Maurice Valency (22 March 1903 – 28 September 1996) was a playwright, author, critic, and popular professor of Comparative Literature at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, best known for his award-winning adaptations of plays by

Jean Giraudoux Hippolyte Jean Giraudoux (; 29 October 1882 – 31 January 1944) was a French novelist, essayist, diplomat and playwright. He is considered among the most important French dramatists of the period between World War I and World War II. His work ...

and

Friedrich Dürrenmatt Friedrich Dürrenmatt (; 5 January 1921 – 14 December 1990) was a Swiss author and dramatist. He was a proponent of epic theatre whose plays reflected the recent experiences of World War II. The politically active author's work included avant-g ...

. He wrote several original plays, but is best known for his adaptations of the plays of others. Valency's version of ''

The Madwoman of Chaillot ''The Madwoman of Chaillot'' (french: La Folle de Chaillot) is a play, a poetic satire, by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux, written in 1943 and first performed in 1945, after his death. The play is in two acts. The story concerns an eccentric woma ...

'' would become the basis of the

Jerry Herman Gerald Sheldon Herman (July 10, 1931December 26, 2019) was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre. One of the most commercially successful Broadway songwriters of his time, Herman was the composer and lyricis ...

musical ''

Dear World ''Dear World'' is a musical with a book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. With its opening, Herman became the first composer-lyricist in history to have three productions running simultaneously on Broad ...

'' on Broadway. He is also noted for his book ''The Flower and the Castle: An Introduction to Modern Drama''. John Gassner in his review of this book said that Mr. Valency brought to his work "a lifetime of study and experience as well as a viewpoint both Olympian and engaged." Valency also wrote television plays, adaptations of librettos, novels, and academic works on

Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...

and

Shaw Shaw may refer to: Places Australia *Shaw, Queensland Canada *Shaw Street, a street in Toronto England *Shaw, Berkshire, a village *Shaw, Greater Manchester, a location in the parish of Shaw and Crompton *Shaw, Swindon, a List of United Kingdom ...

Life

Maurice Valency was educated in New York City, getting a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1923 at City College, and at

getting a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degree in 1927 (Valency was a member of the New York bar), and a Ph.D. in 1938.Columbia University Archives, Maurice Valency papers, 1945–1963
/ref> In 1936 he married the artist Janet Cornell; they remained married for 60 years until Valency's death in New York City at the age of 93. Valency was a professor of comparative literature at Columbia and also taught dramatic literature at

Juilliard The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

and at

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls about 15,000 undergraduate and 2,800 graduate students on a 35-acre campus. Being New York City's first publ ...

. He spoke seven languages.

Awards

* New York Drama Critics Circle Award for best foreign play, 1949, for his adaptation of ''

'' by Jean Giraudoux New York Drama Critics' Circle, Best Foreign Play * New York Drama Critics Circle Award for best foreign play, 1954, for his adaptation of '' Ondine'' by Jean Giraudoux * New York Drama Critics Circle Award for best foreign play, 1959, for his adaptation of '' The Visit'' by Friedrich Dürrenmatt * Tony Award nomination for Best Play, 1959, for his adaptation of ''The Visit'' *

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a US$25,000 gift from Edsel Ford. By 1947, after the death ...

Fellowship, 1958 *

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...

, 1960

Works

Adaptations

* ''

'' (Jean Giraudoux), Pub: Random House, New York, 1947, OCLC Num: 639892557 * '' The Enchanted: a comedy in three acts'' (Jean Giraudoux), Pub: Random House, New York, 1950, OCLC Num: 818215 * '' The Virtuous Island: a play in one act'' (Jean Giraudoux), Pub: Samuel French, New York, 1956, OCLC Num: 2070415 * ''The Queen's Gambit: a romantic comedy in three acts'' (Eugène Scribe), Pub: Samuel French, New York, 1956, OCLC Num:: 504510488 * ''Four plays: The Madwoman of Chaillot,

The Apollo of Bellac ''The Apollo of Bellac'' (French title: ''L'Apollon de Bellac'' or ''L'Apollon de Marsac'') is a comedic one-act play written in 1942 by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux. Plot summary The play is set in the reception room of the International Bur ...

