Walter Van Tilburg Clark facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Walter Van Tilburg Clark
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| Born | August 3, 1909 East Orland, Maine, US |
| Died | November 10, 1971 (aged 62) Virginia City, Nevada, US |
| Occupation | Writer, college teacher |
| Education | University of Nevada, Reno (BA, MA) |
| Genres | Novel, short story |
| Years active | 1932–1971 |
| Notable works | The Ox-Bow Incident, The Watchful Gods and Other Stories |
| Notable awards | O. Henry Prize, Nevada Writer's Hall of Fame |
| Spouse | Barbara Frances Morse (d. 1969) |
| Children | 2 |
Walter Van Tilburg Clark (born August 3, 1909, died November 10, 1971) was an important American writer. He wrote novels, short stories, and poems. He was also a teacher. Clark is known as one of Nevada's most famous writers from the 1900s. He was even the first person to be added to the 'Nevada Writers Hall of Fame' in 1988.
Two of his books, The Ox-Bow Incident and The Track of the Cat, were turned into movies. Clark was special because he used stories about the American West to explore big ideas about people's thoughts and feelings.
Contents
Walter Clark's Early Life and Career
Clark was born in East Orland, Maine. But he grew up in Reno, Nevada, and finished high school there in 1926. He went to college at the University of Nevada, Reno. His father, Walter Ernest Clark, was the president of the university.
In 1933, Clark married Barbara Frances Morse. They moved to Cazenovia, New York. There, he taught English in high school. This is also when he started his career as a fiction writer.
His First Big Success: The Ox-Bow Incident
Clark's first novel, The Ox-Bow Incident, came out in 1940. It was very successful! Many people think it was the first "modern Western" story. It didn't use the usual old-fashioned ideas often found in Westerns.
The book looked at serious topics like law and order in the old West. It also explored who is responsible when bad things happen. The novel was praised by critics. It gave Clark a lot of fame, which was unusual for a writer of Western stories at the time. In 1943, the book was made into a movie. It starred famous actors like Henry Fonda.
More Books and Short Stories
Over the next ten years, Clark wrote two more novels. These were The City of Trembling Leaves (1945) and The Track of the Cat (1949). In 1950, he released a collection of short stories called The Watchful Gods and Other Stories.
Clark's short stories became very popular in national magazines during the 1940s. He won the O. Henry Prize five times between 1941 and 1945. Some of his stories, like "Hook" and "The Wind And The Snow Of Winter," are still taught as classic examples of short stories today. Another well-known short story is "The Portable Phonograph." It tells a touching story about people surviving after a war.
Two Hollywood movies were inspired by Clark's writings. The Ox-Bow Incident was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture. The other film was Track of the Cat, based on his novel The Track of the Cat.
Clark as a Teacher and Later Years
After 1950, Clark wrote less fiction. He spent his time teaching and giving talks. From 1954 to 1956, he was a professor at the University of Montana. Students there remembered him for his great teaching skills. They also noticed his unique style of clothing!
In 1955, Clark started teaching at a writer's workshop in San Francisco State University. He moved to San Francisco in 1956 to help create a formal Creative Writing Program there. He stayed at San Francisco State until 1962.
Clark returned to Reno in 1962. He became a writer-in-residence at the university. He stayed there until he passed away in Virginia City, Nevada, on November 10, 1971. He was 62 years old. In his last ten years, he worked on editing The Journals of Alfred Doten.
Clark was one of the first writers chosen for the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame in 1988. This honor recognized his important contributions to literature.
Books by Walter Van Tilburg Clark
Here are some of the books Walter Van Tilburg Clark wrote:
Fiction Books
- The Ox-Bow Incident, 1940.
- The City of Trembling Leaves, 1945. This book was also published as Tim Hazard.
- The Track of the Cat, 1949.
- The Watchful Gods and Other Stories, 1950. This collection includes many of his famous short stories like "Hook" and "The Portable Phonograph."
Poetry Books
- Christmas Comes to Hjalsen (1930)
- Ten Women in Gale's House: And Shorter Poems (1932)
Other Works
- He wrote a foreword for a catalog about artist Robert Cole Caples in 1964.
- He edited The Journals of Alfred Doten, 1849-1903. This was a big project with three volumes, published in 1973. You can also find an online version.
- Walter Van Tilburg Clark: Critiques, 1983. This book collected some of Clark's works along with essays about him and his writing.
