Roark Whitney Wickliffe Bradford (August 21, 1896,
Lauderdale County, Tennessee
Lauderdale County is a county located on the western edge of the U.S. state of Tennessee, with its border the Mississippi River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,143. Its county seat is Ripley. Since the antebellum years, it has be ...
— November 13, 1948,
) was an American
short story
A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...
writer and
novelist
A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...
.
Life
He attended
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
, and served as a
first lieutenant
First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment.
The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a s ...
in the Coast Artillery 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 ...
.
He married Lydia Sehorn, divorcing her in July 1933 after having only son
Richard Bradford. He then married Mary Rose Sciarra Himler, also a writer, in Carlsbad, New Mexico. He was night city editor for the New Orleans ''
Times-Picayune
''The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate'' is an American newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana, since January 25, 1837. The current publication is the result of the 2019 acquisition of ''The Times-Picayune'' (itself a result of th ...
''.
Bradford continued to produce well-received work during the 1930s and early 1940s. He served in the U.S. Naval Reserve Bureau of Aeronautics Training during World War II. In 1946, he accepted a position as visiting lecturer in the English department at Tulane University in New Orleans.
On November 13, 1948, he died of
amoebiasis
Amoebiasis, or amoebic dysentery, is an infection of the intestines caused by a parasitic amoeba '' Entamoeba histolytica''. Amoebiasis can be present with no, mild, or severe symptoms. Symptoms may include lethargy, loss of weight, colonic ...
, believed to have been contracted while he was stationed in French West Africa in 1943. His cremated remains were spread over the waters of the Mississippi River.
At the time of his death, Bradford’s writings were very popular. Since the 1940s, however, much of his body of work has been reevaluated. Many criticize his work (as a white author) as patronizing and demeaning in its portrayal of black characters.
Marc Connelly
Marcus Cook Connelly (December 13, 1890 – December 21, 1980) was an American playwright, director, producer, performer, and lyricist. He was a key member of the Algonquin Round Table, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1930.
Biogra ...
adapted ''Ol' Man Adam and his Chillun'' for the stage as ''
The Green Pastures
''The Green Pastures'' is a play written in 1930 by Marc Connelly adapted from ''Ol' Man Adam an' His Chillun'' (1928), a collection of stories written by Roark Bradford. The play was the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1930. It had th ...
'', which won a Pulitzer Prize.
His stage adaption of ''John Henry'' appeared in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
in 1940.
His work appeared in ''Collier's'', ''Harper's'', and ''Virginia Quarterly Review'',
Awards
* 1927
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 ...
Works
*
*
* ''How Come Christmas'' 1930, reprinted Harpers & Brothers, 1948 (
*
* ''John Henry'' 1931 ''Reprint''
*
* ''Let the Band Play Dixie'' 1934 ()
*
* ''The Green Room'', Harper & Brothers, 1949
*
*
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bradford, Roark
1896 births
1948 deaths
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American male writers
University of California, Berkeley alumni
American male novelists
People from Lauderdale County, Tennessee
Novelists from Tennessee
American male short story writers
O. Henry Award winners
Tulane University faculty
Deaths from dysentery
United States Army personnel of World War I
20th-century American short story writers
Novelists from Louisiana
United States Army officers
United States Navy personnel killed in World War II
United States Navy reservists
Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters