Elisabeth Cobb Explained

Elisabeth Cobb (8 Oct 1902–26 May 1959) was an American writer. Her father was Irvin S. Cobb, a well-known humorist. One of her best known works was her 1934 novel She Was A Lady. She died in New York in May 1959.

Early life and career (1902-1927)

Cobb attended the Skerton Finishing School.^[1] Cobb worked in the editorial department of The Bookman^[1] in the early 1920s. In 1924, a manuscript of Cobb's was published in Liberty.^[2] Her first novel Falling Seeds was published in 1927^[3] by Doubleday, Page and Company, when she was 25. The novel deals with the marriage of a Southern belle to a Yankee.

Writing career (1927-1950s)

Cobb's second novel Minstrels in Satin was published in 1929.^[4] The novel is about a young divorced woman living in Italy who has three children. The mother would focus more on her social life than the wellbeing of her children, who learned to be self-sufficient.^[4] Critics had generally favorable opinions on the novel.

Cobb's third novel She Was A Lady was serialized in McCall's magazine before it was published in 1934.^[5] The novel would receive a film adaptation in 1934.

After her father's death in 1944, Cobb wrote a biography of her father titled My Wayward Parent, and part of it was serialized in the August 1945 issue of Cosmopolitan^[6] before it was published in late 1945. It reviewed well, and was a sales success.^[7]

In 1947–1948, a comedy play Cobb co-wrote with Herschel Williams was produced titled The Men We Marry. It was shown on Jan. 15, 1948 at the Mansfield Theatre.^[8]

In the early 1950s, Cobb would travel lecturing on various topics.^[9]

Personal life

Cobb first married singer Frank M. Chapman Jr on February 24, 1924, in Manhattan and divorced him on March 10, 1930, in Reno, Nevada.^[10] There was one child from the marriage, Buff Cobb, born in 1926.

Her next marriage was to Alton A. Brody, who worked in real estate, on September 4, 1930.^[11] She would divorce him on Feb. 16, 1938 in Las Vegas, Nevada.^[12] Her final marriage was to Cameron Rogers, a writer, on November 21, 1938.^[13]

Cobb converted to Catholicism in 1948.^[14]

Cobb died aged 56 on May 25, 1959, at a New York hospital and was survived by her mother and children. Her grave is at Oak Grove Cemetery, beside her father.^{[15] [16]}

Works

• Falling Seeds, 1927 (novel, published by Doubleday, Page and Company)
• Minstrels in Satin, 1929 (novel, published by Doubleday Doran and Co.)
• She Was A Lady, 1934 (novel, published by Bobbs-Merrill Company)
• My Wayward Parent, 1945 (biography, published by Bobbs-Merrill Company)
• The Men We Marry, 1947 (play) with Herschel Williams

Notes and References

1. News: Irvin Cobb's Daughter Engaged to Frank Michler Chapman Jr. . The Brooklyn Daily Eagle . June 7, 1923 . 14 July 2023 . 7.
2. News: Untitiled Liberty magazine ad . The Press of Atlantic City . May 21, 1924 . 16 July 2023 . 9.
3. News: Elisabeth Cobb Chapman, Daughter of Irvin S. Cobb, writes "Falling Seeds", Distinguished First Novel . The News-Democrat . March 27, 1927 . Robertson, Lloyd P. . Paducah, Ky. . 15.
4. News: Many Constrasts, Exceptional Plot, Attractive Characters Feature 'Minstrels in Satin' . Minneapolis Tribune . April 28, 1929 . Businger, R.A . 65.
5. News: Colonial-Friday-Family Skeleton Is Theme of "She Was A Lady" by Elisabeth Cobb . Kennebec Journal . September 3, 1934 . 10.
6. News: Random Book Talk . The Paducah Sun-Democrat . July 29, 1945 . Neuman, Fred G. . 8.
7. News: Buff in the Movies . The Commercial Appeal . March 2, 1947 . Memphis, TN . 23.
8. News: "Men We Marry" Leaves New Producer at Post . New York Daily News . January 18, 1948 . Chapman, John . 52.
9. News: Catholic Women's Council to Hear E. Cobb Speak at Second Open Meet . Newsday (Suffolk edition) . May 11, 1951 . 52.
10. News: Reno divorce granted Irvan Cobb's daughter . The New York Times . March 11, 1930 . 20.
11. News: Irvin Cobb's Daughter Is Married Again . The New York Times . September 5, 1930 . 21 July 2023 . 20.
12. News: Writers' Daughter Wins Divorce . The Salt Lake Tribune . February 16, 1938 . 10.
13. News: Elisabeth Cobb wed . The Courier . November 23, 1938 . 1 August 2023 . Waterloo, Iowa . 2.
14. News: Elisabeth Cobb First Catholic Forum Speaker . Elizabethtown Chronicle . November 9, 1951 . Elizabethtown, PA . 12.
15. News: Buff Cobb Buried Beside Her Father . The Paducah Sun . May 31, 1959 . 15.
16. News: Elisabeth Cobb, 56, author, scenarist . The New York Times . May 27, 1959 . 35.