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Robert E. Sherwood

ロバート・E・シャーウッド

Robert E. Sherwood

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1896-04-04 （New Rochelle, New York, U.S.）
Died
1955-11-14 （New York City, U.S.） age 59
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
New Rochelle, New York → New York City → Hollywood, California

Career

Occupations
playwright, screenwriter, author, historian, critic
Active Years
1917-1955
Affiliations
Playwrights' Company, Dramatists Guild of America, Algonquin Round Table
Memberships
Dramatists Guild of America, Playwrights' Company, Algonquin Round Table

Education

Fay School
Period: 〜1914
Country: United States
Milton Academy
Period: 〜1914
Country: United States
Harvard University
Degree: BA
Period: 1914–1917
Country: United States
Left to serve in World War I; later pursued writing career

Awards

Pulitzer Prize for Drama
1936
Work: Idiot's Delight (play)
Category: Drama
Organization: Pulitzer Prize
Result: 受賞
Pulitzer Prize for Drama
1939
Work: Abe Lincoln in Illinois (play)
Category: Drama
Organization: Pulitzer Prize
Result: 受賞
Pulitzer Prize for Drama
1941
Work: There Shall Be No Night (play)
Category: Drama
Organization: Pulitzer Prize
Result: 受賞
Academy Award for Best Screenplay
1947
Work: The Best Years of Our Lives (screenplay)
Category: Screenplay
Organization: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Result: 受賞
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography
1949
Work: Roosevelt and Hopkins: An Intimate History
Category: Biography
Organization: Pulitzer Prize
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Waterloo Bridge

1930 play (melodrama)

A romantic tragedy set in post-World War I London, depicting love and the effects of war on personal lives.

effects of warlove and loss
Adaptations
  • [film] Waterloo Bridge (film) (1931)
  • [film] Waterloo Bridge (1940 film) (1940)

Idiot's Delight

1936 play (black comedy / anti-war drama)

A play that satirizes the futility of war through the interactions of its characters in a hotel setting.

futility of warsatire
Adaptations
  • [film] Idiot's Delight (1939 film) (1939)

Abe Lincoln in Illinois

1938 historical drama / biographical play

A biographical play depicting Abraham Lincoln's political development and personal character.

leadershippolitics and ethics
Adaptations
  • [film] Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1940 film) (1940)

There Shall Be No Night

1940 play (political drama)

A play concerning the Soviet invasion of Finland, questioning war and moral choices of individuals.

war and moralityinternational politics
Adaptations
  • [television] There Shall Be No Night (TV adaptation) (1957)

The Best Years of Our Lives

1946 film (screenplay)

A film about the lives of returning veterans after World War II and their difficulties reintegrating into civilian life; Sherwood co-wrote the screenplay.

postwar homecomingreadjustment
Adaptations
  • [film] The Best Years of Our Lives (1946 film) / William Wyler (1946)

Rebecca (screenplay contribution)

1940 film (screenplay)

Participated in the screenplay adaptation for Alfred Hitchcock's film Rebecca, contributing to the film's script development.

suspensepsychological drama
Adaptations
  • [film] Rebecca (1940 film) / Alfred Hitchcock (1940)

Bibliography

  • The Road to Rome (1927)
  • The Love Nest (1927)
  • Waterloo Bridge (1930)
  • Idiot's Delight (1936)
  • Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1938)
  • There Shall Be No Night (1940)
  • Roosevelt and Hopkins: An Intimate History (1948)
  • The Best Moving Pictures of 1922-1923 (1923)

Adaptations

  • Rebecca (1940 film)
  • The Best Years of Our Lives (1946 film)
  • The Bishop's Wife (1947 film)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
direct, dialogue-driven dramarealist approach addressing social and political themes
Recurring Motifs
futility of warconflict between individual and statereturn and readjustment

Health

  • Gassing (World War I)
    1917–不明
    Exposed to chemical gas and wounded during World War I; possible long-term health effects, details unclear.
  • Heart attack (cause of death)
    1955
    Died of a heart attack in 1955.

Legacy

Robert E. Sherwood was an influential mid-20th-century American playwright and screenwriter, winner of multiple Pulitzers and an Academy Award. He is noted for centering his work on social themes such as war and democracy.

Museums

  • Houghton Library, Harvard University (Robert E. Sherwood papers) Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

Academic Societies

  • Dramatists Guild of America

Archives

  • Houghton Library, Harvard University (Robert E. Sherwood papers)

In Popular Culture

  • Portrayed by Nick Cassavetes in the film Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (1994)

Quotes

  • The trouble with me is that I start with a big message and end up with nothing but good entertainment.
    Source: Anecdote (attributed to a remark to Lucius Beebe)
  • This country is already, in effect, an arsenal for the democratic Allies.
    Source: Quoted in The New York Times (1940) (1940)

Trivia

  • He was very tall (about 6'7"–6'8" / ~2.03 m), which prompted many anecdotes among his contemporaries.
  • Member of the Algonquin Round Table; close with Dorothy Parker and Robert Benchley.
  • He was gassed and wounded twice during World War I.