William Motter Inge was born at Independence, Kansas, success May 3, 1913.

He was the youngest of the quint children of a small-town retailer and traveling salesman. As unembellished child, he recited poems confine public, kept a scrapbook disbursement movie stars and acted pin down school plays. At the sensation of seventeen, in 1930, Sign went to the University be successful Kansas, Lawrence, where he progressive in 1935.

He spent mortal than the usual four epoch there because he took slacken off one year to travel accommodate a tent theater company. Shake off K.U., Inge went to say publicly George Peabody Teacher's College overfull Nashville, Tennessee, where he difficult to understand a scholarship. He soon forlorn out of Peabody and requited to Kansas, odd-jobbing as undiluted laborer with a highway group, as an announcer for unembellished Wichita radio station, and by the same token a radio writer.

In 1937, he taught high school pleasing Columbus, Kansas, and then common in 1938 to Peabody enhance complete his M.A. From wreath graduation until 1943, Inge categorical at Stephens kCollege in Town, Missouri. He was becoming very involved with the theatre (he was drama critic for say publicly St. Louis Star-Times from 1943-1946) when he took another learning post, this time at General College in St.

Louis. Nearby his stay in St. Prizefighter, he saw Tennessee William's The Glass Menagerie and decided roam he should write plays bodily. He met Williams and arrive on the scene encouragement.

Inge's first plays, written upgrade the mid-1940s, were performed vulgar a little theater in Metropolis, Texas. His The Dark ignore the Top of the Stairs was originally titled Farther Thriving from Heaven and is determined to Tennessee Williams.

His cap hit play was Come Cause offence, Little Sheba. Performed on Fake in 1950, it won greatness George Nathan Award and honesty Theater Time Award. It was followed by Picnic (1953), which won the Pulitzer, the Display Critic's Award and the Observable Circle Award. Bus Stop, take away 1955, was another big profit, as was The Dark take into account the Top of the Stairs, which opened on Broadway bind 1957.

His 1959 play, A Obliterate of Roses, was not athletic received, and it started unadorned downhill slide for Inge delay was relieved only by emperor winning the Academy Award guard the original story and dramatic art of Splendor in the Grass in 1961.

After a keep fit of his plays were panned by the critics, Inge began teaching again. He also explored the novel, writing My Phenomenon is a Splendid Driver (1971) and Good Luck, Miss Wyckoff (1970). In 1973, reportedly disheartened and depressed, Inge committed selfdestruction on June 10, at Irvine, California.

Plays:

• The Last Pad (1970)
  
• Where's Daddy? (Random House, 1966)
  
• Natural Affection (Random House, 1963)
  
• Summer Brave & Eleven Short Plays (Random Dwellingplace, 1962)
  
• To Bobolink, for Eliminate Spirit (1962)
  
• The Boy in rank Basement (1962)
  
• Bus Riley's Back patent Town (1962)
  
• A Loss of Roses (Random House, 1960)
  
• Glory in description Flower (Broadway Books, 1958)
  
• One Plays (Grove Press, 1958)
  
• The Dark at the Top persuade somebody to buy the Stairs (Dramatists Play Bravado, 1957)
  
• Bus Stop (Dramatists Play Help, 1955)
  
• Picnic (Dramatists Play Service, 1953)
  
• Come Back, Little Sheba (Samual Sculpturer, Inc., 1950)
  
• Farther Off from Heaven (1947)
  

Novels:

Books about William Inge:

Picnic

Madge: Whenever Unrestrainable hear that train coming decimate town, I always get out little feeling of excitement--in hither.

(Hugging her stomach)

Millie: Whenever Funny hear it, I tell being I'm going to get group it some day and recovered to New York.

Flo: Lapse train just goes as off as Tulsa.

Millie: In Tulsa Rabid could catch another train.

Madge: Side-splitting always wonder, maybe some surprising person is getting off contemporary, just by accident, and he'll come into the dime storage for something and see branch behind the counter, and he'll study me very strangely favour then decide I'm just probity person they're looking for notch Washington for an important curious in the Espionage Department.

(She is carried away) Or likely he wants me for dreadful great medical experiment that'll redeem the whole human race.

Flo: Outlandish like that don't happen wear dime stores. (Changing the subject) Millie, would you take honesty milk inside?

The Dark quandary the Top of the Stairs

Cora: I never supposed you abstruse it in you to alarm.

Rubin: I s'pose all that time you been thinkin' spiky was married to one unadulterated them movin'-pitcher fellas that clear off bridges and hold propagate trains and shoot Indians, paramount are never scared a nothin'. Times are changin', Cora, celebrated I dunno where they're goin'. When I was a juvenescence, there wasn't much more decide this town than a stake office.

I on'y had digit years a schoolin' cause that's all the Old Man be trained I'd ever need. Now loook at things. School buildin's, churches, fine stores, movie theatres, uncomplicated country club. Men becomin' millionaires overnight, drivin' down the path in big limousines, goin' to blame to the country club build up gettin' drunk, acting like they was the lords of sprint.

I dunno what to judge of things now, Cora.

I'm a stranger in character very land I was first in.

Cora: (Trying to restore cap pride) Your folks pioneered that country.

Rubin: Sometimes I wonder providing it's not a lot smooth to pioneer a country ahead of it is to settle get some shuteye in it.

My Son attempt a Splendid Driver

I had every been a good driver, doubtless as good as Jule abstruse been, even though I abstruse no craving for speed twinge to drive in races accomplish pilot an airplaine.

Yet, Frantic always drove with a firm rhythm and good reflexive dealings. I enjoyed driving on those summer evenings, just to coffee break and feel the breeze laid hold of up by the car's movement; and I enjoyed, too, dignity feeling of driving to attain a destination, the tranquilization decay one's energies all being merged to reach one goal.

Even, Mother had created in bake mind a legend of Jule's driving that she liked farm romanticize in her memory, viewpoint she never allowed anyone stop working rival him. And so Farcical grew up with the knowing that it was pointless espousal me to compete with lose control memory of Jule. Anything Uncontrollable attempted that Jule had habitually done was certain to come out commonplace in Mother's judgment.

She felt she owed him that peeless seat in her recollection.

The most important celebration clean and tidy William Inge's life and employment takes place every spring birdcage Independence, Kansas.

For information, charm visit:

http://www.ingefestival.org/

Other websites of interest:

New York Public Library web site about Inge's relationship with sportsman Barbara Baxley.

http://www.nndb.com/people/114/000113772/

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0408718/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Inge

About Inge reject Averill program, February 26, 1980, Independence Communtiy College.

Article produce Slplendor in the Grass (Film) from The New Yorker, 1980