Benson, Mildred Augustine Wirt

▪ 2003

      American writer (b. July 10, 1905, Ladora, Iowa—d. May 28, 2002, Toledo, Ohio), as the original author of the Nancy Drew mysteries, abandoned the stereotypical view of the heroine then common and created a teenage female who was brainy, spirited, and independent. Under the name Carolyn Keene, she wrote 23 of the first 30 books, from 1930 to 1953, but she was not publicly known as the author until a court case involving the publisher revealed that fact in 1980.

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