S. N. Behrman
Encyclopedia
Samuel Nathaniel Behrman (June 9, 1893 – September 9, 1973) was an American playwright and screenwriter, who also worked for the New York Times.
, but moved to America, which is where he was born. The year of his birthday was never disputed, but his actual day of birth was among his family. His mentor was Daniel Asher. He went with him when he was eleven to the theatre to see Devil's Island, where Asher convinced him to write for the stage. He was convinced when he visited Lothrope's Opera House in 1904. He graduated Classical High School (Worcester, Massachusetts) and continued on to become a professional actor. His health forced him to quit acting, and he returned home to Worcester and attended Clark College
.
. He took English composition with Charles Townsend Copeland
. He would suffer yet another suspension at Clark in his sophomore year, and he transferred out to Harvard. While in Copeland's class, he sold a short story in 1915 to The Parisienne. He submitted one of his manuscripts to George Pierce Baker
, who would New York Tribune
nineteen years after name his essay "Baker's Last Drama Lecture: From Aeschylus
to Behrman," out of the popularity of Behrman. In 1916, he was the only undergraduate in Baker's famed "47" playwriting class, where he studied George Meredith
's comedy. He would earn his B.A.and go on to Columbia University
.
While at Columbia he would study under Brander Matthews
. Following him getting his masters in 1918, his brothers Hiram and Morris had a successful accounting firm and decided to fund their younger brother. He put himself to work New York Times and eventually worked as a book reviewer for The New Republic
.
, Katharine Cornell
, Jane Cowl
, and the acting team of Alfred Lunt
and Lynn Fontanne
. Among his greatest Broadway successes were The Second Man (1928), Biography (1932), End of Summer (1936), and No Time for Comedy (1939). His stage adaptation of Enid Bagnold
's novel, Serena Blandish, became a success for actress Ruth Gordon
. He also adapted plays by Jean Giraudoux
and Marcel Achard
, and a short story by W. Somerset Maugham
. With composer Harold Rome he adapted Marcel Pagnol
's Fanny
trilogy into a musical comedy for the stage.
In Hollywood, he was most noted for his work on screenplays for Greta Garbo
, including Queen Christina
, Conquest, and her final film, Two-Faced Woman
. With Sonya Levien, Behrman co-wrote the screen play for the 1930 film version of Ferenc Molnár
's Liliom
, starring Charles Farrell
and Rose Hobart
. His experiences in Hollywood found dramatic form in Let me Hear the Melody (1951).
Berhman's comedies repeatedly celebrate tolerance, yet show how tolerant people in their generosity are often vulnerable when confronted by fanatics or ruthless opportunists. In End of Summer, a liberal household is threatened by a devious psychoanalyist who is able to play upon their weaknesses in his desire for wealth and power. Behrman's protagonists often feel inadequate to deal with the evils and injustices in the world. The hero of No Time for Comedy
, a successful author of stylish comedies for his actress-wife, feels the need to write a serious play in response to the Spanish Civil War
. When he fails at this attempt, he resolves to go to Spain himself and fight. The play asks the question: Is there a place for comedy in a violent and unjust world?
Behrman's writing for The New Yorker
not only included profiles of such notable figures as composer George Gershwin
, Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár
, Zionist leader Chaim Weizmann
and entertainer Eddie Cantor
, but much longer pieces that were collected into books on Max Beerbohm
and Joseph Duveen. His autobiographical essays, which also appeared in The New Yorker,later appeared in two volumes, The Worcester Account (1955) and People in a Diary (1972). He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
in 1959.
Early Years
His family originally came from LithuaniaLithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, but moved to America, which is where he was born. The year of his birthday was never disputed, but his actual day of birth was among his family. His mentor was Daniel Asher. He went with him when he was eleven to the theatre to see Devil's Island, where Asher convinced him to write for the stage. He was convinced when he visited Lothrope's Opera House in 1904. He graduated Classical High School (Worcester, Massachusetts) and continued on to become a professional actor. His health forced him to quit acting, and he returned home to Worcester and attended Clark College
Clark University
Clark University is a private research university and liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts.Founded in 1887, it is the oldest educational institution founded as an all-graduate university. Clark now also educates undergraduates...
.
College
Behrman attained one suspension after another from Clark for failing mandatory physical education classes. Asher wanted Behrman to attend a summer class at nearby Harvard UniversityHarvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. He took English composition with Charles Townsend Copeland
Charles Townsend Copeland
Charles Townsend Copeland was a professor, poet, and writer. He spent much of his time as a mentor in Boston, Massachusetts, specifically at Harvard University, and also worked as a part time theater critic. Known as "Copey" by many of his peers and admirers, he became known for his Harvard...
