Lynn Riggs facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lynn Riggs |
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| Born | August 31, 1899  Claremore |
| Died | June 30, 1954 (aged 54) New York City |
| Occupation | Playwright, poet  |
| Notable works | Green Grow The Lilacs (basis for Oklahoma!) |
| Notable awards | Guggenheim Fellowship, Oklahoma Hall of Fame, Hall of Great Westerners |
Rollie Lynn Riggs (born August 31, 1899 – died June 30, 1954) was a talented American writer. He wrote plays, poems, and movie scripts. His most famous play, Green Grow The Lilacs, was turned into the very popular musical Oklahoma! in 1943.
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Lynn Riggs' Early Life
Lynn Riggs was born on a farm near Claremore, Oklahoma. At that time, it was called Indian Territory. His mother was part Cherokee. When he was two, his mother made sure he received land through the Dawes Act. This land helped him financially as he pursued his writing career.
He went to the Eastern University Preparatory School in Claremore, starting in 1912. After graduating high school in 1917, Riggs traveled to Chicago and New York. He worked many different jobs. He worked for a delivery company, wrote for the Wall Street Journal, and sold books. He even swept offices on Wall Street.
In 1919, he returned to Oklahoma and wrote for a newspaper about oil and gas. Later, he moved to Los Angeles. There, he worked as an extra in plays and edited articles for the Los Angeles Times. This newspaper also published his very first poem.
Riggs started attending the University of Oklahoma in 1920. He taught English there from 1922 to 1923. Sadly, he became sick with tuberculosis during his last year and could not graduate. To get better, Riggs moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico. He joined a group of artists there. In 1926, he moved back to New York. He hoped to work in the famous Broadway theaters.
Lynn Riggs' Writing Career
Lynn Riggs wrote 21 full-length plays. He also wrote many short stories, poems, and even a TV script.
His first important play was Knives from Syria. It was a short play produced by the Santa Fe Players in 1925. He started teaching at the Lewis Institute in Chicago while still writing. In 1928, he received a special award called a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship. This award allowed him to travel to Europe.
Riggs began writing his most famous play, Green Grow the Lilacs, in a cafe in Paris, France. He finished the play five months later in Southern France.
After this, he lived in Santa Fe, Los Angeles, and New York. He also worked as a screenwriter for big movie studios like Paramount and Universal.
From 1942 to 1944, he served in the military. After his service, he worked on a historical play. He also published a short story called "Eben, The Hound, and the Hare" in 1952. He began working on a novel set in Oklahoma called The Affair at Easter.
Riggs started earning a steady income when Green Grow The Lilacs became the hugely successful musical Oklahoma! in 1943. This allowed him to move to Shelter Island, New York.
Lynn Riggs was recognized for his achievements. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 1943. In 1965, he was also inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.
Lynn Riggs' Legacy
Lynn Riggs passed away on June 30, 1954, in New York City. He died from stomach cancer. Today, his hometown of Claremore, Oklahoma has the Lynn Riggs Memorial.
His former home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, is a recognized historical building. It is part of the Camino del Monte Sol Historic District.
Lynn Riggs' Plays
Here are some of the plays Lynn Riggs wrote:
- Knives from Syria (first performed 1925, published 1927)
- Big Lake (first performed 1927, published 1927)
- Sump'n Like Wings (first performed 1931, published 1928)
- A Lantern to See By (first performed 1925, published 1928)
- Rancor (first performed 1928)
- Roadside (first performed 1930, published 1930)
- Green Grow the Lilacs (first performed 1931, published 1931)
- The Cherokee Night (first performed 1932, published 1936)
- More Sky (1934)
- Russet Mantle (1936)
- A Year of Pilar (1938)
- A World Elsewhere (1939)
- The Cream in the Well (1940)
- Dark Encounter (1944)
- Toward the Western Sky (first performed 1951)
His very first play was Cuckoo in 1920. It was a funny play about college groups. It was performed at the University of Oklahoma in 1921.
The Theatre Guild produced his most famous play, Green Grow The Lilacs, on Broadway in 1931. It was performed 64 times. The musical Oklahoma!, which was based on Riggs' play, opened on Broadway on March 31, 1943. It was a huge hit and ran for 2,212 performances until May 29, 1948.
Lynn Riggs' Film Work
Lynn Riggs also worked on several films. Here are some of them:
- The Siren Song (1930)
- Beyond Victory (1931, not credited)
- Laughing Boy (1934, not credited)
- Stingaree (1934)
- Family Man (1934)
- Andrew's Harvest (1934)
- A Wicked Woman (1934, not credited)
- The Garden of Allah (1936)
- The Plainsman (1936)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror (1942)
- Destination Unknown (1942)
- Madame Spy (1942)
- Sherlock Holmes in Washington (1943)
