Vern Sneider

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Vern Sneider (born October 6, 1916 in Monroe , Michigan , USA as Vernon John Sneider , † May 1, 1981 ibid) was an American author .

Life

Vern Sneider grew up in Monroe, Michigan. During the Second World War he was stationed as a captain in the US Army in East Asia. Inspired by his war experiences and by contact with Japanese culture, he began writing novels and short stories.

In 1951 Sneider published The Teahouse of the August Moon (Eng. " The Geishas of Captain Fisby "), which became his greatest literary success and a bestseller . The novel is a profound satire on the American attempts at democratization in Okinawa during the occupation. The stage version, adapted by Broadway author John Patrick (1905–1995) , also enjoyed success and received the Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award for best play on the stage.

Of The Teahouse of the August Moon , there are also two films, the scripts written for Patrick based on his stage adaptation. A television production from the Hallmark Hall of Fame series was followed in 1956 by a film directed by Daniel Mann with Glenn Ford in the role of the American officer Fisby and Marlon Brando as his Japanese interpreter with the German title Das kleine Teehaus , which deviates from the title of the book edition. In 1970 a musical version of the play called Lovely Ladies, Kind Gentlemen was performed on Broadway.

In 1951, Sneider's first short story about the Korean War , A Long Way from Home , was also published in Argosy Magazine . Five years later it was published in book form together with the thematically related short stories When Winter Comes , Even the Leopard and The Box under the title A Long Way from Home and Other Stories . In his novel A Pail of Oysters , he dealt with the suffering of the civilian population of Taiwan , which they had to endure in the late 1940s during the war - including from American troops.

In addition, Sneider wrote other novels and short stories as well as a template for the American television series The Alcoa Hour , which, however, could no longer connect to the success of The Teahouse of the August Moon .

Sneider died of a heart attack in his hometown of Monroe at the age of 64 .

Works (selection)

  • 1951 The Teahouse of the August Moon , New York: Putnam 1951.
  • 1951 A Pail of Oysters , New York: Putnam 1953.
  • 1956 A Long Way from Home and Other Stories , New York: Putnam 1956.
  • 1960 The King from Ashtabula , New York: Putnam 160.
  • 1971 West of the North Star , New York: Putnam 1971.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Sneider, Vern
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Sneider, Vernon John
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American writer
DATE OF BIRTH October 6, 1916
PLACE OF BIRTH Monroe , Michigan
DATE OF DEATH May 1, 1981
Place of death Monroe , Michigan