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 the radio. Today both Van Dine and Vance are largely forgotten. October 15 is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years). ... 1888 (MDCCCLXXXVIII) is a leap year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. ... April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America, the States, or (archaically) Columbia—is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... An author is the person who creates a written work, such as a book, story, article or the like. ... Philo Vance was a fictional American detective created by S. S. Van Dine in the 1920s who appeared in 12 novels. ... The 1920s was a decade sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ...

Willard Huntington Wright was born to Archibald Davenport Wright and Annie Van Vranken Wright on October 15, 1888, in Charlottesville, Virginia. He attended St. Vincent College, Pomona College, and Harvard University. He also studied art in Munich and Paris, an apprenticeship that led to a job as literary and art critic for the Los Angeles Times. Wright's early career in literature (1910 - 1919) was taken up by two causes. One was literary Naturalism. He wrote a novel, The Man of Promise, and some short stories in this mode; as editor of the magazine The Smart Set he also published similar fiction by others. Charlottesville is an independent city located within the confines of Albemarle County in the state of Virginia. ... Official language(s) English Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 35th 110,862 km² 320 km 690 km 7. ... Harvard University (incorporated as The President and Fellows of Harvard College) is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. ... The Los Angeles Times (also known as the LA Times) is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California and distributed throughout the western United States. ... -1... 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

In 1907, Wright married Katharine Belle Boynton of Seattle, Washington. He married for a second time in October 1930. His wife was Eleanor Rulapaugh, known professionally as Claire De Lisle, a portrait painter.

From 1912 to 1914 he edited The Smart Set, a New York literary magazine, and continued writing as a critic and journalist until 1923, when he became ill from what was given out as overwork, but was in reality a secret drug addiction, according to John Loughery's biography Alias S.S. Van Dine (New York : Knopf, 1992 ISBN 0684193582). His doctor confined him to bed (ostensibly because of a heart ailment) for more than two years. In frustration and boredom, he began collecting and studying thousands of volumes of crime and detection. In 1926 this paid off with the publication of his first S. S. Van Dine novel, The Benson Murder Case. Wright took his pseudonym from Van Dyne, an old family name, and the abbreviation of "steamship." He went on to write 11 more mysteries, and the first few books about his upper-class amateur sleuth, Philo Vance (who shared a love of aesthetics like Wright), were so popular that Wright became wealthy for the first time in his life. His later books declined in popularity as the reading public’s tastes in mystery fiction changed. He moved into a penthouse and enjoyed spending his fortune in a style similar to that of the elegant and snobbish Vance. Wright died April 11, 1939, in New York City, a year after the publication of an experimental novel which hooked around one of the biggest stars in radio comedy, The Gracie Allen Murder Case. The Benson Murder Case was the first novel in the Philo Vance series by S.S. Van Dine which became a best-seller. ... Comedy is the use of humor in the form of theater, where it simply referred to a play with a happy ending, in contrast to a tragedy. ... The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1938) is a detective novel by S. S. Van Dine featuring his famous fictional detective of the 1920s and 1930s, Philo Vance, and the zany half of the George Burns & Gracie Allen comedy team. ...

In addition to his success as a fiction writer, Wright's lengthy introduction and notes to the anthology The World's Great Detective Stories (1928) are important in the history of the critical study of detective fiction. Although dated by the passage of time, this essay is still a core around which many others have been constructed.

Wright also wrote a series of short stories for Warner Brothers film studio in the early 1930s. These stories were used as the basis for a series of 12 short films, each around 20 minutes long, that were released in 1930 - 1931. Of these, The Skull Murder Mystery (1931) shows Wright's vigorous plot construction. It is also notable for its non-racist treatment of Chinese characters, something quite unusual in its day. As far as it is known, none of Van Dine's screen treatments have been published in book form and it seems as if none of the manuscripts survive today. Short films were extremely popular at one point and Hollywood made hundreds of them during the studio era. Except for a handful of comedy silents, however, most of these films are forgotten today and are not even listed in film reference books. Warner Bros. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... 1930 (MCMXXX) is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link is to a full 1931 calendar). ... Short subject is an American film industry term that historically has referred to any film in the format of two reels, or approximately 20 minutes running time, or less. ... ... The studio system was a means of film production and distribution popular in Hollywood from the end of the silent era in 1927 to 1948. ... A silent film is a film which has no accompanying soundtrack. ...

External resources

• Biography
• Contemporary Biography: Biography
• Bio and Work Analysis: Biography
• Bibliography of UK first Editions: Bibliography