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IMDbPro

Thornton Wilder(1897-1975)

  • Writer
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Trailer 2 for OT: Our Town
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OT: Our Town (2002)
Thornton Niven Wilder was the second of five children in the family of a newspaper editor and a U.S. diplomat, Amos Parker Wilder, and Isabella Niven Wilder. He spent part of his childhood with his father, who was a Consul General in Hong Kong and China between 1906 and 1914. Wilder finished high school in California, received his undergraduate degree at Yale, and went to study archeology at the American Academy in Rome. He earned his M.A. in French from Princeton in 1926.

Wilder published his first play "The Trumpet Shall Sound" (1920) in Yale Literary Magasine. His first novel, "The Cabala" (1926), reflects his experiences in Europe, alluding to American expatriates around Gertrude Stein. His second novel "The Bridge of San Luis Rey" brought him his first Pulitzer Prize in 1928. He also won the Pulitzer Prize for drama for his play "Our Town" (1938), and again for "The Skin Of Our Teeth" (1943).

During WWII he served in the Army Air Force, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. At that time Wilder wrote the screenplay for 'Shadow of a Doubt', a film by Alfred Hitchcock. His farcical play "The Matchmaker" (1954) was adapted in 1964 into a Broadway musical comedy Hello, Dolly! It was made into a film in 1969, starring Barbra Streisand as Dolly Levi. Wilder received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963, and won the 1967 National Book Award for his novel "The Eighth Day". His numerous friends included Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, and Montgomery Clift.
BornApril 17, 1897
DiedDecember 7, 1975(78)
BornApril 17, 1897
DiedDecember 7, 1975(78)
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Known for

Joseph Cotten, Macdonald Carey, and Teresa Wright in Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
Shadow of a Doubt
7.8
  • Writer
  • 1943
Walter Matthau and Barbra Streisand in Hello, Dolly! (1969)
Hello, Dolly!
7.0
  • Writer
  • 1969
Gahim 2: Hurgada
  • Writer
  • 1990
Lynn Bari, Francis Lederer, and Alla Nazimova in The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1944)
The Bridge of San Luis Rey
5.5
  • Writer
  • 1944

Credits

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IMDbPro

Writer

  • Radioteatro de Navidad de la Cadena Ser (2013)
    Radioteatro de Navidad de la Cadena Ser
    • play
    • Podcast Series
    • 2014
  • Our Town VCHS 2012
    • writer
    • 2012
  • G.K. Chesterton: The Apostle of Common Sense (2000)
    G.K. Chesterton: The Apostle of Common Sense
    • original text
    • TV Series
    • 2011
  • The Bridge of San Luis Rey (2004)
    The Bridge of San Luis Rey
    • novel
    • 2004
  • Our Town (2003)
    Our Town
    • Writer
    • TV Movie
    • 2003
  • The Sunday Programme (1994)
    The Sunday Programme
    • extracts
    • TV Series
    • 2003
  • Molly Ringwald and Christina Hendricks in The Big Time (2002)
    The Big Time
    • play "Our Town"
    • TV Movie
    • 2002
  • OT: Our Town (2002)
    OT: Our Town
    • play "Our Town"
    • 2002
  • Television Theater (1953)
    Television Theater
    • play
    • drama
    • TV Series
    • 1957–1997
  • Itt a földön is
    • Writer
    • TV Movie
    • 1994
  • Mark Harmon in Shadow of a Doubt (1991)
    Shadow of a Doubt
    • earlier screenplay
    • TV Movie
    • 1991
  • Gahim 2: Hurgada
    • writer
    • 1990
  • Great Performances (1971)
    Great Performances
    • play
    • TV Series
    • 1989
  • Anthony Edwards and Anjelica Huston in Mr. North (1988)
    Mr. North
    • novel "Theophilus North"
    • 1988
  • To theatro tis Defteras (1970)
    To theatro tis Defteras
    • play
    • TV Series
    • 1978–1986

Videos1

OT: Our Town
Trailer 1:02
OT: Our Town

Personal details

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  • Official site
    • The Thornton Wilder Society
  • Alternative name
    • Mr. Thornton Wilder
  • Born
    • April 17, 1897
    • Madison, Wisconsin, USA
  • Died
    • December 7, 1975
    • Hamden, Connecticut, USA(undisclosed)
  • Other works
    Stage: Wrote "The Trumpet Shall Sound", produced on Broadway.
  • Publicity listings
    • 5 Print Biographies
    • 7 Articles

Did you know

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  • Trivia
    One of Hitchcock's favorite screenwriters.
  • Quotes
    Marriage is a bribe to make a housekeeper think she's a householder.

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