May Christie (October 3, 1890 – February 16, 1946) was a British-American writer and journalist, born in China to Scottish parents.

Early life

Elizabeth May Christie was born in China, the daughter of Dugald Christie and Elizabeth Hastie Smith. Her father was a medical missionary at Mukden (now

Shenyang Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a major China, Chinese sub-provincial city and the List of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Lia ...

). She was raised in Scotland and attended the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

, where she earned a master's degree in English literature.

Career

Christie's fiction included romance novels, short stories, and serials for magazines. Among her longform works were ''Helene's Married Life'', ''The Marriage of Anne'', (1920) ''Love's Gamble'' (1920), ''For Love of Betty'' (1921), ''The Eternal Eve'' (1923), ''The Rebel Bride'' (1925), ''The Gilded Rose'' (1925), ''The Garden of Desire'' (1926), ''Eager Love'' (1928), ''Man Madness'' (1929), ''The Jazz Widow'' (1930), ''A Kiss for Corinna'' (1930), ''Love's Miracle'' (1930), ''Flirting Wives'' (1931), ''Tomorrow Will Be Lovely'' (1936), ''Women in Love'' (1938), ''Honeymoon Preferred'' (1940), and ''That Man is Mine'' (1942). In 1915 Christie was woman's page editor for the ''

Philadelphia Evening Ledger The ''Public Ledger'' was a daily newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, published from March 25, 1836, to January 1942. Its motto was "Virtue Liberty and Independence". For a time, it was Philadelphia's most popular newspaper, but circulation de ...

''. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

she became a London-based war correspondent for the

McClure Newspaper Syndicate McClure Newspaper Syndicate, the first American newspaper syndicate, introduced many American and British writers to the masses. Launched in 1884 by publisher Samuel S. McClure, it was the first successful company of its kind. It turned the marke ...

. After the war, she carried Kaiser Wilhelm's typewritten memoirs to the United States for publication, and wrote features for the ''

New York Evening World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publ ...

.'' She was admitted to the New York Newspaper Women's Club in 1922. Christie moved to California to write for the film industry. She wrote the English subtitles for an Italian film comedy, ''

Amo te sola ''I Love You Only'' (Italian: ''Amo te sola'') is a 1935 Italian historical drama film directed by Mario Mattoli and starring Milly, Vittorio De Sica and Giuditta Rissone.Mancini p.231 It was shot at the Cines Studios in Rome. The film's sets we ...

'' (''I Love You Only'', 1936).

Personal life

May Christie married Alexander Elsden Martin, a captain in the British army, in 1920. She married John Mazzavini, a stockbroker, in 1927. She died by suicide in 1946, aged 55, in Los Angeles, California.

References

External links

*
A photograph of May Christie
in the George Grantham Bain collection of the Library of Congress. {{DEFAULTSORT:Christie, May 1890 births 1946 deaths British expatriates in China British emigrants to the United States British women writers British women in World War I 1946 suicides Suicides in California