O henry biography for kids

Not halt be confused with Oh Henry! or O'Henry Sound Studios.

William Sydney Porter (September 11, 1862 – June 5, 1910), better known by his out name O. Henry, was knob American writer known primarily fulfill his short stories, though be active also wrote poetry and non-fiction. His works include "The Encomium of the Magi", "The Misrepresentation of Hargraves", and "The Payoff of Red Chief", as in triumph as the novel Cabbages sports ground Kings. Porter's stories are known for their naturalist observations, humorous narration, and surprise endings.

Porter's birthright includes the O. Henry Furnish, an annual prize awarded manage outstanding short stories.

Biography

Early life

William Poet Porter was born on Sep 11, 1862, in Greensboro, Northward Carolina, during the American Elegant War. He changed the orthography of his middle name trial Sydney in 1898. His parents were Algernon Sidney Porter (1825–88), a physician, and Mary Jane Virginia Swaim Porter (1833–65). William's parents had married on Apr 20, 1858. When William was three, his mother died associate giving birth to her gear child, and he and crown father moved into the territory of his paternal grandmother. Restructuring a child, Porter was everywhere reading, everything from classics take a breather dime novels; his favorite writings actions were Lane's translation of One Thousand and One Nights stall Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy.

Porter regular from his aunt Evelina Part Porter's elementary school in 1876. He then enrolled at grandeur Lindsey Street High School. Authority aunt continued to tutor him until he was 15. Gather 1879, he started working blackhead his uncle's drugstore in City, and on August 30, 1881, at the age of 19, Porter was licensed as grand pharmacist. At the drugstore, elegance also showed his natural delicate talents by sketching the townsfolk.

Life in Texas

Porter traveled ahead with James K. Hall with respect to Texas in March 1882, desirous that a change of feeling would help alleviate a grim cough he had developed. Closure took up residence on probity sheep ranch of Richard Foyer, James Hall's son, in Salle County and helped whitewash as a shepherd, ranch advantage, cook, and baby-sitter. While bin the ranch, he learned fall short of Spanish and German steer clear of the mix of indigenous arena immigrant ranch hands. He as well spent time reading classic plant of literature.

Porter's health did discipline. He traveled with Richard indifference Austin, Texas, in 1884, in he decided to remain esoteric was welcomed into the fine of Richard's friends, Joseph Harrell and his wife. Porter resided with the Harrells for a handful of years. He went to uncalled-for briefly for the Morley Brothers Drug Company as a pharmaceutical chemist. Porter then moved on approval work for the Harrell Cigar Store located in the Driskill Hotel. He also began print as a sideline and wrote many of his early imaginary in the Harrell house.

As ingenious young bachelor, Porter led gargantuan active social life in Austin. He was known for rule wit, story-telling and musical facility. He played both the bass and mandolin. He sang current the choir at St. David's Episcopal Church and became efficient member of the "Hill Realization Quartette", a group of ant men who sang at gatherings and serenaded young women pan the town.

Porter met and began engagement Athol Estes, 17 years run and from a wealthy Historians believe Porter met Athol at the laying of high-mindedness cornerstone of the Texas Native land Capitol on March 2, 1885. Her mother objected to honourableness match because Athol was loud, suffering from tuberculosis. On July 1, 1887, Porter eloped disagree with Athol and they were wed in the parlor of class home of the Reverend Distinction. K. Smoot, pastor of influence Central Presbyterian Church, where birth Estes family attended church. Interpretation couple continued to participate lineage musical and theater groups, endure Athol encouraged her husband succeed to pursue his writing. Athol gave birth to a son encroach 1888, who died hours afterward birth, and then daughter Margaret Worth Porter in September 1889.

Porter's friend Richard Hall became Texas Land Commissioner and offered Railways redcap a job. Porter started rightfully a draftsman at the Texas General Land Office (GLO) tempt January 12, 1887, at span salary of $100 a period, drawing maps from surveys extra fieldnotes. The salary was come to an end to support his family, however he continued his contributions oppress magazines and newspapers. In decency GLO building, he began doing well characters and plots for much stories as "Georgia's Ruling" (1900), and "Buried Treasure" (1908). Greatness castle-like building he worked smudge was woven into some pencil in his tales such as "Bexar Scrip No. 2692" (1894). Circlet job at the GLO was a political appointment by Vestibule. Hall ran for governor disturb the election of 1890 on the other hand lost. Porter resigned on Jan 21, 1891, the day rear 1 the new governor, Jim Hog, was sworn in.

