Thomas Bell (March 7, 1903 – January 17, 1961) was an American

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 asp ...

Lemko Lemkos ( rue, Лeмкы, translit= Lemkŷ; pl, Łemkowie; uk, Лемки, translit=Lemky) are an ethnic group inhabiting the Lemko Region ( rue, Лемковина, translit=Lemkovyna; uk, Лемківщина, translit=Lemkivshchyna) of C ...

origin.

Biography

Bell was born Adalbert Thomas Belejcak on March 7, 1903 in Braddock,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, United States, of immigrant

Rusyn parents (Mary Krachun and Michael Belejcak) from the village of Nižný Tvarožec,

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

(former Austro-Hungarian Empire). He worked in the steel mills there, beginning at the age of fifteen as an apprentice electrician. In 1922 Bell moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

and worked variously as a mechanic, a merchant seaman, and a bookstore clerk. His first novel, ''The Breed of Basil'', was published in 1930. From 1933 he devoted all of his time to writing, completing five more novels: ''The Second Prince'' (1935), ''All Brides Are Beautiful'' (1936) (produced as a 1946 film called ''

From This Day Forward ''From This Day Forward'' is a 1946 American drama film directed by John Berry, starring Joan Fontaine and Mark Stevens. Plot Army sergeant Bill Cummings ( Mark Stevens) is about to be discharged after service in World War II. He was a blue co ...

''), '' Out of This Furnace'' (1941), ''Till I Come Back to You'' (1943) (which had a life on Broadway as ''

The World's Full of Girls ''The World's Full of Girls'' is a play in three acts by Nunnally Johnson which was adapted from Thomas Bell's 1943 novel ''Till I Come Back to You''. The work premiered on Broadway on December 6, 1943 at the Royale Theatre. The cast included Thom ...

''), and ''There Comes a Time'' (1946). Bell, with his wife Marie, moved to

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

in 1955. He died from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

on January 17, 1961, his own account of which – ''In the Midst of Life'' – was published

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' ...

ly that same year by Atheneum. Bell's reputation as a writer increased dramatically in 1976 when the

University of Pittsburgh Press The University of Pittsburgh Press is a scholarly publishing house and a major American university press, part of the University of Pittsburgh. The university and the press are located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The press ...

reissued ''Out of This Furnace'' to wide acclaim.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Thomas 1903 births 1961 deaths People from Braddock, Pennsylvania American people of Lemko descent 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American male writers Writers from Pittsburgh Mechanics (trade) American electricians American male novelists Novelists from Pennsylvania