Roark Bradford Explained
Roark Whitney Wickliffe Bradford (August21, 1896November13, 1948) was an American short story writer and novelist.
Life
He attended University of California, Berkeley, and served as a first lieutenant in the Coast Artillery during World War I.[1]
He married Lydia Sehorn, divorcing her in July 1933 after having only son Richard Bradford. He then married Mary Rose Sciarra Himler, also a writer, in Carlsbad, New Mexico. He was night city editor for the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
Bradford continued to produce well-received work during the 1930s and early 1940s. He served in the U.S. Naval Reserve Bureau of Aeronautics Training during World War II. In 1946, he accepted a position as visiting lecturer in the English department at Tulane University in New Orleans.
On November 13, 1948, he died of amoebiasis, believed to have been contracted while he was stationed in French West Africa in 1943. His cremated remains were spread over the waters of the Mississippi River.
At the time of his death, Bradford's writings were very popular. Since the 1940s, however, much of his body of work has been reevaluated. Many criticize his work (as a white author) as patronizing and demeaning in its portrayal of black characters.[2]
Marc Connelly adapted Ol' Man Adam and his Chillun for the stage as The Green Pastures, which won a Pulitzer Prize.[3]
His stage adaption of John Henry appeared in New York City in 1940.[4] [5] [6]
His work appeared in Collier's,[7] Harper's,[8] and Virginia Quarterly Review,[9]
Awards
Works
- Book: . Harper & Row. 1928 .
- Book: This Side of Jordan . Harper & brothers. 1929 .
- How Come Christmas 1930, reprinted Harpers & Brothers, 1948 (Book: reprint. Cherokee Pub. 1987. 978-0-87797-208-2 .
- Book: Ol' King David an' the Philistine Boys . Harper & Brothers. 1930 .
- John Henry 1931 Reprint Book: John Henry: Roark Bradford's novel and play. Steven Carl Tracy. Oxford University Press . 2008. 978-0-19-537104-8 .
- Book: Kingdom coming . Harper & Brothers. 1933 .
- Let the Band Play Dixie 1934 (Book: reprint. Books for Libraries Press. 1970 . 978-0-8369-3612-4 .)
- Book: The Three-Headed Angel. Harper & brothers. 1937 .
- The Green Room, Harper & Brothers, 1949
- Book: https://books.google.com/books?id=hCDI5Md1WpUC&dq=Roark+Bradford&pg=PA391. The Birth of John Henry. A treasury of Afro-American folklore. Harold Courlander. Marlowe & Company. 2003. 978-1-56924-501-9 .
- Book: https://books.google.com/books?id=UVcPsL-OzkQC&dq=Roark+Bradford&pg=PA83. The Private World of William Faulkner. Conversations with William Faulkner. M. Thomas Inge. University Press of Mississippi. 1999. 978-1-57806-136-5 .
Notes and References
- Book: American English dialects in literature. Eva Mae Burkett. Rowman & Littlefield. 1978. 978-0-8108-1151-5 .
- url=http://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=3412
- Book: Southern Writers. 9780807103906. 25 February 2015. Flora. Joseph M.. Vogel. Amber. September 1980. LSU Press .
- Book: Louisiana: a guide to the state. Federal Writers' Project. US History Publishers. 1947. 978-1-60354-017-9 .
- Book: Out of Sight. 9781604730395. 25 February 2015. Abbott. Lynn. Seroff. Doug. 18 September 2009. Univ. Press of Mississippi .
- Book: The Sound of Broadway Music : A Book of Orchestrators and Orchestrations. 978-0-19-971882-5. 25 February 2015. Suskin. Steven. 8 April 2009. Oxford University Press .
- Web site: Roark Bradford colliers - Google Search. google.com. 25 February 2015.
- Web site: Roark Bradford. harpers.org. 25 February 2015.
- Web site: The Virginia Quarterly Review. google.com. 1931. 25 February 2015.
