F. Scott Fitzgerald(1896-1940)
- Writer
"There are no second acts in American lives," wrote F. Scott
Fitzgerald, who himself went from being the high priest of the Jazz Age
to a down-and-out alcoholic within the space of 20 years, but not
before giving the world several literary masterpieces, the most famous
of which is "The Great Gatsby" (1924).
He was born in 1896 to a mother who spoiled him shamelessly, leading
him to grow up an especially self-possessed young man. While he was
obsessed by the image of Princeton University, he flunked out, less interested in
Latin and trigonometry than bathtub gin and :bright young things". The
brightest was an unconventional young lady from Montgomery, Alabama
named Zelda Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald invoked the jealousy of numerous local
boys, some of whom had even begun a fraternity in Zelda's honor, by
snagging her shortly before the publication of his first novel, "This
Side of Paradise". The novel was a huge success, and Fitzgerald suddenly
found himself the most highly-paid writer in America.
During the mid-to-late '20s the Fitzgeralds lived in Europe among many
American expatriates including
Gertrude Stein,
Cole Porter,
Ernest Hemingway and
Thornton Wilder. He wrote what is
considered his greatest masterpiece, "The Great Gatsby", while living
in Paris. It was at the end of this period (1924-30) that his marriage to the
highly strung, demanding and mentally unstable Zelda began to
unravel. She was diagnosed with schizophrenia and spent much of the
rest of her life in a variety of mental institutions. Fitzgerald turned
more and more to alcohol. In 1930 a major crisis came when Zelda had a
series of psychotic attacks, beginning a descent into madness and
schizophrenia from which she would never recover. Much of Fitzgerald's
income would now be dedicated to keeping his wife in mental hospitals.
Emotionally and creatively wrung out, he wrote "Tender is The Night"
(1934), the story of Dick Diver and his schizophrenic wife Nicole, that
shows the pain that he felt himself. In the mid-30s Fitzgerald had a
breakdown of his own. He had become a clinical alcoholic, something he
would detail in his famous "The Crack-Up" series of essays.
With Zelda institutionalized on the East Coast, it was Hollywood that
proved to be Fitzgerald's salvation. Although he had little success in
writing for films, which he had attempted several times previously,
he was paid well and gained a new professional standing. His
experiences there inspired "The Last Tycoon", his last--and unfinished--novel which some believe might have been his greatest of all.
Fitzgerald died at the home of his mistress, writer
Sheilah Graham, of a heart attack
in 1940, believing himself to be a failed and broken man. He never
knew that he would one day be considered one of the finest writers of
the 20th century.
Fitzgerald, who himself went from being the high priest of the Jazz Age
to a down-and-out alcoholic within the space of 20 years, but not
before giving the world several literary masterpieces, the most famous
of which is "The Great Gatsby" (1924).
He was born in 1896 to a mother who spoiled him shamelessly, leading
him to grow up an especially self-possessed young man. While he was
obsessed by the image of Princeton University, he flunked out, less interested in
Latin and trigonometry than bathtub gin and :bright young things". The
brightest was an unconventional young lady from Montgomery, Alabama
named Zelda Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald invoked the jealousy of numerous local
boys, some of whom had even begun a fraternity in Zelda's honor, by
snagging her shortly before the publication of his first novel, "This
Side of Paradise". The novel was a huge success, and Fitzgerald suddenly
found himself the most highly-paid writer in America.
During the mid-to-late '20s the Fitzgeralds lived in Europe among many
American expatriates including
Gertrude Stein,
Cole Porter,
Ernest Hemingway and
Thornton Wilder. He wrote what is
considered his greatest masterpiece, "The Great Gatsby", while living
in Paris. It was at the end of this period (1924-30) that his marriage to the
highly strung, demanding and mentally unstable Zelda began to
unravel. She was diagnosed with schizophrenia and spent much of the
rest of her life in a variety of mental institutions. Fitzgerald turned
more and more to alcohol. In 1930 a major crisis came when Zelda had a
series of psychotic attacks, beginning a descent into madness and
schizophrenia from which she would never recover. Much of Fitzgerald's
income would now be dedicated to keeping his wife in mental hospitals.
Emotionally and creatively wrung out, he wrote "Tender is The Night"
(1934), the story of Dick Diver and his schizophrenic wife Nicole, that
shows the pain that he felt himself. In the mid-30s Fitzgerald had a
breakdown of his own. He had become a clinical alcoholic, something he
would detail in his famous "The Crack-Up" series of essays.
With Zelda institutionalized on the East Coast, it was Hollywood that
proved to be Fitzgerald's salvation. Although he had little success in
writing for films, which he had attempted several times previously,
he was paid well and gained a new professional standing. His
experiences there inspired "The Last Tycoon", his last--and unfinished--novel which some believe might have been his greatest of all.
Fitzgerald died at the home of his mistress, writer
Sheilah Graham, of a heart attack
in 1940, believing himself to be a failed and broken man. He never
knew that he would one day be considered one of the finest writers of
the 20th century.