Alexander Woollcott, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1939

Alexander Humphreys Woollcott (January 19, 1887 – January 23, 1943) was a critic and commentator for The New Yorker magazine, and a member of the Algonquin Round Table. Alexander Woollcott photographed by Carl Van Vechten, January 3, 1939 From the collection of the Library of Congress and in the public domain: http://memory. ... Alexander Woollcott photographed by Carl Van Vechten, January 3, 1939 From the collection of the Library of Congress and in the public domain: http://memory. ... Photographic self-portrait by Carl Van Vechten, 1934 Carl Van Vechten (June 17, 1880 – December 21, 1964) was an American writer and photographer who was a patron of the Harlem Renaissance and the literary executor of Gertrude Stein. ... January 19 is the 19th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1887 (MDCCCLXXXVII) is a common year starting on Saturday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. ... January 23 is the 23rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... The New Yorker is an American magazine that publishes reportage, criticism, essays, cartoons, poetry and fiction. ... The Algonquin Round Table was a group of New York City writers, critics, actors and wits that met from 1919 until about 1929, though its legacy endured long afterward. ...

He was the inspiration for Sheridan Whiteside, the main character in the play The Man Who Came to Dinner by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, and for the far less likable character Waldo Lydecker in the classic film "Laura." He claimed to be the inspiration for Rex Stout's brilliant detective Nero Wolfe, but Stout discounted this. The Man Who Came to Dinner, comedy in three acts written by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart that debuted on October 16, 1939 at the Music Box Theatre in New York City. ... George Simon Kaufman (November 16, 1889 - June 2, 1961) was an American playwright, director, producer, humorist, and drama critic noted for his many collaborations with other writers and his contributions to 20th century American comedy. ... Moss Hart (October 24, 1904 – December 20, 1961) was an American playwright and director of plays and musical theater. ... Rex Stout, full name Rex Todhunter Stout, (December 1, 1886 - October 27, 1975) was an American writer best known as the creator of the larger-than-life fictional detective Nero Wolfe. ...

Woollcott's review of the Marx Brothers' Broadway debut, I'll Say She Is, helped highlight the renaissance of the group's career and started a life-long friendship with Harpo Marx. One of Harpo's adopted sons is named Alexander after him. Groucho, Gummo, Minnie (mother), Zeppo, Frenchy (father), Chico and Harpo. ... Broadway theatre[1] is often considered the highest professional form of theatre in the United States. ... Ill Say She Is was a stage revue starring the Marx Brothers and Lotta Miles which led to their rise out of Vaudeville into stardom in the Broadway theatre and later in motion pictures. ... Adolph Arthur Marx, popularly known as Harpo Marx, (November 23, 1888 – September 28, 1964) was one of the Marx Brothers, a group of Vaudeville entertainers who later achieved fame as comedians in the Motion Picture industry. ...

Biography

Nicknamed Aleck, Woollcott was born in Phalanx, New Jersey, near Red Bank, New Jersey and graduated from Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. In his early twenties he contracted the mumps, which left him, apparently, mostly, if not completely, impotent. He never married or had children, although he had a large number of female friends, most notable of whom were Dorothy Parker and Neysa McMein, to whom he actually proposed the day after she had just wed her new husband, Jack Baragwanath. Map of Red Bank in Monmouth County The Borough of Red Bank is a Borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey incorporated in 1908. ... Hamilton College is a private, independent liberal arts college located in Clinton, New York. ... Clinton is the name of some places in the U.S. state of New York: Clinton, Clinton County, New York Clinton, Dutchess County, New York Clinton, Oneida County, New York Clinton also is a name used to refer to the Hells Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. ... Dorothy Parker (August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967) was an American writer and poet, best known for her caustic wit, wisecracks, and sharp eye for 20th century urban foibles. ... Neysa at her artists easel in the early 1920s Neysa McMein (1888-1949) was an American artist. ...