. He would suffer yet another suspension at Clark in his sophomore year, and he transferred out to Harvard. While in Copeland's class, he sold a short story in 1915 to The Parisienne. He submitted one of his manuscripts to George Pierce Baker
George Pierce Baker
George Pierce Baker was an American educator in the field of drama.Baker graduated in the Harvard University class of 1887, and taught in the English Department at Harvard from 1888 until 1924. He started his "47 workshop" class in playwrighting in 1905. He was instrumental in creating the Harvard...
, who would New York Tribune
New York Tribune
The New York Tribune was an American newspaper, first established by Horace Greeley in 1841, which was long considered one of the leading newspapers in the United States...
nineteen years after name his essay "Baker's Last Drama Lecture: From Aeschylus
Aeschylus
Aeschylus was the first of the three ancient Greek tragedians whose work has survived, the others being Sophocles and Euripides, and is often described as the father of tragedy. His name derives from the Greek word aiskhos , meaning "shame"...
to Behrman," out of the popularity of Behrman. In 1916, he was the only undergraduate in Baker's famed "47" playwriting class, where he studied George Meredith
George Meredith
George Meredith, OM was an English novelist and poet of the Victorian era.- Life :Meredith was born in Portsmouth, England, a son and grandson of naval outfitters. His mother died when he was five. At the age of 14 he was sent to a Moravian School in Neuwied, Germany, where he remained for two...
's comedy. He would earn his B.A.and go on to Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
While at Columbia he would study under Brander Matthews
Brander Matthews
James Brander Matthews , was a U.S. writer and educator. Matthews was the first U.S. professor of dramatic literature.-Biography:...
. Following him getting his masters in 1918, his brothers Hiram and Morris had a successful accounting firm and decided to fund their younger brother. He put himself to work New York Times and eventually worked as a book reviewer for The New Republic
The New Republic
The magazine has also published two articles concerning income inequality, largely criticizing conservative economists for their attempts to deny the existence or negative effect increasing income inequality is having on the United States...
.
Writing career
In the 1930s and 1940s, he was considered one of Broadway's leading authors of "high comedy", and wrote for such stars as Ina ClaireIna Claire
Ina Claire was an American stage and film actress.-Career:Born Ina Fagan in 1893 in Washington, D.C., Claire began her career appearing in vaudeville...
, Katharine Cornell
Katharine Cornell
Katharine Cornell was an American stage actress, writer, theater owner and producer. She was born to American parents and raised in Buffalo, New York.Cornell is known as the greatest American stage actress of the 20th century...
, Jane Cowl
Jane Cowl
Jane Cowl was an American film and stage actress and playwright "notorious for playing lacrymose parts". Actress Jane Russell was named in Cowl's honor.-Biography:...
, and the acting team of Alfred Lunt
Alfred Lunt
Alfred Lunt was an American stage director and actor, often identified for a long-time professional partnership with his wife, actress Lynn Fontanne...
and Lynn Fontanne
Lynn Fontanne
Lynn Fontanne was a British actress and major stage star in the United States for over 40 years. She teamed with her husband Alfred Lunt.She lived in the United States for more than 60 years but never relinquished her British citizenship. Lunt and Fontanne shared a special Tony Award in 1970...
. Among his greatest Broadway successes were The Second Man (1928), Biography (1932), End of Summer (1936), and No Time for Comedy (1939). His stage adaptation of Enid Bagnold
Enid Bagnold
Enid Algerine Bagnold, Lady Jones, CBE , known by her maiden name as Enid Bagnold, was a British author and playwright, best known for the 1935 story National Velvet which was filmed in 1944 with Elizabeth Taylor....
's novel, Serena Blandish, became a success for actress Ruth Gordon
Ruth Gordon
Ruth Gordon Jones , better known as Ruth Gordon, was an American actress and writer. She was perhaps best known for her film roles such as Minnie Castevet, Rosemary's overly solicitous neighbor in Rosemary's Baby, as the eccentric Maude in Harold and Maude and as the mother of Orville Boggs in the...
. He also adapted plays by Jean Giraudoux
Jean Giraudoux
Hippolyte Jean Giraudoux was a French novelist, essayist, diplomat and playwright. He is considered among the most important French dramatists of the period between World War I and World War II. His work is noted for its stylistic elegance and poetic fantasy...
and Marcel Achard
Marcel Achard
Marcel Achard was a French playwright and screenwriter whose popular sentimental comedies maintained his position as a highly-recognizable name in his country's theatrical and literary circles for five decades...
