Van Dine, S.S.

Van Dine, S.S.

▪ American critic, editor, and author
pseudonym of  Willard Huntington Wright 
born Oct. 15, 1888, Charlottesville, Va., U.S.
died April 11, 1939, New York, N.Y.

      American critic, editor, and author of a series of best-selling detective novels (detective story) featuring the brilliant but arrogant sleuth Philo Vance.

      Wright was educated at St. Vincent and Pomona colleges in California, at Harvard University, and in Munich and Paris. Pursuing a career as a writer, Wright became literary editor of the Los Angeles Times in 1907 and in 1912 moved to New York to become editor of Town Topics and The Smart Set, where he remained until 1914. With H.L. Mencken (Mencken, H.L.) and George Jean Nathan (Nathan, George Jean) he published a book of travel essays called Europe After 8:15 (1914). He also wrote the poetry collection Songs of Youth (1913), the novel The Man of Promise (1916), and several critical works on art and philosophy, including Modern Painting (1915) and What Nietzsche Taught (1915).

      While convalescing from an illness, Wright studied thousands of detective stories. As S.S. Van Dine he eventually wrote a dozen Vance novels in that genre. Among them are The Benson Murder Case (1926), The Bishop Murder Case (1929), The Kennel Murder Case (1933), and The Winter Murder Case (1939). The successful series inspired more than 15 films and many radio programs. Wright also edited the anthology The Great Detective Stories (1927) and wrote the essays “Twenty Rules for Writing Detective Stories,” which appeared in American Magazine (1928), and I Used to Be a Highbrow but Look at Me Now (1929).

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Van Dine — /van duyn / S. S. See Wright, Willard Huntington. * * * …   Universalium

  • Van Dine — /van duyn / S. S. See Wright, Willard Huntington …   Useful english dictionary

  • Van Dine, S.S. — pseud. di Wright, Willard Huntington …   Sinonimi e Contrari. Terza edizione

  • S.S. van Dine — S. S. Van Dine (eigentlich Willard Huntington Wright; * 15. Oktober 1888 in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; † 11. April 1939 in New York City) war ein US amerikanischer Schriftsteller und Kunstkritiker. Er schuf den einstmals populären fiktiven… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • S. S. van Dine — (eigentlich Willard Huntington Wright; * 15. Oktober 1888 in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; † 11. April 1939 in New York City) war ein US amerikanischer Schriftsteller und Kunstkritiker. Er schuf den einstmals populären fiktiven Detektiv Philo… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • S. S. Van Dine — (eigentlich Willard Huntington Wright; * 15. Oktober 1888 in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; † 11. April 1939 in New York City) war ein US amerikanischer Schriftsteller und Kunstkritiker. Er schuf den einstmals populären fiktiven Detektiv Philo… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • S. S. Van Dine — was the pseudonym of Willard Huntington Wright (October 15, 1888 April 11, 1939), a U.S art critic and author. He created the once immensely popular fictional detective Philo Vance, who first appeared in books in the 1920s, then in movies and on… …   Wikipedia

  • S.S. Van Dine — S. S. Van Dine fue el pseudónimo de Willard Huntington Wright (15 de octubre de 1888 11 de abril de 1939), un crítico de arte y autor norteamericano. Creó el personaje del detective Philo Vance, quien apareció por primera vez en obras escritas en …   Wikipedia Español

  • S. S. Van Dine — S.S. Van Dine S. S. Van Dine était le pseudonyme de Willard Huntington Wright (15 octobre 1888 11 avril 1939), critique d art et écrivain américain. Il fut dans les années 1920 le créateur de détective Philo Vance, dont les aventures furent… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • S.S. Van Dine — S. S. Van Dine était le pseudonyme de Willard Huntington Wright (15 octobre 1888 11 avril 1939), critique d art et écrivain américain. Biographie Cette section est vide, insuffisamment détaillée ou incomplète. Votre aide est la bienvenue ! S …   Wikipédia en Français

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