Woollcott was born in an 85-room house, a vast ramshackle building that had once been a commune. It was called The North American Phalanx, and was in Phalanx, New Jersey. There were many social experiments in the mid-1800s, some more successful than others. When The Phalanx fell apart after a fire there in 1854, it was taken over by the Bucklin family, Woollcott's maternal grandparents. There, amid his extended family, Woollcott spent large portions of his childhood. His father was a ne'er-do-well Cockney who drifted through various jobs, sometimes spending long periods away from his wife and children. Poverty was always close at hand. The North American Phalanx building in August, 1972 The North American Phalanx (NAP) was a secular Utopian community located in Monmouth County, New Jersey. ...

The Bucklins and Woollcotts were avid readers, giving young Aleck a lifelong love of literature, especially the works of Charles Dickens. Dickens redirects here. ...

Through a family friend, Dr. Alexander Humphreys (after whom he was named), Woollcott made his way through college, graduating from Hamilton College, in upstate New York, in 1909. There, despite a rather poor reputation (his nickname was "Putrid") he founded a drama group, edited the student literary magazine, and was accepted by a fraternity.

He was one of the most prolific drama critics at The New York Times, and was an owlish character whose caustic wit either joyously attracted or vehemently repelled the artistic communities of 1920's Manhattan, and he was actually banned for a time from reviewing certain Broadway theater shows. ["Harpo Speaks!" by Harpo Marx and Rowland Barber] As a result he sued the Shubert theater organization for violation of the New York Civil Rights Act, but lost in the state's highest court in 1916 on the ground that only discrimination on the basis of race, creed, or color was unlawful. ^[1] The New York Times is a newspaper published in New York City by Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. ... Note on spelling: While most Americans use er (as per American spelling conventions), the majority of venues, performers and trade groups for live theatre use re. ... Adolph Arthur Marx, popularly known as Harpo Marx, (November 23, 1888 – September 28, 1964) was one of the Marx Brothers, a group of Vaudeville entertainers who later achieved fame as comedians in the Motion Picture industry. ...

From 1929 to 1934 Woollcott wrote a column called Shouts and Murmurs for The New Yorker. He was, however, frequently criticized for his ornate, florid style of writing and, in contrast to his contemporaries James Thurber and S. J. Perelman, he is little read today, although his book, While Rome Burns, published by Grosset & Dunlap in 1934 was in 1954 named by critic Vincent Starrett as one of the 52 "Best Loved Books of the Twentieth Century". The New Yorker is an American magazine that publishes reportage, criticism, essays, cartoons, poetry and fiction. ... James Grover Thurber (December 8, 1894–November 2, 1961) was a U.S. humorist and cartoonist. ... Sidney Joseph Perelman, almost always known as S. J. Perelman (February 1, 1904 – October 17, 1979), was an American humorist, author, and screenwriter. ... Grosset & Dunlap is a United States book publisher founded in 1898. ... Vincent Starrett (October 26, 1886 – January 5, 1974) was an American writer and newspaperman. ...

Wolcott Gibbs, who often edited Woollcott's work at The New Yorker, was quoted in James Thurber's book The Years with Ross as saying: "'Shouts and Murmurs' was about the strangest copy I ever edited. You could take every other sentence out without changing the sense a particle. The whole department, in fact, often had no more substance than a Talk [of the Town] anecdote. I guess he was one of the most dreadful writers who ever existed." Wolcott Gibbs (March 15, 1902 - August 16, 1958) was an editor, humorist, parodist, drama critic, and short story writer for The New Yorker magazine from 1927 until his death. ... James Grover Thurber (December 8, 1894–November 2, 1961) was a U.S. humorist and cartoonist. ...

After being kicked out of the apartment he shared with The New Yorker founders Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, Woollcott moved first into the Upper West Side's Hotel des Artistes then an apartment on the far end of East 52nd Street. The members of the Algonquin Round Table had a debate as to what to call his new home. Franklin P. Adams suggested that he name it after the Indian word "Ocowoica", meaning "The-Little-Apartment-On-The-East-River-That-It-Is-Difficult-To-Find-A-Taxicab-Near". But Dorothy Parker came up with the definitive name: Wit's End. Harold Wallace Ross (November 6, 1892 - December 6, 1951) was an American journalist and founder of The New Yorker magazine, which he edited from 1925 to his death. ... Jane Grant (1892-1972) was a New York City journalist who co-founded The New Yorker with her first husband, Harold Ross. ... The Algonquin Round Table was a group of New York City writers, critics, actors and wits that met from 1919 until about 1929, though its legacy endured long afterward. ... Franklin Pierce Adams (November 15, 1881 - March 23, 1960), was an American columnist (under the pen name F.P.A.), writer, and wit, part of the famous Algonquin Round Table of the 1920s and 1930s. ... Dorothy Parker (August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967) was an American writer and poet, best known for her caustic wit, wisecracks, and sharp eye for 20th century urban foibles. ...