, and a short story by W. Somerset Maugham
W. Somerset Maugham
William Somerset Maugham , CH was an English playwright, novelist and short story writer. He was among the most popular writers of his era and, reputedly, the highest paid author during the 1930s.-Childhood and education:...
. With composer Harold Rome he adapted Marcel Pagnol
Marcel Pagnol
Marcel Pagnol was a French novelist, playwright, and filmmaker. In 1946, he became the first filmmaker elected to the Académie Française.-Biography:...
's Fanny
Fanny (musical)
Fanny is a musical with a book by S. N. Behrman and Joshua Logan and music and lyrics by Harold Rome. A tale of love, secrets, and passion set in and around the old French port of Marseille, it is based on Marcel Pagnol's trilogy of plays entitled Marius, Fanny and César.The musical premiered on...
trilogy into a musical comedy for the stage.
In Hollywood, he was most noted for his work on screenplays for Greta Garbo
Greta Garbo
Greta Garbo , born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson, was a Swedish film actress. Garbo was an international star and icon during Hollywood's silent and classic periods. Many of Garbo's films were sensational hits, and all but three were profitable...
, including Queen Christina
Queen Christina (film)
Queen Christina is a Pre-Code Hollywood feature film loosely based on the life of 17th century Queen Christina of Sweden, produced in 1933, directed by Rouben Mamoulian, starring Swedish-born actress Greta Garbo, John Gilbert, Ian Keith and Lewis Stone. It was billed as Garbo's return to cinema...
, Conquest, and her final film, Two-Faced Woman
Two-Faced Woman
Two-Faced Woman is a romantic comedy made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film stars Greta Garbo, in her final film role, and Melvyn Douglas, with Constance Bennett, Roland Young and Ruth Gordon...
. With Sonya Levien, Behrman co-wrote the screen play for the 1930 film version of Ferenc Molnár
Ferenc Molnár
LanguageFerenc Molnár was a Hungarian dramatist and novelist. His Americanized name was Franz Molnar...
's Liliom
Liliom
Liliom is a 1909 play by the Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár. It was very famous in its own right during the early to mid-20th century, but is best known today as the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel.- Plot :...
, starring Charles Farrell
Charles Farrell
Charles Farrell was an American film actor of the 1920s silent era and into the 1930s, and later a television actor...
and Rose Hobart
Rose Hobart
Rose Hobart was an American actress.-Career:Born in New York City, her father was a cellist in the New York Symphony...
. His experiences in Hollywood found dramatic form in Let me Hear the Melody (1951).
Berhman's comedies repeatedly celebrate tolerance, yet show how tolerant people in their generosity are often vulnerable when confronted by fanatics or ruthless opportunists. In End of Summer, a liberal household is threatened by a devious psychoanalyist who is able to play upon their weaknesses in his desire for wealth and power. Behrman's protagonists often feel inadequate to deal with the evils and injustices in the world. The hero of No Time for Comedy
No Time for Comedy
No Time for Comedy is a 1940 comedy-drama film based on the play of the same name by S. N. Behrman, starring James Stewart, Rosalind Russell, Genevieve Tobin and Charles Ruggles.-Plot summary:...
, a successful author of stylish comedies for his actress-wife, feels the need to write a serious play in response to the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
. When he fails at this attempt, he resolves to go to Spain himself and fight. The play asks the question: Is there a place for comedy in a violent and unjust world?
Behrman's writing for The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
not only included profiles of such notable figures as composer George Gershwin
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
, Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár
Ferenc Molnár
LanguageFerenc Molnár was a Hungarian dramatist and novelist. His Americanized name was Franz Molnar...
, Zionist leader Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Azriel Weizmann, , was a Zionist leader, President of the Zionist Organization, and the first President of the State of Israel. He was elected on 1 February 1949, and served until his death in 1952....
and entertainer Eddie Cantor
Eddie Cantor
Eddie Cantor was an American "illustrated song" performer, comedian, dancer, singer, actor and songwriter...
, but much longer pieces that were collected into books on Max Beerbohm
Max Beerbohm
Sir Henry Maximilian "Max" Beerbohm was an English essayist, parodist and caricaturist best known today for his 1911 novel Zuleika Dobson.-Early life:...
and Joseph Duveen. His autobiographical essays, which also appeared in The New Yorker,later appeared in two volumes, The Worcester Account (1955) and People in a Diary (1972). He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
in 1959.
Plays
- Bedside Manners (1923), with J. Kenyon Nicholson
- A Night's Work (1924), with Nicholson
- The Man Who Forgot (1926), with Owen DavisOwen DavisOwen Gould Davis, Sr. was an American dramatist. He received the 1923 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his 1923 play Icebound, and penned hundreds of plays and scripts for radio and film. Before the First World War, he also wrote racy sketches of New York high jinks and low life for the Police Gazette...
