Studs Lonigan
Encyclopedia
Studs Lonigan is the title of a novel trilogy by American author James T. Farrell
: Young Lonigan
, The Young Manhood of Studs Lonigan
, and Judgment Day. In 1998, the Modern Library
ranked the Studs Lonigan trilogy at 29th on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century.
The Library of America reissued the novels in 2004. The character Lonigan was also featured in a minor 1960 film and a 1979 television miniseries sharing the title Studs Lonigan.
, many of America's most gifted writers and artists aspired to create a single, powerful work of art that would fully expose the evils of capitalism
and lead to a political and economic overhaul of the American system. Farrell chose to use his own personal knowledge of Irish-American life on the South Side
of Chicago
to create a portrait of an average American slowly destroyed by the "spiritual poverty" of his environment. Both Chicago and the Irish-American Roman Catholic Church of that era are described at length, and faulted. As Studs slowly deteriorates, changing from a tough but fundamentally good-hearted, adventurous teenage boy to an embittered, physically shattered alcoholic, Farrell portrays sympathetically and graphically both the man and his society coming undone.
and starring Christopher Knight in the title role. Other cast members included Frank Gorshin
, Venetia Stevenson
, and Jack Nicholson
(in one of his first movie roles).
, Colleen Dewhurst
, Brad Dourif
, Dan Shor
, and Charles Durning
. Production Designer Jan Scott won an Emmy Award
for Outstanding Art Direction for a Limited Series or a Special. Reginald Rose
wrote the adaptation of the trilogy.
The miniseries preserves the novel's tragic ending, but softens and humanizes Studs Lonigan's family and friends to a very considerable degree.
In the book, Farrell tends to insist that everyone must be ground down and degraded by "the system," without any room for charm or luck, much less hard work and initiative. In the mini-series Studs falls, but many of his old friends succeed. Even Lucy Scanlan, the dream girl Studs worships from afar, proves to be surprisingly warm and engaging in the film version. At the end, when Studs is dying in the gutter, we see a brief glimpse of Lucy—by now the pampered and well-protected wife of a very wealthy Irish attorney—pausing to give a little money to a broken down street bum who looks a lot like Studs. Thus the end message is not so much that life is hateful and everyone is doomed, but that life goes on and kindness will triumph in the end.
was nicknamed after Studs Lonigan.
Acoording to series creator Joss Whedon
, the character Quinn in the TV series Angel
was "totally based on Studs Lonigan. I mean, there's the tough-guy posturing, the endless self-pity, the suicidal binge-drinking, everything right down to the hopeless crush on the unattainable beauty. Oh yeah. Definitely a debt to Studs there."
James T. Farrell
James Thomas Farrell was an American novelist. One of his most famous works was the Studs Lonigan trilogy, which was made into a film in 1960 and into a television miniseries in 1979...
: Young Lonigan
Young Lonigan
Young Lonigan is a 1932 novel by James T. Farrell. It is the first part of a trilogy about William "Studs" Lonigan, a young Irish-American growing up in Chicago....
, The Young Manhood of Studs Lonigan
The Young Manhood of Studs Lonigan
The Young Manhood of Studs Lonigan is a 1934 novel by James T. Farrell, and the second part of Farrell's trilogy based on the life of William "Studs" Lonigan. This novel covers about 12 years in Studs Lonigan's life, from 1917 through 1928...
, and Judgment Day. In 1998, the Modern Library
Modern Library
The Modern Library is a publishing company. Founded in 1917 by Albert Boni and Horace Liveright as an imprint of their publishing company Boni & Liveright, it was purchased in 1925 by Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer...
ranked the Studs Lonigan trilogy at 29th on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century.
The Library of America reissued the novels in 2004. The character Lonigan was also featured in a minor 1960 film and a 1979 television miniseries sharing the title Studs Lonigan.
Themes
Farrell wrote these three novels at a time of national despair. During the Great DepressionGreat Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, many of America's most gifted writers and artists aspired to create a single, powerful work of art that would fully expose the evils of capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
and lead to a political and economic overhaul of the American system. Farrell chose to use his own personal knowledge of Irish-American life on the South Side
South Side (Chicago)
The South Side is a major part of the City of Chicago, which is located in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Much of it has evolved from the city's incorporation of independent townships, such as Hyde Park Township which voted along with several other townships to be annexed in the June 29,...
of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
to create a portrait of an average American slowly destroyed by the "spiritual poverty" of his environment. Both Chicago and the Irish-American Roman Catholic Church of that era are described at length, and faulted. As Studs slowly deteriorates, changing from a tough but fundamentally good-hearted, adventurous teenage boy to an embittered, physically shattered alcoholic, Farrell portrays sympathetically and graphically both the man and his society coming undone.
