About
Dorothy Parker, née Rothschild, was a major figure in 20th-century American literature. A founding member of the Algonquin Round Table, she was known for her sharp wit and incisive style. After working as a drama critic for Vanity Fair, she wrote book reviews as 'Constant Reader' for The New Yorker. Her poetry collection Enough Rope (1926) was a bestseller. She won the O. Henry Award for her short story 'Big Blonde' (1929). Politically engaged on the left, she was blacklisted in Hollywood and bequeathed her literary estate to Martin Luther King Jr., and later to the NAACP.
* 1893-08-22 — † 1967-06-07
Major works
- Enough Rope (1926)poetry collection
- Sunset Gun (1928)poetry collection
- