Glendon Swarthout facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Glendon Swarthout
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| Born | Glendon Fred Swarthout April 8, 1918 Pinckney, Michigan, U.S. |
| Died | September 23, 1992 (aged 74) Scottsdale, Arizona, U.S. |
| Occupation | Writer, novelist |
| Language | English |
| Alma mater | University of Michigan |
| Genre | Fiction |
Glendon Fred Swarthout (born April 8, 1918 – died September 23, 1992) was an American writer. He wrote many novels, and several of them were made into popular movies. His most famous books that became films include Where the Boys Are and The Shootist. The Shootist was especially famous because it was the last movie made by the legendary actor John Wayne.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Glendon Swarthout grew up as the only child of Fred and Lila Swarthout. His father was a banker, and his mother was a homemaker. Glendon was good at school, especially in English. He even became a high school debate champion in Michigan.
However, math was a challenge for him. He was very tall and thin, so he wasn't good at sports. Instead, he spent his free time reading books and playing the accordion. One summer, he even got a job playing his accordion in a band.
After high school, Glendon went to the University of Michigan. He studied English and continued to play music. He formed his own band and sang lead vocals. They played at dances and hotels. While at college, he met Kathryn Vaughn, who he later married. After graduating, he worked in advertising for a short time.
Becoming a Writer
Glendon soon realized that advertising wasn't for him. He wanted to be a writer and see the world. So, he became a journalist, writing for 22 small newspapers. He and Kathryn traveled to South America on a freighter. They sent home weekly stories about their adventures.
While they were in Barbados, they heard about the attack on Pearl Harbor. They immediately tried to return to the United States. It took them five months to get back, as they had to avoid German submarines.
Wartime Experiences
When Glendon returned home, he was too light to become an officer in the military. So, he and Kathryn both went to work at a factory called Willow Run. This factory built B-24 bomber planes for the war. Glendon worked long days as a riveter, putting planes together. At night, he worked on his first novel, also called Willow Run. This book was about people working in a bomber factory. He saw it as his practice book for becoming a writer.
Later, Glendon joined the United States Army. He was sent to Italy as a soldier. He was part of the 3rd Division, which helped capture Rome. He also landed in France during the war. After six days of combat, he was injured while unloading a truck. He hurt his spine and was sent home. Glendon had back pain for the rest of his life because of this injury.
Life After the War
After the war, Glendon went back to the University of Michigan. He earned a master's degree and started teaching college. During this time, his son, Miles, was born. He also won an award for another novel he wrote. This helped him get a teaching job at the University of Maryland.
Later, he taught at Michigan State University. While teaching, he earned his PhD in Victorian literature. His wife, Kathryn, also got her master's degree and became a second-grade teacher.
Glendon also started selling short stories to popular magazines like Cosmopolitan. One of his stories, "A Horse for Mrs. Custer," was even made into a Western movie called 7th Cavalry in 1956.
Becoming a Full-Time Author
The day after finishing his last doctoral exam, Glendon started writing a new novel called They Came To Cordura. This book was about soldiers in Mexico in 1916. It quickly became a bestseller and was made into a major movie starring Gary Cooper. The money from the book and movie allowed Glendon to become a full-time writer at age 39.
He wrote another famous novel while teaching at Michigan State. Where the Boys Are (1960) was about college students on spring break in Florida. It was one of the first funny books about this topic. The movie version of Where the Boys Are (1960) was a huge success for MGM studios.
Glendon wrote many more novels, and several became movies. He later moved to Arizona and taught English at Arizona State University for four years. After that, he retired from teaching to focus only on writing. Many of his books were set in Michigan or Arizona, and some used his experiences from the war.
Awards and Recognition
Glendon Swarthout was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction twice. He also won several other important awards for his writing:
- An O. Henry Prize nomination for a short story.
- A Gold Medal from the National Society of Arts and Letters.
- Two Spur Awards for Best Western Novel of the Year for The Shootist and The Homesman.
- A Wrangler Award for The Homesman.
- The Owen Wister Award for Lifetime Achievement in Western writing.
