Early life
John Kenyon Nicholson was born in Crawfordsville, Indiana, on May 21, 1894, the oldest son of Thomas B. and Anne (Kenyon) Nicholson. Thomas and Anne had one other child, Thomas Laurence, born May 11, 1896.Education
Kenyon attended Crawfordsville High School from 1909–1910, where he was active in drama and was the assistant business manager of the yearbook, The Athenian. On September 1, 1911, Kenyon enrolled at DeWitt Clinton High School in New York City. He stayed there for a year, living with his aunt Bessie (Nicholson) Wheeler at 61 Hamilton Place. At DeWitt Clinton he studied English, Latin, German, physical training, history, and elocution, and belonged to the chorus in a school play. While in New York, Kenyon spent his free time at the Knickerbocker Theatre, Casino Theatre, and New Amsterdam Theatre on Broadway. He returned to Crawfordsville for his senior year and graduated from Crawfordsville High School in 1913. Kenyon then attended Wabash College in Crawfordsville. His first theatrical hit was at Wabash in 1913. The play was called “Let Him Up, Doc”; it was a one-act “satirical, musical treatment” composed by Nicholson and N. E. Tannenbaum. As a member of the Dramatic Club, Kenyon wrote and produced plays throughout his college career. In addition to theater, Kenyon was on the staff of the school newspaper, ''The Bachelor'', as well as various committees, including the one in 1914 that decided on white v-neck jerseys with purple edging as the sophomore class insignia. In 1915 Kenyon won the Gene Stratton-Porter short story prize for his story, “Puppets.” He was awarded by Ms. Stratton-Porter $100. He was on the board of the school magazine, a member ofMilitary career
Kenyon and his brother, Lawrence, enlisted in the Army in April, 1917, and were sent to Officers’ Reserve Training camp at Fort Benjamin Harrison in Lawrence, Indiana. He was commissioned as a first lieutenant and was stationed in France as an intelligence officer with the 1st Army headquarters. Kenyon had been in France for a couple of months when he had a chance meeting with Lawrence, who had just arrived there with another unit. After the Armistice, Kenyon continued his education at Cambridge University before he returned home to Indiana. During World War II, Kenyon Nicholson was an American Red Cross special representative in Australia.Career
Kenyon began his post-war career as a press agent with the Stuart Walker Company in both New York and Indianapolis. While in Indianapolis, his first full-length play was produced at the Murat Theater. “Honor Bright” was a comedy written in collaboration with the writer Meredith Nicholson, his father's first cousin. Kenyon was next appointed as an instructor in the English department at Columbia University, and was assistant toPersonal life
Lucile Nikolas was a member of the Stuart Walker Company in Indianapolis in 1921 when Kenyon Nicholson, press agent, met her. They were married on Christmas Eve, 1924, at her parents’ house near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Lucile acted in theater, film, and radio. She appeared in the 1931 film “Stolen Heaven,” directed by George Abbott and starring Nancy Carroll. Lucile often worked under the name Joan Kenyon. She explained, “My name looked Russian, I look English and I’m nearly always cast as a typical American girl. So I thought the best thing to do was give myself a new name that would not give an audience a preconceived idea of what my personality should be.” In addition to acting, Lucile collaborated with her husband in his writing.Later Years
During the 1930s, Kenyon and Lucile moved to a farm in the Rosemont/Stockton, New Jersey area where a colony of actors and playwrights ( Moss Hart andReferences
External links
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, Kenyon 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights United States Army personnel of World War I American male screenwriters People from Crawfordsville, Indiana Wabash College alumni Crawfordsville High School alumni 1894 births 1986 deaths American male dramatists and playwrights DeWitt Clinton High School alumni 20th-century American male writers Screenwriters from New York (state) Screenwriters from Indiana 20th-century American screenwriters