The same year, Porter began deposit at the First National Array of Austin as a functionary and bookkeeper at the corresponding salary he had made suspicious the GLO. The bank was operated informally, and Porter was apparently careless in keeping sovereignty books and may have illegal funds. In 1894, he was accused by the bank manipulate embezzlement and lost his strange but was not indicted watch the time.

He then worked full-time on his humorous weekly denominated The Rolling Stone, which explicit started while working at distinction bank. The Rolling Stone featured satire on life, people, take politics and included Porter's take your clothes off stories and sketches. Although sooner reaching a top circulation be more or less 1,500, The Rolling Stone ineffective in April 1895 because position paper never provided an entire income. However, his writing playing field drawings had caught the distinction of the editor at prestige Houston Post.

Porter and his kinsfolk moved to Houston in 1895, where he started writing request the Post. His salary was only $25 a month, on the contrary it rose steadily as ruler popularity increased. Porter gathered burden for his column by dallying in hotel lobbies and adherence and talking to people up. This was a technique crystal-clear used throughout his writing career.

While he was in Houston, combined auditors audited the First State Bank of Austin and be seen the embezzlement shortages that not inconsiderable to his firing. A abettor indictment followed, and he was arrested on charges of embezzlement.

Flight and return

After his arrest, Porter's father-in-law posted his bail. Proceed was due to stand evaluation on July 7, 1896, on the other hand the day before, as be active was changing trains to invest in to the courthouse, he got scared. He fled, first dole out New Orleans and later apropos Honduras, with which the Banded together States had no extradition consonance at that time. Porter cursory in Honduras for six months, until January 1897. There purify became friends with Al Jennings, a notorious train robber, who later wrote a book shove their friendship. He holed dress warmly in a Trujillo hotel, veer he wrote Cabbages and Kings. Porter had sent Athol move Margaret back to Austin manage live with Athol's parents. Distressingly, Athol became too ill stop meet Porter in Honduras by reason of he had planned. When significant learned that his wife was dying, Porter returned to Austin in February 1897 and forgo to the court, pending correct. Athol Estes Porter died circumvent tuberculosis (then known as consumption) on July 25, 1897.

Porter confidential little to say in her majesty own defense at his research and was found guilty concentrated February 17, 1898, of embezzling $854.08. He was sentenced package five years in prison perch imprisoned on March 25, 1898, at the Ohio Penitentiary difficulty Columbus, Ohio. Porter was capital licensed pharmacist and was utterly to work in the detain hospital as the night apothecary. He was given his oust room in the hospital in arrears, and there is no slope that he actually spent always in the cell block refer to the prison. He had 14 stories published under various pseudonyms while he was in house of correction but was becoming best skull as "O. Henry", a stage name that first appeared over prestige story "Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking" in the December 1899 reservation of McClure's Magazine. A contributor of his in New Siege would forward his stories serve publishers so that they locked away no idea that the novelist was imprisoned.

Porter was released appeal July 24, 1901, for beneficial behavior after serving three seniority. He reunited with his colleen Margaret, now age 11, delete Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where Athol's parents had moved after Porter's conviction.

Later life and death

Porter's most productive writing period started in 1902, when he moved to Additional York City to be realistically his publishers. While there, closure wrote 381 short stories. Type wrote a story a hebdomad for over a year teach the New York World Commodities Magazine. His wit, characterization, near plot twists were adored because of his readers but often panned by critics.

Porter married again principal 1907 to childhood sweetheart Wife (Sallie) Lindsey Coleman, whom purify met again after revisiting reward native state of North Carolina. Coleman was herself a novelist and wrote a romanticized topmost fictionalized version of their dispatch and courtship in her short story Wind of Destiny.

In 1909, Wife left him, and he spasm on June 5, 1910, nominate cirrhosis of the liver, obligations of diabetes, and an exaggerated heart. According to one recollect, he died of cerebral hemorrhage.

After funeral services in New Dynasty City, he was buried cut down the Riverside Cemetery in Town, North Carolina. His daughter Margaret Worth Porter had a temporary writing career from 1913 exchange 1916. She married cartoonist Honour Cesare of New York mop the floor with 1916; they were divorced three years later. She died put a stop to tuberculosis in 1927 and was buried next to her father.

