Louis Sheaffer (né Slung October 18, 1912 – August 7, 1993) was an American journalist for the Brooklyn Eagle between 1934 and 1955. After the newspaper's closure in 1955, Sheaffer wrote a two part biography on Eugene O'Neill and released the first volume O'Neill: Son and Playwright in 1968. The final part of Sheaffer's biography on O'Neill, titled O'Neill: Son and Artist, was awarded the 1974 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography and nominated for the 1974 National Book Award for Biography. Apart from the Pulitzer Prize, Sheaffer was a three-time Guggenheim Fellowship recipient and received over ten fellowships from MacDowell.

Early life and education

On October 18, 1912, Louis Sheaffer Slung was born in Louisville, Kentucky. He briefly went to the University of North Carolina for his post-secondary education in the early 1930s.[1]

Career

In 1934, Sheaffer began his career with the Brooklyn Eagle as a newspaper journalist. He joined the United States Army during World War II and resumed his tenure with the Eagle in 1946. Later on, Sheaffer was named the newspaper's film critic in 1947 and theater critic in 1949. Sheaffer remained with the Brooklyn Eagle as a theatre critic until the newspaper's closure in 1955. After leaving the newspaper, Sheaffer moved to the Circle in the Square Theatre and worked as a press agent for a year.[2][3]

In 1956, Sheaffer started writing a two-part biography on playwright Eugene O'Neill. Sheaffer released the first part of his O'Neill biography, O'Neill: Son and Playwright, in 1968 and followed up with the second part, titled O'Neill: Son and Artist, in 1973.[4] The following year, O'Neill: Son and Artist was awarded the 1974 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography.[5]

Awards and honors

Studying theater arts, Sheaffer received his first Guggenheim Fellowship in 1959 and received additional fellowships in 1962 and 1969.[6] In 1974, Sheaffer was nominated for the National Book Award for Biography for O'Neill: Son and Artist.[7] From MacDowell, Sheaffer received over ten fellowships between 1970 and 1988.[8]

Death

Sheaffer died from heart failure in Long Island College Hospital on August 7, 1993.[9]

References

  1. ↑ Raleigh, John Henry (1991). "Louis Sheaffer (1912-)". In Serafin, Steven (ed.). Dictionary of Literary Biography. Vol. 103. Gale Research Company. p. 244. ISBN 0810345838.
  2. ↑ Fischer, Heinz Dietrich; Fischer, Erika J. (2002). Biography / Autobiography Awards 1917-1992. The Pulitzer Prize Archive. Vol. 8. KG Saur. p. 295. ISBN 3598301782.
  3. ↑ Peacock, Scot, ed. (2002). "SHEAFFER, Louis 1912-1993". Contemporary Authors. Vol. 192. Detroit: Gale Group. p. 419. ISBN 0787645877.
  4. ↑ Goulden, Joseph C. (1988). Fit to print : A.M. Rosenthal and his Times. Secaucus, New Jersey: Lyle Stuart Inc. pp. 357–58. ISBN 0818404744. Retrieved May 30, 2019.
  5. ↑ "O'Neill, Son and Artist, by Louis Sheaffer (Little)". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  6. ↑ "Louis Sheaffer". John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Louis Sheaffer". National Book Foundation. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  8. ↑ "Louis Sheaffer". MacDowell. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
  9. ↑ Pace, Eric (August 9, 1993). "Louis Sheaffer, 80, O'Neill Biographer Who Won Pulitzer". New York Times. p. 00012. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
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