- The Second Man (1927)
- Love Is Like That (1927), with Nicholson
- Serena Blandish (or The Difficulty of Getting Married)(1929)
- Meteor (1929)
- Brief Moment (1931)
- Biography (1932)
- Love Story (1933)
- Rain From Heaven (1934)
- End of Summer (1936)
- Amphitryon 38Amphitryon 38Amphitryon 38 is a play written in 1929 by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux, the number in the title being Giraudoux's whimsical approximation of how many times the story had been told on-stage previously.-Original productions:...
(1937) - Wine of Choice (1938)
- No Time for ComedyNo Time for ComedyNo Time for Comedy is a 1940 comedy-drama film based on the play of the same name by S. N. Behrman, starring James Stewart, Rosalind Russell, Genevieve Tobin and Charles Ruggles.-Plot summary:...
(1939) - The Talley Method (1941)
- The Pirate (1942)
- Jacobowsky and the Colonel (1944)
- Dunnigan's Daughter (1945)
- I Know My Love (1949)
- Let Me Hear the Melody (1951)
- Jane (1952)
- Fanny (musical)Fanny (musical)Fanny is a musical with a book by S. N. Behrman and Joshua Logan and music and lyrics by Harold Rome. A tale of love, secrets, and passion set in and around the old French port of Marseille, it is based on Marcel Pagnol's trilogy of plays entitled Marius, Fanny and César.The musical premiered on...
(1954), with Joshua LoganJoshua LoganJoshua Lockwood Logan III was an American stage and film director and writer.-Early years:Logan was born in Texarkana, Texas, the son of Susan and Joshua Lockwood Logan. When he was three years old his father committed suicide... - The Cold Wind and the Warm (1958)
- Lord Pengo (1962)
- But For Whom Charlie (1964)
Books
- Bedside Manners (1924), with J. Kenyon Nicholson
- A Night's Work (1926), with Nicholson
- The Second Man (1928)
- Meteor (1930)
- Brief Moment (1931)
- Biography (1933)
- Serena Blandish (or The Difficulty of Getting Married) (1934)
- Three Plays (1934)
- Rain From Heaven (1934)
- End of Summer (1936)
- Amphitryon 38 (1938)
- Wine of Choice (1938)
- No Time for Comedy (1939)
- The Talley Method (1941)
- The Pirate (1943)
- Jacobowsky and the Colonel (1944)
- Dunnigan's Daughter (1946)
- I Know My Love (1949)
- Four Plays (1952)
- Jane (1952)
- Duveen (1952)
- The Worcester Account (1955)
- Fanny (1955), with Joshua LoganJoshua LoganJoshua Lockwood Logan III was an American stage and film director and writer.-Early years:Logan was born in Texarkana, Texas, the son of Susan and Joshua Lockwood Logan. When he was three years old his father committed suicide...
- The Cold Wind and the Warm (1959)
- Portrait of Max: An Intimate Memoir of Sir Max Beerbohm (1960)
- Lord Pengo (1963)
- But For Whom Charlie (1964)
- The Suspended Drawing Room (1965)
- The Burning Glass (1968)
- People in a Diary: A Memoir (1972)
Screenplays
- He Knew Women (1930)
- LiliomLiliomLiliom is a 1909 play by the Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár. It was very famous in its own right during the early to mid-20th century, but is best known today as the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel.- Plot :...
(1930), with Sonya Levien - Lightning (1930), with Levien
- The Sea-Wolf (1930)
- The BratThe BratThe Brat is a 1931 comedy film directed by John Ford. It is based on the 1917 play by Maude Fulton. A previous silent film had been made in 1919 with Alla Nazimova. This 1931 screen version has been updated to then contemporary standards i.e...
(1931), with Levien - SurrenderSurrender (1931 film)Surrender is a 1931 film directed by William K. Howard, written by S.N. Behrman, and starring Warner Baxter, Leila Hyams, Ralph Bellamy, C. Aubrey Smith and Alexander Kirkland...
(1931), with Levien - Daddy Long LegsDaddy Long Legs (1931 film)Daddy Long Legs is a film about an orphan who is taken under the wing of a wealthy benefactor. The original story, written in 1912 by Jean Webster, took in the social aspects of the wealthy compared with the upbringing optained in an orphanage...
(1931), with Levien - Rebecca of Sunnybrook FarmRebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1932 film)Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm is a 1932 film based on the 1903 children's classic novel by Kate Douglas Wiggin.It was filmed by Fox Film Corporation and directed by Alfred Santell...