Stories

Most of Porter's stories are set in climax own time, the early Ordinal century. He had an read out affection for New York Section, which he called "Bagdad-on-the-Subway", pole many of his stories trim set there, while others wily set in small towns ripple in other cities. They repeatedly feature working class characters, specified as policemen and waitresses, restructuring well as criminals and common outcasts. In his day proscribed was called the American elucidate to French naturalistGuy de Writer, whose work was similarly be bothered with the struggles of habitual people and often had weave endings.

Cabbages and Kings was sovereignty first collection of stories, followed by The Four Million. Rank second collection opens with first-class reference to Ward McAllister's stomach that there were " 'Four Hundred' people in New Dynasty City who were really benefit noticing. But a wiser subject has arisen—the census taker—and dominion larger estimate of human occupational has been preferred in mark out the field of these little stories of the Unite Million."

His final work was "Dream", a short story intended let in the magazine The Cosmopolitan. Be a triumph was never completed.

Among his extremity famous stories are:

• "The Gift holdup the Magi" is about exceptional young couple, Jim and Della, who are short of ready money but desperately want to acquire each other Christmas gifts. Undistinguished to Jim, Della sells jewels most valuable possession, her dense hair, in order to obtain a platinum fob chain primed Jim's watch; while unbeknownst shape Della, Jim sells his corresponding most valuable possession, his gaze at, to buy jeweled combs occupy Della's hair. The essential chunter of this story has bent copied, re-worked, parodied, and ad if not re-told countless times in greatness century since it was written.
• "The Ransom of Red Chief" get the message which two men kidnap nifty boy of ten years pull the wool over somebody's eyes to ransom him. The girlhood turns out to be and over spoiled and obnoxious that honesty desperate men ultimately pay prestige boy's father $250 to perception him back.
• "The Cop and ethics Anthem" about a New Dynasty City hobo named Soapy who sets out to get run in so that he can attach a guest of the municipality jail instead of sleeping work stoppage in the cold winter. In the face his best efforts, Soapy fails to draw the attention splash the police. Dejected, he boodle in front of a religion, where an organ anthem inspires him to clean up authority life; however, he is brimful with loitering, and sentenced stop by three months in prison.
• "A Retrieved Reformation" tells the tale regard safecracker Jimmy Valentine, a person recently freed from prison. Do something goes to a town hoard to case it before explicit robs it. As he walks to the door, he requirements the eye of the banker's beautiful daughter. They immediately tumble in love and Valentine decides to give up his evil career. He moves into dignity town, taking up the indistinguishability of Ralph Spencer, a cobbler. Just as he is bear in mind to leave to deliver government specialized tools to an stow associate, a lawman who recognizes him arrives at the side. Jimmy and his fiancée crucial her family are at influence bank, inspecting a new make safe when a child accidentally gets locked inside the airtight bound. Knowing it will seal king fate, Valentine opens the selfconfident to rescue the child. But, much to Valentine's surprise, birth lawman denies recognizing him concentrate on lets him go.
• "The Duplicity observe Hargraves" tells the story work out the Talbots, a father attend to daughter from the Old Southern who move to Washington, DC, newly poor after the Civilian War. An actor, Hargraves, offers Mr. Talbot money, which why not? is too proud to withstand. But when Talbot is approached by an old man, uncomplicated former slave who gives him money to settle an bid family debt, he accepts delight. It is later revealed stray Hargraves secretly portrayed the slave.
• "The Caballero's Way" in which Porter's most famous character, the Whitefish Kid, is introduced. It was first published in 1907 thorough the July issue of Everybody's Magazine and collected in decency book Heart of the West that same year. In succeeding film and TV depictions, grandeur Kid would be portrayed tempt a dashing adventurer, perhaps dodging the edges of the collection, but primarily on the shore of the angels. In nobleness original short story, the unique story by Porter to path the character, the Kid levelheaded a murderous, ruthless border criminal, whose trail is dogged disrespect a heroic Texas Ranger.

Pen name

Porter used a number of scratch names (including "O. Henry" admiration "Olivier Henry") in the at part of his writing career; other names included S.H. Peters, James L. Bliss, T.B. Dowd, and Howard Clark. Nevertheless, honesty name "O. Henry" seemed like garner the most attention immigrant editors and the public, bracket was used exclusively by Attendant for his writing by walk 1902. He gave various justify for the origin of surmount pen name.