His book The Shootist became John Wayne's last film in 1976. It is now considered a classic Western movie. Glendon's publishers said he had the "widest writing range" of any American novelist. He wrote everything from Westerns to comedies, tragedies, and even mysteries. The only type of story he didn't write was science fiction.
In 2008, Glendon was added to the Western Writers Hall of Fame. He passed away in 1992 from a lung condition called emphysema.
Themes in His Books
Glendon Swarthout's experiences, like the Great Depression and World War II, influenced his novels. Many of his books set in the Midwest show how adult problems affect children. For example, Welcome to Thebes and Loveland explore how young people adapt to the adult world.
His book They Came to Cordura looks at what courage really means. This idea was shaped by his own time in the war. Where the Boys Are showed his understanding of college students. It even predicted the anti-war protests that happened on college campuses later.
Most of Glendon's novels have a sharp, sometimes dark, sense of humor. He often showed the cruelty that people are capable of. His bestseller, Bless the Beasts and Children, is a good example. Another common theme in his writing is the study of courage. He showed how ordinary people can become heroes in difficult situations. For instance, the teenagers in Bless the Beasts & Children show great bravery when they try to free a group of buffalo.
Glendon's writing style was clear and easy to imagine. This is why so many of his stories were made into films.
Family Life
Kathryn Swarthout
Kathryn Swarthout (1919-2015) was Glendon's wife and Miles's mother. She was an elementary school teacher. Kathryn also wrote six young-adult novels with her husband. Many of these books were published in other countries. She also wrote a poetry column called Lifesavors for Woman's Day magazine for over 20 years.
In 1962, Glendon and Kathryn started the Swarthout Writing Prizes at Arizona State University. These awards give money to talented undergraduate and graduate student writers. They are now among the highest awards for student writing in America.
Miles Swarthout
Miles Swarthout (1946-2016) was Glendon's son. He became a screenwriter and author. Miles was nominated for an award for his work on the screenplay for The Shootist. He also adapted several of his father's novels into films, including A Christmas to Remember for CBS.
As a journalist, Miles wrote about Hollywood Western films. He won an award for his article "The Duke's Last Ride, the Making of The Shootist." He also wrote articles for the National Cowboy Hall of Fame magazine.
Miles edited a collection of his father's short stories called Easterns and Westerns. He also wrote his own novels, including The Sergeant's Lady, which won an award for Best First Western Novel. His book The Last Shootist, a sequel to his father's novel, was named Best Western Novel of 2014.
Glendon Swarthout's Novels
- Willow Run (1943)
- They Came to Cordura (1958)
- Where the Boys Are (1960)
- Welcome to Thebes (1962)
- The Cadillac Cowboys (1964)
- The Eagle and the Iron Cross (1966)
- Loveland (1968)
- Bless the Beasts and Children (1970)
- The Tin Lizzie Troop (1972)
- Luck and Pluck (1973)
- The Shootist (1975)
- A Christmas Gift (also known as The Melodeon) (1977)
- Skeletons (1979)
- The Old Colts (1985)
- The Homesman (1988)
- Pinch Me, I Must Be Dreaming (1994, published after his death)
- Easterns and Westerns (2001) (a collection of short stories), edited by Miles Hood Swarthout
Movies Based on His Books
- 7th Cavalry – 1956
- They Came to Cordura – 1959
- Where the Boys Are – 1960
- Bless the Beasts & Children – 1972
- The Shootist – 1976
- A Christmas to Remember – 1978
- The Homesman – 2014
Awards Received
- O. Henry Prize short story (nomination), 1960
- National Society of Arts and Letters gold medal, 1972
- Spur Award, Best Western Novel of 1975, The Shootist, Western Writers of America
- Spur Award, Best Western Novel of 1988, The Homesman, Western Writers of America
- Wrangler Award, Best Western Novel of 1988, The Homesman, Western Heritage Association
- Owen Wister Award for Lifetime Achievement, Western Writers of America, 1991
- Induction into the Western Writers Hall of Fame in the library of the Buffalo Bill Museum in Cody, Wyoming, 2008
