Rudolf Wilhelm Besier (2 July 1878 – 16 June 1942) was a Dutch/English dramatist and translator best known for his play '' The Barretts of Wimpole Street'' (1930). He worked with H. G. Wells,

Hugh Walpole Sir Hugh Seymour Walpole, Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (13 March 18841 June 1941) was an English novelist. He was the son of an Anglican clergyman, intended for a career in the church but drawn instead to writing. Among th ...

and

May Edginton May Edginton (originally Helen Marion Edginton, 20 December 1883 – 17 June 1957) was an English writer who had over 50 popular novels published in London. She also wrote plays, collaborating with Rudolf Besier on two of them.Virginia Blain, Pat ...

on dramatisations.

Early life and career

Besier was born in

Blitar Blitar is a landlocked city in East Java, Indonesia, about 73 km from Malang and 167 km from Surabaya. The area lies within longitude 111° 40' – 112° 09' East and its latitude is 8° 06' South. The city of Blitar lies at an altitude ...

East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean border its northern and ...

(

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, whic ...

), in 1878 as the son of an English mother, Margaret Ann Collinson, and the Dutch soldier Rudolf Wilhelm Besier, who died six months before he was born and after whom he was named. He had some limited success early in his career in England, which began with ''The Virgin Goddess'' (1906) produced by

Otho Stuart Otho Stuart (9 August 1863 – 1 May 1930) was a British actor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries who specialised in performing in the plays of Shakespeare. Stuart played the range of Shakespearean leading men, both with the Company of ...

and with music by Christopher Wilson. Then followed a series of plays, mainly dramas, but including some satires and comedies. In 1912 he collaborated with H. G. Wells on dramatising Wells's ''

Kipps ''Kipps: The Story of a Simple Soul'' is a novel by H. G. Wells, first published in 1905. It was reportedly Wells's own favourite among his works, and it has been adapted for stage, cinema and television productions, including the musical '' ...

''; he also worked with

on ''Robin's Father'' (1918). ''Secrets'' (1922) was written with

(1883–1957).The Cambridge Guide to Women's Writing in English
/ref>

Major success

Besier's major success came with '' The Barretts of Wimpole Street'' (1930), based on

Elizabeth Barrett Elizabeth Barrett Browning (née Moulton-Barrett; 6 March 1806 – 29 June 1861) was an English poet of the Victorian era, popular in Britain and the United States during her lifetime. Born in County Durham, the eldest of 12 children, Elizabe ...

and

Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentary, historical sett ...

's courtship. After being rejected by two London producers, it premièred at the Malvern Festival of 1930, directed by Sir Barry Jackson. Besier failed to interest American producers, 27 of whom rejected his play, but the actress

Katharine Cornell Katharine Cornell (February 16, 1893June 9, 1974) was an American stage actress, writer, theater owner and producer. She was born in Berlin to American parents and raised in Buffalo, New York. Dubbed "The First Lady of the Theatre" by critic A ...

took a personal interest in it. She had it staged in Cleveland in 1931, and then in New York.Stanley Hochman, McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama
/ref> It was revived and produced in many countries, and was made into two films and a musical. Rudolf Besier died in

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant ur ...

in 1942, aged 63.

Selected list of works

*''The Virgin Goddess: a tragedy'' (1906) *''Don: a comedy in three acts'', 1908 (produced 1909) *''Olive Latimer's Husband'', 1909 (produced 1910) *''The Foolish Virgin'' (produced 1910-11) *''Lady Patricia: a comedy in three acts'', 1911 (produced 1912) *''

'' (1912; with H. G. Wells, based on his book) *''Her Country'' (produced 1918) *''Robin's Father'' (1918; with

) *'' Secrets'', 1922 (with

; produced 1922–23; filmed

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China hold ...

1933 Events January * January 11 – Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independence, against the wis ...

) *''A Lesson in Love'', 1922 (prod, 1923) *''Prude's Fall'' (filmed 1924) *'' The Barretts of Wimpole Street: a comedy in five acts'' (produced 1930, Malvern; 1931, Cleveland; Broadway; revived 1935, 1945; filmed

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 Nepal–Bihar earthquake strikes Nepal and Bihar with a maxi ...

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...

); the ultimate basis of the 1964 musical ''

Robert and Elizabeth ''Robert and Elizabeth'' is a musical with music by Ron Grainer and book and lyrics by Ronald Millar. The story is based on an unproduced musical titled ''The Third Kiss'' by Judge Fred G. Moritt, which in turn was adapted from the play '' The ...

'')

Sources

*
doolee.com
*

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Besier, Rudolf 1878 births 1942 deaths Dutch male dramatists and playwrights English dramatists and playwrights English male dramatists and playwrights English male poets People from Blitar 20th-century Dutch dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Dutch male writers