Leslie Charteris facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Leslie Charteris
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| Born | Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin 12 May 1907 British Singapore |
| Died | 15 April 1993 (aged 85) Windsor, Berkshire, England |
| Occupation | Thriller writer, screenwriter |
| Nationality | British & American (naturalised, 1946) |
| Period | 20th century |
| Genre | Thriller |
| Spouse | |
Leslie Charteris (born Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin; 12 May 1907 – 15 April 1993) was a British-Chinese author. He wrote exciting adventure fiction stories and also worked as a screenwriter for movies. He is most famous for creating the hero Simon Templar, also known as "The Saint".
Contents
Early Life and Becoming a Writer
Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin was born in Singapore. His mother was English, and his father was a Chinese doctor. Leslie loved writing from a young age. He even made his own magazine with stories, poems, and comics!
He went to school in Singapore and then in England. He started studying law at King's College, Cambridge university. But he left in his first year to become a full-time writer. He wanted to do what he loved and earn money from it.
In 1926, Leslie officially changed his last name to "Charteris." Some say he picked it from a phone book.
A Career in Stories
Leslie Charteris wrote his first book while at university. After it was accepted, he left school to start his writing career. He wanted to live an exciting life and make money doing what he enjoyed.
He wrote many British thriller stories. To get ideas, he worked many different jobs. He sailed on a freighter, worked in a country inn, and even prospected for gold. He also worked in a tin mine, on a rubber plantation, and drove a bus.
The Birth of The Saint
Charteris's third novel, Meet the Tiger (1928), introduced his most famous character, Simon Templar. Simon Templar is a charming adventurer who helps people and fights crime. He often works outside the law to do what's right.
Charteris wrote almost all of the Saint adventures for the next 35 years. These stories came in different forms, like novels, novellas, and short stories. After 1963, other writers started writing the Saint stories. Charteris would then edit and approve them.
Moving to the United States
In 1932, Charteris moved to the United States. He kept writing short stories there. He also became a writer for Paramount Pictures, a big movie studio. He even wrote scripts for a newspaper comic called Secret Agent X-9.
At first, Charteris couldn't become a permanent resident in the US. This was because of a law called the Chinese Exclusion Act. This law made it hard for people of Asian descent to immigrate. Eventually, a special law was passed just for him and his daughter. He became a US citizen in 1946.
Other Cool Things He Did
In 1936, Charteris was a passenger on the first trip of the Hindenburg airship. His character, The Saint, also became very popular on the radio. Vincent Price played The Saint in a radio series.
In the 1940s, Charteris wrote scripts for the Sherlock Holmes radio show. This show starred Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. In 1941, Charteris even appeared in a Life magazine photo story. He played The Saint himself!
The Saint on Film
The Saint became a big hit in movies. RKO Pictures made eight films about The Saint between 1938 and 1943.
- The Saint in New York (1938) starred Louis Hayward.
- George Sanders then took over the role for several films, including The Saint Strikes Back (1939) and The Saint in London (1939).
- Another actor, Hugh Sinclair, played The Saint in The Saint's Vacation (1941).
Later, in 1953, Louis Hayward returned as The Saint in The Saint's Return. A new film called The Saint was released in 1997, starring Val Kilmer.
The Saint on TV
The Saint also became a very popular British TV series from 1962 to 1969. Roger Moore played Simon Templar in this show. Many episodes were based on Charteris's original short stories.
Later, new scripts were written for the TV show. Charteris allowed these scripts to be turned into books. These books were published with his name, but other writers actually wrote them.
Another British TV series, Return of the Saint, came out in the late 1970s. Ian Ogilvy played Simon Templar in this show. Charteris himself even made a small appearance in one episode! In the 1980s, Simon Dutton starred in a series of TV movies about The Saint.
Later Life and Legacy
Leslie Charteris wrote or oversaw nearly 100 books about The Saint. He spent 55 years working on Simon Templar's adventures. This is one of the longest times a single author has managed a character in mystery fiction history!
A comic book version of The Saint was also made in Sweden from 1969 to 1991. Charteris had to approve all the story ideas for these comics.
Personal Life
Leslie Charteris also wrote a food column for an American magazine. He even invented his own picture-based language called Paleneo. He wrote a book about it too. Charteris was also one of the first members of Mensa, a group for people with very high IQs.
Charteris was married four times. In 1952, he married Hollywood actress Audrey Long. They later moved back to England. Leslie Charteris passed away on 15 April 1993, at the age of 85. He was survived by his wife and his daughter, Patricia.
Works
For a full list of Leslie Charteris's works, you can visit List of works by Leslie Charteris. For a list of all the Simon Templar stories, check out Simon Templar.
