Wilfrid John Joseph Sheed (27 December 1930 – 19 January 2011Christopher Lehmann-Haup

''The New York Times'', 19 January 2011) was an English-born American novelist and essayist.

Biography

Sheed was born in London, to

Frank Sheed Francis Joseph Sheed (20 March 1897 in Sydney – 20 November 1981 in Jersey City) was an Australian-born lawyer, Catholic writer, publisher, speaker, and lay theologian. He and his wife Maisie Ward were famous in their day as the names be ...

and Maisie Ward, prominent Roman Catholic publishers ( Sheed & Ward) in the United Kingdom and the United States during the mid-20th century. Wilfrid Sheed spent his childhood in both England and the United States before attending Downside School and

Lincoln College, Oxford Lincoln College (formally, The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford, situated on Turl Street in central Oxford. Lincoln was founded in 1427 by Richard Fleming, th ...

where he earned BA (1954) and MA (1957) degrees. Sheed's first novel, ''A Middle Class Education'' (1961 ; earlier in the UK), was based on his experiences at Oxford. His biography ''Frank and Maisie'' was about his parents' literary establishment and intellectual world. He wrote satirical novels about journalism and memoirs in his later years. His book on American popular music, entitled ''The House that George Built with a little help from Irving, Cole and a Crew of about Fifty'' was published in 2008.

Garrison Keillor Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (; born August 7, 1942) is an American author, singer, humorist, voice actor, and radio personality. He created the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) show ''A Prairie Home Companion'' (called ''Garrison Keillor's Radi ...

commented in a review of the book:

Golden Age of American Song has been saluted and high-faluted in books and wept over repeatedly, but "The House That George Built" is a big rich stew of an homage that makes you want to listen to Gershwin and
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
and
Porter Porter may refer to: Companies * Porter Airlines, Canadian regional airline based in Toronto * Porter Chemical Company, a defunct U.S. toy manufacturer of chemistry sets * Porter Motor Company, defunct U.S. car manufacturer * H.K. Porter, Inc., ...
and Arlen all over again ... Sheed's jazzy prose is a joy to read. It goes catapulting along, digressing like mad, never pedantic, a little frantic, which is just right: the jazz song, like all true art, is a flight from depression, indifference, the cold blank stare, the earnest clammy touch.

Family

Sheed was a great-great-grandson of William Ward (cricketer) and of

Henry Fitzalan-Howard, 14th Duke of Norfolk Henry Granville Fitzalan-Howard, 14th Duke of Norfolk, (7 November 181525 November 1860) was a British peer and politician. He was hereditary Earl Marshal and the last undisputed Chief Butler of England. Family He was the son of Henry Charles ...

and

Augusta Mary Minna Catherine Lyons Augusta Fitzalan-Howard, Duchess of Norfolk (née The Hon. Augusta Mary Minna Catherine Lyons) (1 August 1821 in Torquay, Devon – 22 March 1886 Norfolk House, St James's Square, London), who was commonly known by her middle name, "Minna", was the ...

; a great-grandson of

William George Ward William George Ward (21 March 1812 – 6 July 1882) was an English theologian and mathematician. A Roman Catholic convert, his career illustrates the development of religious opinion at a time of crisis in the history of English religious though ...

; a grandson of

Wilfrid Philip Ward Wilfrid Philip Ward (2 January 1856 – 1916) was an English essayist and biographer. Ward and his friend Baron Friedrich von Hügel have been described as "the two leading lay English Catholic thinkers of their generation". Life Wilfrid Ward wa ...

; a nephew of Father Leo Ward, a missioner in Japan; the son of Maisie Ward and

, the co-founders of Sheed & Ward; and the brother of the translator, Rosemary Sheed. Among Sheed's more remote ancestors was

John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk (c. 142522 August 1485), was an English nobleman, soldier, politician, and the first Howard Duke of Norfolk. He was a close friend and loyal supporter of King Richard III, with whom he was slain at the Battl ...