(1932), with Levien - Tess of the Storm CountryTess of the Storm Country (1932 film)Tess of the Storm Country is an English-language remake of the 1922 silent film of the same name. The movie is an energetic film with Janet Gaynor, Charles Farrell, and Dudley Digges. Gaynor and Farrell made almost a dozen films together, including Frank Borzage's classics Seventh Heaven ,...
(1932), with Levien and Rupert Highes - Brief Moment (1933)
- Hallelujah, I'm a BumHallelujah, I'm a Bum (film)Hallelujah, I'm a Bum is a 1933 American musical comedy film directed by Lewis Milestone in the Depression.The film stars Al Jolson as Bumper, a popular New York tramp, and both romanticizes and satirizes the hobo lifestyle that many people were forced into by the economic conditions of the time....
(1933) - As Husbands Go (1933)
- My Lips Betray (1933)
- Queen ChristinaQueen Christina (film)Queen Christina is a Pre-Code Hollywood feature film loosely based on the life of 17th century Queen Christina of Sweden, produced in 1933, directed by Rouben Mamoulian, starring Swedish-born actress Greta Garbo, John Gilbert, Ian Keith and Lewis Stone. It was billed as Garbo's return to cinema...
(1934) - Biography of a Bachelor Girl (1934)
- Anna KareninaAnna Karenina (1935 film)Anna Karenina is a 1935 film directed by Clarence Brown. The film stars Greta Garbo, Fredric March, Basil Rathbone and Maureen O'Sullivan. It is the most famous and critically acclaimed film adaptation of Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. There are several other film adaptations of the novel.In New...
(1935) - A Tale of Two CitiesA Tale of Two Cities (1935 film)A Tale of Two Cities is a 1935 film based upon Charles Dickens' 1859 historical novel, A Tale of Two Cities. The film stars Ronald Colman as Sydney Carton, Donald Woods and Elizabeth Allan. The supporting players include Basil Rathbone, Blanche Yurka, and Edna Mae Oliver. It was directed by Jack...
(1935) - Conquest (1937)
- ParnellParnell (film)Parnell is a 1937 MGM film starring Clark Gable as Charles Stewart Parnell, the famous Irish politician. It is considered Gable's worst film, and is classified in The Fifty Worst Films of All Time.-Production:...
(1937) - The Cowboy and the LadyThe Cowboy and the Lady (1938 film)The Cowboy and the Lady is a 1938 American western romantic comedy film directed by H.C. Potter, and starring Gary Cooper and Merle Oberon. The film was written by S.N. Behrman and Sonya Levien, based on a story by Frank R. Adams and veteran film director Leo McCarey...
(1938) - No Time for ComedyNo Time for ComedyNo Time for Comedy is a 1940 comedy-drama film based on the play of the same name by S. N. Behrman, starring James Stewart, Rosalind Russell, Genevieve Tobin and Charles Ruggles.-Plot summary:...
(1940) - Waterloo BridgeWaterloo Bridge (1940 film)Waterloo Bridge is a 1940 remake of the 1931 film of the same title, adapted from the 1930 play of the same title.The film was made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, directed by Mervyn LeRoy and produced by Sidney Franklin and Mervyn LeRoy. The screenplay is by S. N. Behrman, Hans Rameau and George...
(1940) - Two-Faced WomanTwo-Faced WomanTwo-Faced Woman is a romantic comedy made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film stars Greta Garbo, in her final film role, and Melvyn Douglas, with Constance Bennett, Roland Young and Ruth Gordon...
(1941) - The PirateThe PirateThe Pirate is a 1948 American musical feature film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. With songs by Cole Porter, it stars Judy Garland and Gene Kelly with co-stars Walter Slezak, Gladys Cooper, Reginald Owen, and George Zucco.-Plot:...
(1948) - Quo VadisQuo Vadis (1951 film)Quo Vadis is a 1951 epic film made by MGM. It was directed by Mervyn LeRoy and produced by Sam Zimbalist, from a screenplay by John Lee Mahin, S. N. Behrman and Sonya Levien, adapted from Henryk Sienkiewicz's classic 1896 novel Quo Vadis. The music score was by Miklós Rózsa and the cinematography...
(1951) - Me and the ColonelMe and the ColonelMe and the Colonel is a 1958 film based on the play "Jacobowsky und der Oberst" by Franz Werfel. It was directed by Peter Glenville and stars Danny Kaye, Curd Jürgens and Akim Tamiroff....
(1958) - Fanny (1961)
- Stowaway in the Sky (1962)