, The Enchanted, Ondine, adapted, and with an introduction by Maurice Valency'' (Jean Giraudoux), Pub: Hill and Wang, New York, 1958, OCLC Num: 70459302 * '' The visit: a play in three acts'' (Friedrich Dürrenmatt), Pub: Random House, New York, 1958, OCLC Num: 1379852 * ''

Feathertop "Feathertop" is a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne, first published in 1852. The moral tale uses a metaphoric scarecrow named Feathertop and its adventure to offer the reader a conclusive lesson about human character. It has since been used and ...

'', Pub: Dramatists Play Service, New York, 1998 * ''

La Périchole ''La Périchole'' () is an opéra bouffe in three acts by Jacques Offenbach. Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy wrote the French libretto based on the 1829 one act play '' Le carrosse du Saint-Sacrement'' by Prosper Mérimée, which was revived on ...

'' (opera libretto), The American University Theatre, 1970, OCLC Num: 690595158 * ''The Reluctant King'' (opera libretto)

Original works

* ''The palace of pleasure: an anthology of the novella'' (with Henry Levtow), Pub: Capricorn Books, New York, 1960, OCLC Num: 296836 * ''In praise of love: an introduction to the love-poetry of the Renaissance'', Pub: Macmillan, New York, 1958, OCLC Num: 313778 * ''The Thracian horses'', Pub: Dramatists Play Service, New York, 1963, OCLC Num: 2684110 * ''The flower and the castle: an introduction to modern drama'', Pub: Macmillan, New York, 1963, OCLC Num: 330053 * ''The breaking string: the plays of

'', Pub: Oxford University Press, New York, 1966, OCLC Num: 712186 * ''The cart and the trumpet: the plays of

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

'', Pub: Oxford University Press, New York, 1973, OCLC Num: 627998 * ''Savonarola'' (play), 1974 * ''Regarding Electra: a play in one or two acts'', Pub: Dramatists Play Service, New York, 1976, OCLC Num: 2918272 * ''Conversation with a sphinx: a play in one act'', Pub: Dramatists Play Service, New York, 1980, OCLC Num: 6925360 * ''The end of the world: an introduction to contemporary drama'', Pub: Oxford University Press, New York, 1980, OCLC Num: 5051656 * ''Ashby: a novel'', Pub: Schocken Books, New York, 1984, * ''Julie: a novel'', Pub: New Amsterdam, New York, 1989, * ''Tragedy'', Pub: New York: New Amsterdam, 1991,

Television plays

* 1951: ''Battleship Bismarck'' CBS-TV * 1953: ''Toine'' (

Omnibus Omnibus may refer to: Film and television * ''Omnibus'' (film) * Omnibus (broadcast), a compilation of Radio or TV episodes * ''Omnibus'' (UK TV series), an arts-based documentary programme * ''Omnibus'' (U.S. TV series), an educational progr ...

), CBS-TV * 1953: ''The Man without a Country'' (Omnibus), CBS-TV * 1954: ''The Apollo of Bellac'' (Omnibus), CBS-TV * 1955: ''She Stoops to Conquer'' (Omnibus), CBS-TV * 1956: ''The Virtuous Island'' (for Omnibus), ABC-TV * 1957: ''The Second Stranger'' (

General Electric Theater ''General Electric Theater'' was an American anthology series hosted by Ronald Reagan that was broadcast on CBS radio and television. The series was sponsored by General Electric's Department of Public Relations. Radio After an audition show ...

), CBS-TV * 1957: ''

'' (General Electric Theatre), CBS-TV (adaptation of story by

Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associated with that t ...

)Hawthorne, Nathaniel, adapted by Maurice Valency, "Feathertop," in ''Fifteen American One-Act Plays'', Paul Kozelka, ed., New York: Washington Square Press, 1961.

References

External links

* , Retrieved 25 September 2010 * , Retrieved 11 June 2017 * , Retrieved 25 September 2010
Maurice Valency
a
doollee.com
the playwright's data base, Retrieved 25 September 2010
Finding aid to Maurice Valency papers at Columbia University. Rare Book & Manuscript Library.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valency, Maurice Writers from New York City Tony Award winners Columbia Law School alumni City College of New York alumni 1903 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American translators Juilliard School faculty Brooklyn College faculty American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers