as his typist, grammarian, and audience. Finally, in 1937, The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post is a bimonthly American magazine. It was published weekly under this title from 1897 until 1969, and quarterly and then bimonthly from 1971.-History:...
published one of his stories, and soon thereafter Doubleday published his first book, Walls Rise Up, a comic novel about three vagrants living along the Brazos River
Brazos River
The Brazos River, called the Rio de los Brazos de Dios by early Spanish explorers , is the longest river in Texas and the 11th longest river in the United States at from its source at the head of Blackwater Draw, Curry County, New Mexico to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico with a drainage...
. In 1941 Perry firmly established his place on the Texas literary scene with Hold Autumn in Your Hand, a novel about a year in the life of a tenant farmer, perhaps the best agrarian novel about Texas. The book won the Texas Institute of Letters "Book of the Year" award in 1941 and, in 1942, became the first Texas book to win the National Book Award
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...
.
George and Claire Perry acquired a second home in Guilford, Connecticut
Guilford, Connecticut
Guilford is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, that borders Madison, Branford, North Branford and Durham, and is situated on I-95 and the coast. The population was 21,398 at the 2000 census...
in the late 1940s. He became one of the most popular writers in the nation in the postwar period as a correspondent for The Saturday Evening Post, particularly with the series "Cities of America" and "Families of America." To the consternation of many of his fans and literary critics, however, he never returned to novels. In declining physical and mental health in his later years, he disappeared on December 13, 1956 after walking into a river near his home there; his body was recovered some days later and a coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
's inquest
Inquest
Inquests in England and Wales are held into sudden and unexplained deaths and also into the circumstances of discovery of a certain class of valuable artefacts known as "treasure trove"...
ruled accidental drowning.
External links
- George Sessions Perry in the Handbook of Texas Online