Woollcott yearned to be as creative as the people with whom he surrounded himself. Among many other endeavours, he tried his hand at acting and co-wrote two Broadway shows with playwright George S. Kaufman, while appearing in two others. He also starred as Sheridan Whiteside, for whom he was the inspiration, in the traveling production of "The Man Who Came To Dinner" in 1940. He also appeared in several cameos in films in the late 30's and 40's. George Simon Kaufman (November 16, 1889 - June 2, 1961) was an American playwright, director, producer, humorist, and drama critic noted for his many collaborations with other writers and his contributions to 20th century American comedy. ...

Politically, Woollcott called for normalization of U.S.-Soviet relations. He was a friend of reporter Walter Duranty and Soviet foreign minister Maxim Litvinov, and traveled to the USSR in the 1930s, as well as sending his friend Harpo Marx to Moscow on a comedy tour in 1934. Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized... Soviet redirects here. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Walter Duranty Walter Duranty (1884–1957), born in Liverpool, England, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1932 for a set of stories he wrote in 1931 as The New York Times Moscow correspondent, covering Joseph Stalins Five-Year Plan to industrialize the Soviet Union. ... Maxim Litvinov Maxim Maksimovich Litvinov (ru: Макси́м Макси́мович Литви́нов) (July 17, 1876–December 31, 1951) was a Russian revolutionary and prominent Soviet diplomat. ...

Towards the end of Woollcott's life he semi-retired to an island he had purchased on Lake Bomoseen in Vermont. He collapsed in New York City while leading a panel discussion of the war in Europe on the 1943 CBS radio program People's Platform; he died a few hours later, aged 56. Bomoseen Lake is a freshwater lake in the western part of the state of Vermont in the towns of Castleton and Hubbardton in Rutland County. ... Official language(s) None[1] Capital Montpelier Largest city Burlington Area  Ranked 45th  - Total 9,620 sq mi (24,923 km²)  - Width 80 miles (130 km)  - Length 160 miles (260 km)  - % water 3. ... Nickname: Big Apple, Gotham, NYC Location in the state of New York Coordinates: Country United States State New York Boroughs The Bronx Brooklyn Manhattan Queens Staten Island Settled 1613  - Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Area    - City 1,214. ... Combatants Allied Powers Axis Powers Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000,000 Total dead: 50,000,000 Military dead: 8,000,000 Civilian dead: 4,000,000 Total dead 12,000,000 World War II (abbreviated WWII), or the Second World War, was a worldwide conflict... CBS is one of the largest radio and television networks in the United States. ...

Woollcott is buried at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. Hamilton College is a private, independent liberal arts college located in Clinton, New York. ... Clinton is the name of some places in the U.S. state of New York: Clinton, Clinton County, New York Clinton, Dutchess County, New York Clinton, Oneida County, New York Clinton also is a name used to refer to the Hells Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. ...

Personality

He was one of the most-quoted men of his generation. Among Woollcott's classics is his description of the Los Angeles area as "Seven suburbs in search of a city" — a quip often attributed to his friend Dorothy Parker. Describing The New Yorker editor Harold Ross, he said: "He looks like a dishonest Abe Lincoln." Dorothy Parker (August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967) was an American writer and poet, best known for her caustic wit, wisecracks, and sharp eye for 20th century urban foibles. ... The New Yorker is an American magazine that publishes reportage, criticism, essays, cartoons, poetry and fiction. ... Harold Wallace Ross (November 6, 1892 - December 6, 1951) was an American journalist and founder of The New Yorker magazine, which he edited from 1925 to his death. ... Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809–April 15, 1865), sometimes called Abe Lincoln and nicknamed Honest Abe, the Rail Splitter, and the Great Emancipator, was the 16th (1861–1865) President of the United States, and the first president from the Republican Party. ...

