Katharine Brush (August 15, 1902 – June 10, 1952) was an American newspaper columnist, short-story writer, and novelist. In the era of the 1920s-1930s, she was considered one of the country's most widely-read fiction writers, as well as one of the highest paid women writers of her time; several of her books were best-sellers, and several others were made into movies.

Early years

Katharine Brush was born Katharine Louise Ingham in

Middletown, Connecticut Middletown is a city located in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States, Located along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, it is south of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. In 1650, it was incorporated by English settler ...

. She was the daughter of Charles S. Ingham, an educator, and his wife Clara. Young Katharine did not attend college; directly after graduating from Centenary Collegiate Institute, a New Jersey boarding school, at age 16, she began working as a movie columnist for the ''

Boston Evening Traveller The ''Boston Evening Traveller'' (1845–1967) was a newspaper published in Boston, Massachusetts. It was a daily newspaper, with weekly and semi-weekly editions under a variety of ''Traveller'' titles. It was absorbed by the '' Boston Herald'' ...

.'' She married Thomas Stewart Brush when she was eighteen; he was the son of Louis H. Brush of

Brush-Moore Newspapers Brush-Moore Newspapers, Inc. was a United States newspaper group based in Ohio which had its origins in 1923 and was sold to Thomson Newspapers in 1967 for $72 million, the largest ever newspaper transaction at that time.THOMAS STEWART BRUSH; Director of Newspaper Chain in Ohio Dies in Tucson at 42
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', October 31, 1938 After the marriage, she moved to Ohio with him.

Literary career

Brush's writing first attracted attention in the 1920s. During this time, multiple short stories of hers were published in serial magazines like '' College Humor'' and ''

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

''; the best known of these were collected in a book titled ''Night Club'' (1929); the title story first appeared in ''

Harper's Magazine ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. (''Scientific American'' is older, b ...

in September 1927. Brush's works were characterized by her narrative style and wit: she was praised for being a keen observer of contemporary American life, a writer skilled at presenting the foibles of relationships in a realistic manner. Her story "Him and Her" (published in ''

Collier's Weekly ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Colli ...

'' March 16, 1929) was an

O. Henry Award The O. Henry Award is an annual American award given to short stories of exceptional merit. The award is named after the American short-story writer O. Henry. The ''PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories'' is an annual collection of the year's twenty best ...

winner named "Best Short Short" of 1929, and in 1932, she was again named a Best Short Story writer, by the O. Henry Memorial Committee. She also received honorable mentions for her short story "Night Club" (1927); her 1931 story "Good Wednesday", which also appeared in Harper's; as well as for a 1932 short story, "Football Girl", which was published in '' College Humor'' in October 1931. During the mid-1920s, in addition to writing short stories and beginning a novel, she also wrote syndicated columns. Among her columns in the early-to-mid-1920s were occasional articles about sports, including boxing, and college football. And during 1925 and 1926, she covered the World Series for several newspapers in Ohio. Brush's first novel, ''

Glitter Glitter is an assortment of small, reflective particles that come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. Glitter particles reflect light at different angles, causing the surface to sparkle or shimmer. Glitter is similar to confetti, sparkle ...

'' was published in 1926, to favorable reviews. Her novel ''

Young Man of Manhattan ''Young Man of Manhattan'' is a 1930 American pre-Code musical comedy film directed by Monta Bell and starring Claudette Colbert, Norman Foster, Ginger Rogers, and Charles Ruggles. Made by Paramount Pictures, it was set and filmed in New York C ...

'' was named the 9th best-selling novel of 1930 by ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' and later that year was made into a film starring

Claudette Colbert Claudette Colbert ( ; born Émilie Claudette Chauchoin; September 13, 1903July 30, 1996) was an American actress. Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the late 1920s and progressed to films with the advent of talking pictures ...

Norman Foster Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

, and

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

. Brush, however, is probably best known today for her subsequent novel ''

Red-Headed Woman ''Red-Headed Woman'' is a 1932 American pre-Code romantic comedy film, produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, based on the 1931 novel of the same name by Katharine Brush, and a screenplay by Anita Loos. It was directed by Jack Conway and stars Jean ...

'', which was made into a film in 1932 starring

Jean Harlow Jean Harlow (born Harlean Harlow Carpenter; March 3, 1911 – June 7, 1937) was an American actress. Known for her portrayal of "bad girl" characters, she was the leading sex symbol of the early 1930s and one of the defining figures of the ...

which was considered a

pre-code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...

classic for its racy humor; playwright

Anita Loos Corinne Anita Loos (April 26, 1888 – August 18, 1981) was an American actress, novelist, playwright and screenwriter. In 1912, she became the first female staff screenwriter in Hollywood, when D. W. Griffith put her on the payroll at Triang ...

adapted the story for the screen. In 1936, Katharine Brush christened the USCGC Ingham; the new cutter was formally commissioned on 12 September 1936; it would later be decommissioned in 1988. The ship was named after one of her ancestors, American politician

Samuel D. Ingham Samuel Delucenna Ingham (September 16, 1779 – June 5, 1860) was a state legislator, judge, U.S. Representative and served as U.S. Treasury Secretary under President Andrew Jackson. Early life and education Ingham was born near New Hope, Pe ...

