Thornton Wilder

Born in Wisconsin at the turn of the twentieth century, Thornton Wilder spent much of his childhood in China, where his father was an American diplomat. Returning to the United States, he shuttled between private schools in various states; he began college at Oberlin and eventually graduated from Yale University, after which he completed a master’s in French Literature at Princeton University. Subsequently Wilder worked as a high school English teacher until the publication of The Bridge of San Luis Rey, his first novel, brought unexpected royalties, speaking engagements, and a Pulitzer Prize. Following this entrance onto the literary scene, Wilder became one of the most well-known and influential mid-century writers; his friends included Gertrude Stein, Willa Cather, and Ernest Hemingway. Wilder served in the military briefly during World War I and extensively during World War II, earning medals for his leadership on the African front. Wilder never married, and most biographers have concluded that he was gay. He lived out his later years in Connecticut with his sister Isabella, and died in the house they shared in 1975.