Dorothy Parker - (1893-1967)
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Village Community School, New York City
I. Biography
Dorothy Parker, one of the most unique women writers to ever grace America, was born in West Hampton, New Jersey in 1893. When she was older she moved to New York City where she established her writing career. She lived at 57 West 68th Street. Her given name was Dorothy Rothschild. Dorothy was petite and doe-eyed, but her fragile demeanor masked her sharp wit. Even early on she was known for her biting satire and witty humor. She wrote poetry, short stories, columns for magazines such as Vogue and Vanity Fair, and Hollywood screen plays.
Growing up, Parker's life was filled with pain. In 1897 her mother died. Her father took a new wife, but regretfully her stepmother died several years later. Dorothy was not fond of her stepmother, but the two deaths in such a short period of time affected her and she was prone to melancholy moods.
Parker's education included Miss Diana's School in Morristown, New Jersey and the Blessed Sacrament Convent in New York City. She was not in favor of programmed schooling and preferred to teach herself when she thought it was necessary.
In 1914 she published her first poem in Vanity Fair. A few months later she was assigned to write captions for Vogue . Among those was a caption for a lingerie ad; she wrote: "Brevity is the soul of lingerie." This launched her writing career, and that quote singled her out as a woman with biting humor.
In 1917, Dorothy married her first husband, Edwin Pond Parker II. He was a stockbroker. That is how she acquired her last name. In 1922, she divorced Edward because he had a drug and alcohol problem. In 1934, she married Alan Campbell. Alan was an actor and a writer who was eleven years younger than Dorothy. In 1947, she divorced Alan, due to his time away as a member of the army. She felt that because they didn't have quality time together, the relationship was growing apart. Then they were re-married, separated and then reconciled all during the twenty-nine years they knew each other.
These failed relationships left Dorothy with suicidal inclinations. This may have triggered inspiration for her nationally - acclaimed short story "Big Blond " which is about a woman who has had, like Dorothy, many failed relationships. At the end of the story the woman tries to commit suicide.
In 1918 Parker became a drama critic for Vanity Fair. With her biting wit and political satire, the readers always looked forward to what Dorothy Parker might say next. In 1928, Dorothy won the O. Henry Prize for her story, "Big Blond." No one was surprised, as everyone knew how enjoyable her work was.
Dorothy was also a member of the Algonquin Round Table, a very esteemed position for a writer. The Algonquin Round Table was made up of extremely witty novelists, poets and screenwriters. They were named for the hotel they met at, the Algonquin in New York City. Dorothy remembered, "The Round Table was just a bunch of people making jokes and telling each other how good they were."
Dorothy won an Oscar for her screenplay, A Star is Born. She was at the height of her career, when the bomb dropped. In 1951 she was blacklisted in Hollywood. She almost expected this with the Communist witchhunt going on, and every type of artist being blacklisted, but she was still shocked that such a free country would put limits on artistic expression.
Parker died in 1967. She left her whole savings, which totaled $20, 448.00 to the Martin Luther King Jr. Fund, and the NAACP. All through her life and even at death, she was involved in fighting for equality. She was very concerned with equality as you can clearly tell in her story, "Clothe the Naked." It features a little black boy, and an ignorant, rich, white woman, and how their lives coincide. Her unclaimed ashes were kept in her lawyer's drawer until 1988 when they were placed in a memorial garden. Her obituary was summed up as; "Hers was the tongue heard round the world."
II. Literary Works
Stories
Enough Rope, 1926
Laments for the Living, 1930
After Such Pleasures, 1933
The Portable Dorothy Parker, 1944
Constant Reader, 1970
Poetry
Death and Taxes, 1931
Not So Deep As A Well: Collected Poems, 1936
Screenplays
A Star is Born, 1937
Pride of the Yankees, 1942
The Cowboy and the Lady, 1938
III. Bibliography
Parker, Dorothy. The Viking Portable Library Dorothy Parker. Viking Press: New York City, 1944.
Corbett, William. New York Literary Lights. Graywolf Press: Minnesota, 1998.
The James Michener Museum, exhibit on Dorothy Parker. Spring, 2000.
This essay was submitted by 8th grade students of Joan Brodsky Schur, a teacher at the Village Community School in New York City.