Film
Farrell's novels were sensationalized into a B movie in 1960, directed by Irving LernerIrving Lerner
Irving Lerner Before becoming a filmmaker, Lerner was a research editor for Columbia University's Encyclopedia of Social Sciences, getting his start in film by making documentaries for the anthropology department. In the early 1930s, he was a member of the Workers Film and Photo League, and later,...
and starring Christopher Knight in the title role. Other cast members included Frank Gorshin
Frank Gorshin
Frank John Gorshin, Jr. was an American actor and comedian. He was perhaps best known as an impressionist, with many guest appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show...
, Venetia Stevenson
Venetia Stevenson
Venetia Stevenson , born Joanna Venetia Invicta Stevenson is a retired film and television actress.-Family:Stevenson is the daughter of Oscar nominated director Robert Stevenson and actress Anna Lee. Her brother is actor Jeffrey Byron...
, and Jack Nicholson
Jack Nicholson
John Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award twelve times, and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice: for One Flew Over the...
(in one of his first movie roles).
Television
In 1979 Studs Lonigan was produced as a television miniseries starring Harry HamlinHarry Hamlin
Harry Robinson Hamlin is an American film and television actor, known for his role as Perseus in the 1981 fantasy film Clash of the Titans, and as Michael Kuzak in the legal drama series L.A...
, Colleen Dewhurst
Colleen Dewhurst
Colleen Rose Dewhurst was a Canadian-American actress known for a while as "the Queen of Off-Broadway." In her autobiography, Dewhurst wrote: "I had moved so quickly from one Off-Broadway production to the next that I was known, at one point, as the 'Queen of Off-Broadway'...
, Brad Dourif
Brad Dourif
Bradford Claude "Brad" Dourif is an American film and television actor who gained early fame for his portrayal of Billy Bibbit in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and has since appeared in a number of memorable roles, including the voice of Chucky in the Child's Play franchise, Younger Brother in...
, Dan Shor
Dan Shor
Daniel Shor is an American veteran actor, director, writer and teacher with a career spanning over 30 years.- Early life :Shor was born and raised in New York City. Attended McBurney school from 6th thru 8th grade...
, and Charles Durning
Charles Durning
Charles Durning is an American actor. With appearances in over 100 films, Durning's memorable roles include police officers in the Oscar-winning The Sting and crime drama Dog Day Afternoon , along with the comedies Tootsie, To Be Or Not To Be and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, the last two...
. Production Designer Jan Scott won an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for Outstanding Art Direction for a Limited Series or a Special. Reginald Rose
Reginald Rose
Reginald Rose was an American film and television writer most widely known for his work in the early years of television drama. Rose's work is marked by its treatment of controversial social and political issues...
wrote the adaptation of the trilogy.
The miniseries preserves the novel's tragic ending, but softens and humanizes Studs Lonigan's family and friends to a very considerable degree.
Differences between the novels and the 1979 miniseries
In the book version, Danny O'Neill, the sensitive lad who stands in for Farrell himself, is merely a casual acquaintance. Studs does not like him or respect him. In the mini-series, the two are close friends, and Danny cares for Studs' girlfriend after he is gone and provides a moving elegy to his fate. Similarly, the only Jewish kid in the gang, Davey Cohen, is treated badly by Studs in the novel, while in the mini-series the two remain loyal comrades to the very end. This indeed heightens the tragedy immeasurably, as Studs dies of pneumonia just after Davey has promised to hire him at his new factory. Watching the dying Studs sink slowly into the gutter, still holding aloft the dollar bill Davey has loaned him like a battle flag, is one of the most moving moments in the mini-series. In the book Studs' collapse is less poignant, since no one was trying to help him and he had no reason to keep on fighting.In the book, Farrell tends to insist that everyone must be ground down and degraded by "the system," without any room for charm or luck, much less hard work and initiative. In the mini-series Studs falls, but many of his old friends succeed. Even Lucy Scanlan, the dream girl Studs worships from afar, proves to be surprisingly warm and engaging in the film version. At the end, when Studs is dying in the gutter, we see a brief glimpse of Lucy—by now the pampered and well-protected wife of a very wealthy Irish attorney—pausing to give a little money to a broken down street bum who looks a lot like Studs. Thus the end message is not so much that life is hateful and everyone is doomed, but that life goes on and kindness will triumph in the end.
Reception and legacy
The American writer Studs TerkelStuds Terkel
Louis "Studs" Terkel was an American author, historian, actor, and broadcaster. He received the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1985 for The Good War, and is best remembered for his oral histories of common Americans, and for hosting a long-running radio show in Chicago.-Early...
was nicknamed after Studs Lonigan.
Acoording to series creator Joss Whedon
Joss Whedon
Joseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures...
, the character Quinn in the TV series Angel
Angel (TV series)
Angel is an American television series, a spin-off of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The series was created by Buffys creator, Joss Whedon, in collaboration with David Greenwalt, and first aired on October 5, 1999...
was "totally based on Studs Lonigan. I mean, there's the tough-guy posturing, the endless self-pity, the suicidal binge-drinking, everything right down to the hopeless crush on the unattainable beauty. Oh yeah. Definitely a debt to Studs there."