Tennessee Williams is the epitome of early to mid-20th century American drama. Each of his plays became a hit on Broadway and was successfully shown on the big screen. Winner of two Pulitzer Prizes, he entered the history of world literature thanks to the plays "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" and "A Streetcar Named Desire".
Biography and early years
Thomas Lanier Williams, aka Tennessee Williams, was born on March 26, 1911 in Columbus, Mississippi. He was the second child of three children of Cornelius and Edwina Williams. Raised primarily by his mother, Williams had a difficult relationship with his dad, a demanding salesman who preferred to work rather than raise children.
Williams described his childhood in Mississippi as a calm and happy time. But that all changed when the family moved to St. Louis, Missouri. The new urban environment greeted him unfriendly, as a result of which Tennessee became withdrawn and addicted to writing.
The child was also influenced by the family environment. Tennessee's parents did not hesitate to sort things out; a tense atmosphere often reigned in the house. Williams later called his parents' barque "an example of a wrong marriage." However, this only added to his creativity. His mother eventually became the prototype for the dumb but strong Amanda Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie, while his father became the aggressive driver of Big Daddy in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
In 1929, Williams entered the University of Missouri to study journalism. But he was soon recalled from school by his father, who was outraged to learn that his son's girlfriend was also attending university.
Williams had to return home and, at Ost's insistence, go to work as a salesman for a shoe company. The future great playwright hated his work, finding an outlet only in his work. After work, he immersed himself in his world, creating stories and poems. Ultimately, however, he developed deep depression, which led to a nervous breakdown.
After undergoing treatment, Tennessee returned to St. Louis, where he made friends with a local poet who studied at the University of Washington. In 1937, Tennessee decided to continue his education by entering the University of Iowa, from which he graduated the following year.
Commercial success and writing career
At 28, Williams moved to New Orleans and changed his name. He chose Tennessee because his father was from there. He also completely changed his lifestyle, plunging into city life, which inspired him to create the play "A Streetcar Named Desire".
Tennessee quickly proved his talent by winning a $ 100 Writing Competition at the Group Theater. More importantly, it brought him an acquaintance with Agent Audrey Wood, who also became his friend and advisor.
In 1940, Williams' play Battle of the Angels debuted in Boston. It failed instantly, but Williams did not give up and reworked it into Orpheus Descends to Hell. On it was created the film "From the Runaway breed" with Marlon Brando and Anna Magnani in the lead roles.
This was followed by new work, including scripts for MGM. However, Williams has always been closer to theater than cinema. On March 31, 1945, a production of Tennessee Williams' play "The Glass Menagerie", on which he worked for several years, debuted on Broadway.
Both critics and the public alike loved this work of the playwright. It changed Williams' life and fortune forever. Two years later, he presented to the public the play A Streetcar Named Desire, which surpassed his previous success and cemented his status as one of the best writers in the country. The play also earned Williams the Playwright Prize and his first Pulitzer Prize. Subsequent works of the writer only added to him the praise of critics and the love of the public. In 1955, he won a second Pulitzer Prize for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, which was also brought to the big screen with Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman as lead actors. His works "Tequila Camino", "Sweet-voiced bird of youth" and "Night of the iguana" also became successful.
Later years
However, the 60s became difficult for the famous playwright. His work began to receive cool reviews, which led to his addiction to alcohol and sleeping pills. For most of his life, Tennessee lived in fear of losing his mind, as happened to his sister Rose. In 1969, his brother was forced to send him to the hospital for treatment.
Upon his return, Williams tried to get back on track. He released several new plays, and in 1975 he wrote a book "Memoirs", in which he told about his life.
On February 24, 1983, Tennessee Williams choked on a bottle cap and died, surrounded by bottles of alcohol and pills, at his New York residence at the Elysee Hotel. He was buried in St. Louis, Missouri.
Tennessee Williams has made an invaluable contribution to the history of world literature. In addition to twenty-five feature-length plays, Williams has written dozens of short plays and scripts, two novels, a novel, sixty short stories, over a hundred poems, and an autobiography. Among many awards, he has received two Pulitzer Prizes and four Circle Critics Awards in New York.
Personal life
Tennessee Williams did not hide his unconventional orientation, which, however, was nothing new in the creative circles of that time. In the late 1930s, he joined the gay community in New York, where his partner Fred Melton was. Throughout his life, the playwright had several love affairs, but his main hobby was Frank Merlot, whom he met in 1947 in New Orleans. Merlot, a Sicilian of American descent, served in the US Navy during World War II. His influence had a calming effect on Williams' chaotic life. In 1961, Merlot died of lung cancer, which marked the beginning of a long depression for the writer.
