Mary Chase (playwright) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mary Coyle Chase
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| Born | Mary Agnes McDonough Coyle 25 February 1906 Denver, Colorado, U.S. |
| Died | 20 October 1981 (aged 75) Denver, Colorado, U.S. |
| Notable works | Harvey |
| Notable awards | Pulitzer Prize for Drama (1945) |
| Spouse | Robert L. Chase |
| Children | 2 |
Mary Coyle Chase (born Mary Agnes McDonough Coyle; 25 February 1906 – 20 October 1981) was an American journalist, playwright, and children's novelist. She is best known for writing the 1944 Broadway play Harvey. This play was later made into a 1950 film starring Jimmy Stewart.
Mary Coyle Chase wrote fourteen plays, two children's novels, and one screenplay. She also worked for seven years as a journalist at the Rocky Mountain News. Three of her plays became Hollywood films: Sorority House (1939), Harvey (1950), and Bernardine (1957).
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Mary Chase's Early Life and Influences
Mary Agnes McDonough Coyle was born in Denver, Colorado in 1906. She lived in Denver her whole life. She grew up in a working-class neighborhood. Her family was Irish Catholic and didn't have much money.
Her mother and four uncles told her many Irish myths. These stories greatly influenced her. Her older brother, Charlie Coyle, was very funny. He was good at mimicking people and telling jokes. Mary learned a lot about comedy from him. Charlie later became a circus clown.
In 1921, Mary graduated from West High School in Denver. She then studied for two years at the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Denver. She did not finish her degree.
Mary Chase's Career as a Journalist
In 1924, Mary began her career as a journalist. She worked for the Denver Times and the Rocky Mountain News. In 1926, the Denver Times joined the News. She left the News in 1931. She wanted to write plays, do freelance reporting, and start a family.
At the News, she first wrote for the society pages. Soon, she became a feature writer. She wrote news stories from an emotional point of view. She sometimes became part of the story herself, known as "our Lil' Mary." She also wrote funny stories with cartoons by Charlie Wunder.
Journalists in the 1920s worked very long hours. They tried hard to get stories before their rivals. Mary remembered driving around Denver with photographer Harry Rhoads. She said they might cover a police court, a murder trial, a party, and a shooting all in one day. She ended her journalism career back on the society pages. This might have been a punishment for a joke she played on an editor.
After leaving the News, Mary worked as a freelance reporter in the 1930s. She wrote for the United Press and the International News Service. But her real passion was the theater. So, she started writing plays.
Early Plays and Hollywood Success
In 1936, her first play, Me Third, was performed in Denver. It was part of a government program called the Works Progress Administration (WPA). In 1937, the play opened on Broadway. It was renamed Now You've Done It. However, it did not get good reviews and closed after three weeks.
In 1938, Mary wrote Chi House. This play was made into a Hollywood film in 1939. The movie was called Sorority House. It starred Anne Shirley, who was famous for Anne of Green Gables.
In the early 1940s, Mary had several jobs. She was the Information Director for the National Youth Administration in Denver. She also volunteered for the Colorado Foundation for the Advancement of Spanish Speaking Peoples. She was also the publicity director for the Denver branch of the Teamsters Union.
The Success of Harvey
During this time, Mary was working on her most famous play, Harvey. It was very hard for her to write. She spent two years on it and made many changes. On November 1, 1944, Harvey opened on Broadway. It was a huge success! The play ran for four and a half years, with 1,775 performances. It closed on January 15, 1949.
Harvey became one of the longest-running shows in Broadway history. Among plays only, it was the 6th longest-running. Famous actors like Frank Fay and James Stewart played the main character, Elwood P. Dowd. Josephine Hull played his sister, Veta, on Broadway. She won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in the film version.
In 1945, Mary Coyle Chase won the Pulitzer Prize in Drama for Harvey. She was the only person from Colorado to win this award in drama. She was also the 4th woman to win it. This was a big achievement in a field mostly dominated by men.
After Harvey, Mary tried to repeat her success with The Next Half Hour. This play was based on her novel, The Banshee. But it only ran for three weeks.
Later Works and Adaptations
In 1950, Harvey was made into a film by Universal Studios. James Stewart starred in it. Mary worked on the screenplay with Oscar Brodney. In 1952 and 1953, she launched two more plays on Broadway: Bernardine and Mrs McThing. Both plays were somewhat successful. Bernardine was made into a 1957 film. It starred Pat Boone and Janet Gaynor.
In 1958 and 1968, Mary wrote two children's stories. They were called Loretta Mason Potts and The Wicked, Wicked Ladies in the Haunted House. A 1961 play she wrote, Midgie Purvis, was not successful. A 1970 revival of Harvey, starring James Stewart and Helen Hayes, was popular.
Mary Chase's Family Life
In 1928, Mary married Robert L. Chase. He was also a reporter at the Rocky Mountain News. Bob was a very experienced "hard news" reporter. He had covered big stories like the robbery of the US Mint. He also fought against the rise of the Ku Klux Klan in Colorado politics.
Bob worked at the Rocky Mountain News for 47 years. He became the managing editor and then the associate editor. In 1936, he helped start the Denver chapter of the American Newspaper Guild. This was a labor union for editors and reporters.
Mary and Robert had three sons. Michael was born in 1932, Colin in 1935, and Barry Jerome (Jerry) in 1937. Michael became a director of public television. Colin was an English Literature professor. Jerry worked as a college counselor and wrote a play.
In 1981, Mary Coyle Chase was working on a musical version of Harvey. She suddenly had a heart attack at her home in Denver. She passed away at the age of 75.
Honors and Awards
Mary Coyle Chase received many honors for her work:
- 1944: William McLeod Raine Award from the Colorado Authors' League.
- 1945: Pulitzer Prize in Drama for Harvey.
- 1947: Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Denver.
- 1960: Monte Meacham Award from the Children's Theater Conference.
- 1985: Inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. Other famous women like Golda Meir and the "Unsinkable" Molly Brown were also inducted.
- 1999: Inducted into the Colorado Performing Arts Hall of Fame.
Mary Chase's Plays
- Me Third (1936)
- Chi House (1938)
- Slip Of A Girl (1941)
- Harvey (1944)
- The Next Half Hour (1945)
- Bernardine (1952)
- Lolita (1954)
- Mrs. McThing (1954)
- Midgie Purvis (1961)
- The Prize Play (1961)
- The Dog Sitters (1963)
- Mickey (1969)
- Cocktails With Mimi (1974)
- The Terrible Tattoo Parlor (1981)
Mary Chase's Children's Novels
- Loretta Mason Potts (1958)
- The Wicked, Wicked Ladies In the Haunted House (1968)
Film Adaptations of Mary Chase's Works
- Sorority House (1939)
- Harvey (1950)
- Bernardine (1957)