, and this incident was discussed in her 1940 autobiographical collection of works, ''This Is On Me''. It also featured a story about what in the 1970s became known as latchkey children) . Critics praised the book for its honesty in showing the development of Brush's talent, by including some early works that were not as impressive, and then moving on to her well-received later works. In addition, the book was said to offer a behind-the-scenes look at how Brush went from obscurity to success as an author. Ironically, Brush (whose nickname was "Kay") frequently told friends that despite being popular and critically acclaimed, she worried that after she died, she would probably be forgotten. In 1967, only 15 years after her death, a critic who had known her noted that in fact, fewer and fewer people remembered who she was.

Later years and legacy

Her first marriage ended in divorce; she moved to New York City and remarried in 1929, to businessman Hubert Charles "Bobby" Winans, but that marriage ended in divorce in 1941. She was the mother of one child, Thomas, with her first husband. She died after a long illness, in New York: some sources say she was 49, but some sources say she was 52. At the time when she took ill, she had been working on a new novel, to be called "Lover Come Back." Her son Thomas, who became a newspaper executive and a patron of the arts, donated the funding for a new library in her memory to the

Loomis Chaffee School The Loomis Chaffee School (; LC or Loomis) is a selective independent, coeducational, college preparatory school for boarding and day students in grades 9–12, including postgraduate students, located in Windsor, Connecticut, seven miles north ...

of Windsor, CT, in 1968. The building, designed by architect Kenneth DeMay of

Hideo Sasaki Hideo Sasaki (25 November 1919 – 30 August 2000) was a Japanese American landscape architect. Biography Hideo Sasaki was born in Reedley, California, on 25 November 1919. He grew up working on his family's California truck farm, and harvesti ...

's firm Sasaki, Dawson, DeMay Associates (now Sasaki Associates), is still in use today at the school. The Katharine Brush Library contains a larger than life-size portrait by Leon Gordon of Katharine Brush looking down the length of the second floor. Brush's short story "The Birthday Party" is frequently taught in literature classes. It appeared on the 2005

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board which offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students. American colleges and universities may grant placement and course ...

English Literature Exam; the story was originally published in The ''New Yorkers Fiction section on March 16, 1946. Brush's Connecticut home was featured on a 2006 episode of

HGTV HGTV (an initialism for Home & Garden Television) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The network primarily broadcasts reality programming related to home improvement and real estate. As of February 2015, appr ...

's "If Walls Could Talk".

Selected list of works

*''

'' (1926) *'' Little Sins'' (1927) *''

Night Club A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

'' (1929) *''

'' (1930), which appeared on the 1930 Publishers Weekly best seller list. *''

'', (1931), which was made into

a movie ''A Movie'' (styled as ''A MOVIE'') is a 1958 experimental collage film by American artist Bruce Conner. It combines pieces of found footage taken from various sources such as newsreels, soft-core pornography, and B movies, all set to a score ...

starring

*''Other Women'' (1933) *''

Don't Ever Leave Me ''Don't Ever Leave Me'' is a 1949 British comedy film directed by Arthur Crabtree and starring Petula Clark, Jimmy Hanley, Hugh Sinclair, Edward Rigby, and Anthony Newley. Produced by Betty Box during her stint at Gainsborough Pictures, it wa ...

'' (1935) *''Free Woman'' (1936) filmed as ''

Honeymoon in Bali ''Honeymoon in Bali'' is a 1939 American romantic comedy film. It is also known by the alternative titles ''Husbands or Lovers'' and ''My Love for Yours''. Virginia Van Upp's screenplay was based on the short stories "Our Miss Keane" by Grace S ...

'' (1939) *''

Mannequin A mannequin (also called a dummy, lay figure, or dress form) is a doll, often articulated, used by artists, tailors, dressmakers, window dressers and others, especially to display or fit clothing and show off different fabrics and textiles. Pr ...

'' (from a 1937 story, "Marry For Money") James Combs. ''American Political Movies: An Annotated Filmography of Feature Films.'' New York: Routledge, 2014, p. 152. *'' This Is on Me'' (1940) (a mostly non-fiction autobiography with unconventional structure) *'' You Go Your Way (novel)'' (1941) *'' The Boy from Maine'' (1942) *'' Out of My Mind'' (1943) *'' This Man and This Woman'' (1944) *''

When She Was Bad :''"When She Was Bad" is also the name of a book by Patricia Pearson'' "When She Was Bad" is the first episode in the second season of '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer''. The episode was written and directed by series creator and executive producer J ...

'' (1948) (reprinting of 'You Go Your Way')

References

External links

* Katharine Brush Papers. Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
Bio at SpeakingOfStories.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brush, Katherine 1902 births 1952 deaths 20th-century American novelists American women short story writers People from Manhattan Novelists from Connecticut People from Middletown, Connecticut American women novelists 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American short story writers Novelists from New York (state)