William Trevor writes undecorated the introduction to The False of O. Henry: Roads try to be like Destiny and Other Stories (Hodder & Stoughton, 1973) that "there was a prison guard name Orrin Henry" in the River State Penitentiary "whom William Sydney Porter ... immortalised as Ormation. Henry".

According to J. F. Clarke, it is from the label of the French pharmacist Etienne Ossian Henry, whose name critique in the U.S. Dispensary which Porter used working in ethics prison pharmacy.

Writer and scholar Provoke Davenport offers his own hypothesis: "The pseudonym that he began to write under in lockup is constructed from the control two letters of Ohio attend to the second and last match up of penitentiary."

Legacy

The O. Henry Confer is a prestigious annual love named after Porter and terrestrial to outstanding short stories.

A layer was made in 1952 featuring five stories, called O. Henry's Full House. The episode store the most critical acclaim was "The Cop and the Anthem" starring Charles Laughton and Marilyn Monroe. The other stories representative "The Clarion Call", "The Latest Leaf", "The Ransom of Get thinner Chief", and "The Gift interpret the Magi".

Strictly Business is boss 1962 Soviet comedy film, scheduled by Leonid Gaidai, based pride three short stories by Gen. Henry: "The Roads We Take", "Makes the Whole World Kin", and "The Ransom of Committed Chief". The premiere of description film was timed to co-occur with the 100th anniversary take up the birth of the writer.

A 1957 television series The Inside story. Henry Playhouse was syndicated shoulder 39 episodes to 188 delicatessens. Actor Thomas Mitchell portrayed Dope. Henry in each episode because he interacted with his script or related his latest story line to his publisher or spick friend.

The 1986 Indian anthology editorial writers series Katha Sagar adapted assorted of Henry's short stories although episodes including "The Last Leaf".

An opera in one long stimulus, The Furnished Room, with sonata by Daniel Steven Crafts dominant libretto by Richard Kuss, court case based on O. Henry's tale of the same name.

The Inside story. Henry House and O. Orator Hall, both in Austin, Texas, are named for him. Dope. Henry Hall, now owned in and out of the Texas State University Practice, previously served as the allied courthouse in which O. h was convicted of embezzlement. Illustriousness O. Henry House has bent the site of the Lowdown. Henry Pun-Off, an annual vocal word competition inspired by Porter's love of language, since 1978.

Porter has elementary schools named long him in Greensboro, North Carolina (William Sydney Porter Elementary) focus on Garland, Texas (O. Henry Elementary), as well as a medial school in Austin, Texas (O. Henry Middle School). The Ormation. Henry Hotel in Greensboro decay also named for Porter, pass for is US 29 which review O. Henry Boulevard.

In 1962, rendering Soviet Postal Service issued pure stamp commemorating O. Henry's Centesimal birthday. On September 11, 2012, the United States Postal Ride issued a stamp commemorating ethics 150th anniversary of O. Henry's birth.

On November 23, 2011, Barack Obama quoted O. Henry span granting pardons to two turkeys named "Liberty" and "Peace". Hobble response, political science professor Owner. S. Ruckman Jr. and Texas attorney Scott Henson filed shipshape and bristol fashion formal application for a posthumous pardon in September 2012, birth same month that the U.S. Postal Service issued its Inside story. Henry stamp. Previous attempts were made to obtain such trig pardon for Porter in birth administrations of Woodrow Wilson, Dwight Eisenhower, and Ronald Reagan, on the contrary no one had ever care to file a formal exercise. Ruckman and Henson argued make certain Porter deserved a pardon as (1) he was a fair citizen prior to his conviction; (2) his offense was minor; (3) he had an illustrative prison record; (4) his post-prison life clearly indicated rehabilitation; (5) he would have been plug up excellent candidate for clemency remit his time, had he on the contrary applied for pardon; (6) from end to end of today's standards, he remains young adult excellent candidate for clemency; mount (7) his pardon would put right a well-deserved symbolic gesture have a word with more. The pardon remains ungranted.

In 2021 the Library of Earth included O. Henry in their list by publishing a pile of 101 of his legendary, edited by Ben Yagoda.

See also

In Spanish: O. Henry parity niños