W. G. Wills
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William Gorman Wills (28 January 182813 December 1891), usually known as W. G. Wills, was an Irish dramatist, novelist and painter.


Early life and career

Wills was born at Blackwell lodge in the neighbourhood of Kilmurry, County Kilkenny, Ireland, the son of the Reverend James Wills (1790–1868), author of ''Lives of Illustrious and Distinguished Irishmen'', and his wife Katherine Gorman Wills. As a young man, he was educated at Waterford Grammar School and later went to
Trinity College, Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...
where he took no degree, but was awarded the Vice-Chancellor's Medal for his poem "Poland." He later left the university and enrolled at the
Royal Hibernian Academy The Royal Hibernian Academy (RHA) is an artist-based and artist-oriented institution in Ireland, founded in Dublin in 1823. Like many other Irish institutions, such as the RIA, the academy retained the word "Royal" after most of Ireland became in ...
in Dublin where he studied painting. Though he had originally planned to study law, Wills preferred the arts. His first novel was ''Old Times'', for which he also drew and engraved the illustrations. After publishing ''Old Times'' in an Irish magazine, he travelled to London, and for some time wrote for periodicals without much success. A second novel, ''The Wife's Evidence'' was dramatised with some success. Wills then chose to live a bohemian lifestyle, lodging at the Arundel Club. He later joined the
Garrick Club The Garrick Club is a gentlemen's club in the heart of London founded in 1831. It is one of the oldest members' clubs in the world and, since its inception, has catered to members such as Charles Kean, Henry Irving, Herbert Beerbohm Tree, A ...
. For a period, he attempted to make a career as an artist. He set up as a portrait-painter in 1868. He had some success, despite limited artistic training, but his disorderly lifestyle and reputation for missing appointments undermined his career. He also painted narrative works.


Drama

He found his true vein in drama, and produced over 30 plays, after having his first major success with ''The Man of Airlie'' (1867), which was shown in London and New York. In 1872 he was engaged by the Lyceum Theatre with an annual salary. Some of his most notable works there were '' Medea in Corinth'', ''
Eugene Aram Eugene Aram (170416 August 1759) was an English philologist, but also infamous as the murderer celebrated by Thomas Hood in his ballad ''The Dream of Eugene Aram'', and by Edward Bulwer-Lytton in his 1832 novel ''Eugene Aram''. Early life Aram ...
'', ''
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'', ''
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'', and ''
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'', a dramatisation of
The Vicar of Wakefield ''The Vicar of Wakefield'', subtitled ''A Tale, Supposed to be written by Himself'', is a novel by Anglo-Irish writer Oliver Goldsmith (1728–1774). It was written from 1761 to 1762 and published in 1766. It was one of the most popular and wid ...
, which had great success. Wills' plays were typically in verse, participating in the revival of verse drama at the time. From this time until 1887 his plays were rarely absent from the London stage. Many of his plays were based on historical events. ''Charles I'', about the life of the English king, was one of his major successes, running for 200 nights at the Lyceum in 1872–3. Other historical dramas include ''Mary Queen of Scots'' and ''England in the Days of Charles II''. These works have been strongly criticised for their freedom with historical fact. Harold Child in ''The Cambridge History of English and American Literature'' commented, Richard Cordell described ''Charles I'' as "an amazing picture of Charles as the guileless prince yoked to a perfect queen, with Cromwell as the heavy villain." Other plays include ''Hinko'', ''Juana'', ''Ninon'' (which ran for eight months at the Adelphi), ''Claudian'', and his adaptation of ''Faust'', which ran for 188 nights in 1885 and another long run in 1887–8. Wills worked regularly with
Henry Irving Sir Henry Irving (6 February 1838 – 13 October 1905), christened John Henry Brodribb, sometimes known as J. H. Irving, was an English stage actor in the Victorian era, known as an actor-manager because he took complete responsibility ( ...
. Irving produced his ''Vanderdecken'' in 1878, a version of the
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story. In 1880 he created a revised version of
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's play ''
King René's Daughter ''Kong Renés Datter'' (''King René’s Daughter'') is a Danish verse drama written in 1845 by Henrik Hertz. It is a fictional account of the early life of Yolande of Lorraine, daughter of René of Anjou, in which she is depicted as a beautif ...
'' under the title ''Iolanthe''. Irving commissioned ''King Arthur'' in 1890, but it remained unproduced as Irving was unhappy with the work. He asked
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to rewrite it. Irving also commissioned a version of ''Don Quixote'' but did not produce it. In 1887 his mother, whom he had supported for many years, died. After that time, Wills seemed to have less incentive for work, and died four years later.


Other works

He wrote several novels after ''The Wife's Evidence'', including ''Notice to Quit'' (1863) and ''The Love That Kills'' (1867), both of which deal with the aftermath of the Great Famine of Ireland. He also published ''Life's Foreshadowings'' and ''David Chantrey''. Wills' long
blank verse Blank verse is poetry written with regular metrical but unrhymed lines, almost always in iambic pentameter. It has been described as "probably the most common and influential form that English poetry has taken since the 16th century", and P ...
narrative poem ''Melchior'', in the manner of Browning, was strongly recommended by
Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...
. It tells the story of a German composer inspired by a young woman whom he imagines to be
Saint Cecilia Saint Cecilia ( la, Sancta Caecilia), also spelled Cecelia, was a Roman virgin martyr and is venerated in Catholic, Eastern Orthodox Church, Orthodox, Anglican Communion, Anglican, and some Lutheran churches, such as the Church of Sweden. She b ...
. He also wrote many song lyrics.


Reputation

His biography, ''W. G. Wills: Dramatist and Painter'', was written by his brother Freeman Wills in 1898. However, even by then Wills' reputation was in decline. His works were very rarely revived or read after his death and have been subject to some scathing criticism. Richard Cordell described ''Broken Spells'' as "a flatulent Napoleonic piece", adding that Wills "wavered between uninspired verse plays and noisy melodrama".Richard A. Cordell, ''Henry Arthur Jones and the Modern Drama'', R. Long & R.R. Smith, New York, 1932, p.6. Peter Thomson calls ''Eugene Aram'' "semi poetic drivel".Peter Thomson ''On Actors and Acting'', University of Exeter Press, 2000, p.158.
James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...
alludes to him and to his play '' A Royal Divorce'' (concerning
Napoleon's Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
divorce from Joséphine) many times in
Finnegans Wake ''Finnegans Wake'' is a novel by Irish literature, Irish writer James Joyce. It is well known for its experimental style and reputation as one of the most difficult works of fiction in the Western canon. It has been called "a work of fiction whi ...
.


References


External links

*
Biography at Whistler
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wills, William Gorman 1828 births 1891 deaths 19th-century Irish painters Irish male painters People from County Kilkenny Irish male dramatists and playwrights 19th-century Irish dramatists and playwrights 19th-century male writers 19th-century Irish male artists