He was also known for his occasionally savage wit. He once said about another contemporary wit and piano player: "There is absolutely nothing wrong with Oscar Levant that a miracle can't fix." He also was known to greet friends with, "Hello, Repulsive." Famously, he published the shortest theatrical review in history by submitting to his editor simply: "Ouch." Oscar Levant (December 27, 1906 - August 14, 1972) was an American pianist, composer, author, comedian, and an actor, better known for his mordant character and witticisms, on the radio and in movies and television, than his music. ...

Woollcott claimed the Brandy Alexander was a concoction named after him. Brandy Alexander is a sweet brandy-based cocktail popular during the early 20th century. ...

Broadway Shows

• Wine of Choice [Play, Comedy]

Starring: Alexander Woollcott as Binkie Niebuhr (February 21, 1938 - March 1938)

• The Gift of Gab [Play, Comedy] (1934)

Alexander Woollcott Gift of Gab (right) with fellow Blackalicious member Chief Xcel The Gift of Gab (born Tim Parker) is the MC for the California hip-hop duo Blackalicious, and a member of Quannum Projects (along with Chief Xcel, DJ Shadow, Lyrics Born and Lateef). ...

• The Dark Tower [Play, Melodrama]

Written by Alexander Woollcott & George S. Kaufman (November 25, 1933 - January 1934) The Dark Tower can refer to one of several things: The Dark Tower (series) — a series of novels by Stephen King. ... George Simon Kaufman (November 16, 1889 - June 2, 1961) was an American playwright, director, producer, humorist, and drama critic noted for his many collaborations with other writers and his contributions to 20th century American comedy. ...

• Brief Moment [Play, Comedy]

Alexander Woollcott as Harold Sigrift (November 9, 1931 - February 1932)

• The Channel Road [Play, Comedy]

Written by Alexander Woollcott & George S. Kaufman(October 17, 1929 - December 1929) George Simon Kaufman (November 16, 1889 - June 2, 1961) was an American playwright, director, producer, humorist, and drama critic noted for his many collaborations with other writers and his contributions to 20th century American comedy. ...

Film

• Babes on Broadway (1941) Woollcott has a cameo in this Mickey Rooney-Judy Garland musical.

• Mr. W's Little Game (1935) Woollcott's only short subject, in which he plays a word game with a waiter and a blonde woman.

• The Scoundrel (1935) This Oscar-winning film was made by Woollcott's friends Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, and starred longtime Woollcott friend Noel Coward. Woollcott appears in a supporting role.

Babes on Broadway is a 1941 musical movie starring Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney and directed by Busby Berkeley. ... Actor Mickey Rooney speaks at the Pentagon in 2000 during a ceremony honoring the USO. Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule, Jr. ... Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922 – June 22, 1969) was an Oscar-nominated American film actress, considered by many to be one of the greatest singing stars of Hollywoods Golden Era of musical film. ... The Scoundrel was Noel Cowards film debut, aside from a bit role in a silent film. ... Ben Hecht (February 28, 1894 – April 18, 1964) was a prolific Hollywood screenwriter, even though he professed disdain for the motion picture industry. ... Charles MacArthur (November 5, 1895 _ April 21, 1956) was an American playwright and screenwriter, born in Scranton, Pennsylvania. ... Noel Coward Sir Noel Peirce Coward (December 16, 1899 – March 26, 1973) was an English actor, playwright, and composer of popular music. ...

Quotes

• All the things I really like to do are either immoral, illegal, or fattening.
• I'm tired of hearing it said that democracy doesn't work. Of course it doesn't work. We are supposed to work it.
• Many of us spend half of our time wishing for things we could have if we didn't spend half our time wishing.
• Germany was the cause of Hitler as much as Chicago is responsible for the Chicago Tribune.
• There is no such thing in anyone's life as an unimportant day.
• His huff arrived and he departed in it.
• A hick town is one where there is no place to go where you shouldn't go.
• The English have an extraordinary ability for flying into a great calm.
• At 83, George Bernard Shaw's mind was perhaps not quite as good as it used to be, but it was still better than anyone else's.
• I have no need of your God-damned sympathy. I only wish to be entertained by some of your grosser reminiscences.
• It comes from the likes of you! ... Take what you can get! Grab the chances as they come along! Act in hallways! Sing in doorways! Dance in cellars!