. He married Maria Bullitt Darlington in 1957 and they had three children; the marriage ended in divorce in 1967. He remarried in 1972 to cookbook author Miriam Ungerer.Obituar
Obituary
Feb 10 2011, ''

The East Hampton Star ''The East Hampton Star'' is a weekly, privately owned newspaper published each Thursday in East Hampton, New York. It is one of the few independent, family-owned newspapers still existing in the United States. The owners live in East Hampton Tow ...

'', 10 February 2011 At his death he was survived by his second wife, three children, a sister, two stepdaughters and four grandchildren. The English writer and journalist Gilbert Keith Chesterton was his godfather.

Death

He died on 19 January 2011, aged 80, from

urosepsis Pyelonephritis is inflammation of the kidney, typically due to a bacterial infection. Symptoms most often include fever and flank tenderness. Other symptoms may include nausea, burning with urination, and frequent urination. Complications may i ...

Great Barrington, Massachusetts Great Barrington is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,172 at the 2020 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut, ...

Published works

* ''A Middle Class Education''. 1961. * ''The Hack''. 1963. * ''Square's Progress''. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1965. * ''Office Politics''. 1966. * ''The Blacking Factory''. 1968. * ''Max Jamison''. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1970. * ''The Morning After: Selected essays and reviews''. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1971. . * ''People Will Always Be Kind''. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1973. . * ''Three Mobs: Labor, church, and Mafia''. New York: Sheed & Ward, 1974. . * '' Muhammad Ali: A Portrait in Words and Photographs''. Orion Publishing Group. 1975. * ''The Good Word & Other Words''. New York: Dutton, 1978. . * ''Transatlantic Blues'' New York: Dutton, 1978. . * ''

Clare Boothe Luce Clare Boothe Luce ( Ann Clare Boothe; March 10, 1903 – October 9, 1987) was an American writer, politician, U.S. ambassador, and public conservative figure. A versatile author, she is best known for her 1936 hit play '' The Women'', which ha ...

''. New York: Dutton, 1982. . * ''Frank and Maisie: A memoir with parents''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1985. . * ''The Boys of Winter: A novel''. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1987. . * ''Essays in Disguise''. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1990. . * ''Baseball and Lesser Sports''. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1991. . * ''My Life as a Fan''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1993. . * ''In Love with Daylight: A memoir of recovery''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995. . * ''The House that George Built with a little help from Irving, Cole and a Crew of about Fifty''. New York: Random House, 2007 .

Awards and honours

* 1967 finalist,

National Book Award for Fiction The National Book Award for Fiction is one of five annual National Book Awards, which recognize outstanding literary work by United States citizens. Since 1987 the awards have been administered and presented by the National Book Foundation, but ...

, for his novel ''

Office Politics Workplace politics is the process and behavior that in human interactions involves power and authority. It is also a tool to assess the operational capacity and to balance diverse views of interested parties. It is also known as office politics and ...

''"National Book Awards – 1967"

National Book Foundation The National Book Foundation (NBF) is an American nonprofit organization established, "to raise the cultural appreciation of great writing in America". Established in 1989 by National Book Awards, Inc.,Edwin McDowell. "Book Notes: 'The Joy Luc ...

. Retrieved 27 January 2012. * 1987

Grammy Award for Best Album Notes The Grammy Award – Best Album Notes has been presented since 1964. From 1973 to 1976 (the 15th through 18th Awards), a second award was presented for Best Album Notes – Classical. Those awards are listed under those years below. The award recog ...

for his liner notes for '' The Voice – The Columbia Years 1943–1952'', performed by Frank Sinatra.

References

External links

''Writer's Almanac''Seattle Public Library's online catalog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheed, Wilfrid 1930 births 2011 deaths 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists 20th-century English novelists 21st-century English novelists Alumni of Lincoln College, Oxford American male novelists British emigrants to the United States English essayists English Roman Catholics Grammy Award winners Writers from London People educated at Downside School American male essayists English male novelists 20th-century American essayists 21st-century American essayists 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers English male non-fiction writers