Dorothy Clarke Wilson (May 9, 1904 – March 26, 2003) was an American writer, perhaps best known for her novel ''Prince of Egypt'' (1949), which was a primary source for the

Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cine ...

film, ''

The Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments ( Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ ...

'' (1956).

Early life

Dorothy Wight Clarke was born on May 9, 1904, in

Gardiner, Maine Gardiner is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,961 at the 2020 census. Popular with tourists, Gardiner is noted for its culture and old architecture. Gardiner is a nationally accrediteMain StreetAmerica commun ...

, to Lewis Herbert Clarke, a Baptist minister, and his wife Flora Eva (Cross) Clarke. She attended Cony High School in Augusta, graduating at seventeen as valedictorian of her class. In 1925 she graduated

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...

from

Bates College Bates College () is a private liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian Houses as some of the dormitories. It maintains of nature p ...

in Lewiston, and on August 31 of that year married fellow Bates student Elwin Leander Wilson (). Elwin went on to study at

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a private school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1812 under the auspices of Archibald Alexander, the General Assembly of t ...

and the

Boston University School of Theology Boston University School of Theology (BUSTH) is the oldest theological seminary of American Methodism and the founding school of Boston University, the largest private research university in New England. It is one of thirteen theological school ...

. Upon completion of his studies, he and Dorothy returned to Maine, settling in Westbrook.

Career

Clarke's first play that she sold was written for a church. Her best known book was ''Prince of Egypt'', which won the Westminster prize for the best religious book the year it was published and was also one of the sources for the film ''

The Ten Commandments (1956 film) ''The Ten Commandments'' is a 1956 American epic religious drama film produced, directed, and narrated by Cecil B. DeMille, shot in VistaVision (color by Technicolor), and released by Paramount Pictures. Based on the 1949 novel ''Prince of ...

''. Clarke was not a fan of the movie and used the term 'flimflammery' to describe the scene in which Moses parted the Red Sea. Wilson is also well known for her biographies about women such as

Dorothea Dix Dorothea Lynde Dix (April 4, 1802July 17, 1887) was an American advocate on behalf of the indigent mentally ill who, through a vigorous and sustained program of lobbying state legislatures and the United States Congress, created the first gen ...

and

Elizabeth Blackwell Elizabeth Blackwell (3 February 182131 May 1910) was a British physician, notable as the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States, and the first woman on the Medical Register of the General Medical Council for the United Ki ...

as well as the presidential wives

Dolley Madison Dolley Todd Madison (née Payne; May 20, 1768 – July 12, 1849) was the wife of James Madison, the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. She was noted for holding Washington social functions in which she invited members of bo ...

and

Martha Washington Martha Dandridge Custis Washington (June 21, 1731 — May 22, 1802) was the wife of George Washington, the first president of the United States. Although the title was not coined until after her death, Martha Washington served as the inaugural ...

. The Wilson Center at the

University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a public land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the flagship university of the University of Maine System. It is classifie ...

was named in Dorothy and Elwin's honor. Dorothy Wilson received numerous awards through her lifetime before she died in 2003.

Personal life

Wilson and her husband adopted two children: a daughter, Joan (1930–2003), and a son, Harold (1930–1977). They were married until Elwin's death on March 31, 1992. Dorothy Clarke Wilson herself died on March 26, 2003, in Orono, Maine, at the age of 98.

Selected works

In addition to her many plays, essays, and lectures, Wilson's work includes: * ''Twelve Months of Drama for the Average Church'' (1933; plays and worship services) * ''The Herdsman'' (1946; novel about Amos) * ''Prince of Egypt'' (1949; novel about Moses) * ''House of Earth'' (1952, a novel about India) * ''Fly with Me to India'' (1954; a travel book) * ''That Heaven of Freedom: A One-Act Play of India'' (1954) * ''Jezebel'' (1955) * ''The Gifts: The Story of the Boyhood of Jesus'' (1957, fiction) * ''Dr. Ida: The Story of Dr. Ida Scudder of Vellore

ndia Ndia or NDIA may refer to: * Ndia Constituency, Kirinyaga District, Central Province, Kenya *Alternative name for the Southern Kirinyaga dialect of the Kikuyu language *National Defense Industrial Association, an American trade association * Natio ...

' (1959) * ''The Journey'' (1962) * ''Take My Hands: The Remarkable Story of Dr. Mary Verghese'' (1963) * ''The Tree Gifts'' (1963) * ''Ten Fingers for God'' (1966/1983; about Paul Brand, a missionary to lepers in India) * ''Handicap Race: The Inspiring Story of Roger Arnett'' (1967) * ''Palace of Healing: The Story of Dr. Clara Swain, first woman missionary doctor, and the hospital she founded'' (1968) * ''Lone Woman: The Story of

, the first woman doctor'' (1970; published in 1983 as ''I Will Be a Doctor! The Story of America's First Physician'') * ''The Big-Little World of Doc Pritham, a Greenville doctor'' (1971; only book set in Maine; reissued for fifth time in 1999) * ''Hilary: The Brave World of Hilary Pole'' (1972) * ''Bright Eyes: The Story of Susette La Flesche, an Omaha Indian'' (1974) * ''Stranger & Traveler: The Story of

, American Reformer'' (1975) * ''Granny Brand: Her Story'' (1976; aka ''Climb Every Mountain: The Story of Granny Brand'') * ''Twelve Who Cared: My Aventures with Christian Courage'' (1977) * ''Apostle of Sight'' (1980) * ''Lincoln's Mothers'' (1981) * ''Lady Washington'' (1984, about

) * ''The Brother'' (1984, a novel about St. James) * ''Queen Dolley: The Life and Times of

'' (1987) * '' Alice and

Edith Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and var ...

: The Two Wives of Teddy Roosevelt'' (1989) * ''Leaves in the Wind: A Lifetime in Verse'' (1995) * ''Live for Hundred Years: A History of the Maine Christian Association'' (1996) * ''Union in Diversity'' (1999, 2nd ed., memoirs)

References

External links

Maine State LibraryBates College Obituary
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Dorothy Clarke 1904 births 2003 deaths Bates College alumni Novelists from Maine American women novelists People from Gardiner, Maine 20th-century American novelists American women dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Converts to Methodism American United Methodists