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889 – April 30, 1945, standard German pronunciation in the IPA) was the Führer (leader) of the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party) and of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. ... Nickname: The Windy City, The Second City, Chi Town, City of the Big Shoulders, The 312, The City that Works Motto: Urbs In Horto (Latin: City in a Garden), I Will Location in Chicagoland and Illinois Coordinates: Country United States State Illinois County Cook & DuPage Incorporated March 4, 1837  - Mayor... The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois. ... George Bernard Shaw (George) Bernard Shaw[1] (born Dublin, 26 July 1856 – died 2 November 1950 in Hertfordshire) was an Irish playwright based in England. ...

Books

• Mrs Fiske: Her views on Actors, Acting and the Problems of Production (1917) - Minnie Maddern Fiske (1865-1932) was one of the foremost actresses of her day. Woollcott's first book is a study of her thoughts on the acting profession.

• The Command is Forward (1919) - A collection of his reportage and essays from The Stars and Stripes.

• Shouts and Murmurs (1922) - Theatre articles. His column in The New Yorker was named after this book. The New Yorker revived the title as a catch-all for humorous pieces in the 1990s.

• Mr. Dickens Goes to the Play (1922) - A few chapters by Woollcott on Charles Dickens's love of the theatre, and a great many reprinted selections from Dickens's writings.

• Enchanted Aisles (1924) - More theatre articles.

• The Story of Irving Berlin (1925) - The rags-to-riches story of the great composer.

• Going to Pieces (1928) - More stories of Woollcotts's friends in and out of the theatre.

• Two Gentlemen and a Lady (1928) - A short book about dogs.

• While Rome Burns (1934) - It was Thornton Wilder who convinced Woollcott that his work was important enough to deserve reissue in book form. While Rome Burns was a surprise best-seller, and further cemented Woollcott's reputation nationally. It is light reading, but includes much that is amusing, or quaint, and one very fine piece, entitled 'Hands Across the Sea', about justice during the war.

• The Woollcott Reader (1935) - An anthology of works by other writers that Woollcott felt deserved the public's attention. The pieces run several gamuts, from treacly biography to acid modernism.

• Woollcott's Second Reader (1937) - More of the same.

• Long, Long Ago (1943) - Issued just after his death, this follows in the steps of While Rome Burns, but is not as good. The decline in his prose, as other interests drew on his time, is evident. Still, there are some amusing pieces and it is another best-seller.

• As You Were (1943) - An anthology of other people's works, compiled by Woollcott for issue to servicemen in the Second World War. It is dedicated to Frode Jensen, a young Danish man whom Woollcott befriended and who was the closest to a son as Woollcott ever had.

• The Letters of Alexander Woollcott (1944) - A collection of his voluminous correspondence compiled by two of his dearest friends, Beatrice Kaufman and Joe Hennessey.

• The Portable Woollcott (1946) - An anthology of the best of Woollcott's writings.

Minnie Maddern Fiske (December 19, 1865 – February 15, 1932), was one of the leading American actresses of the early twentieth century. ... The New Yorker is an American magazine that publishes reportage, criticism, essays, cartoons, poetry and fiction. ... Dickens redirects here. ... Irving Berlin (May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was an American composer and lyricist, one of the most prodigious and famous American songwriters in history. ... Image:Thorntonwilderteeth. ... Joe Hennessey (born 1956) is a former Irish sportsperson who played hurling with Kilkenny in the 1970s and 1980s. ...

See also

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Alexander Woollcott

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Notes

1. ^ http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0013-1989(196112)13%3A4%3C264%3AWVSDCO%3E2.0.CO%3B2-R

References

External links:

• Algonquin Round Table Walking Tours
• The Great Radio Hoax of 1935
• Works by Alexander Woollcott at Project Gutenberg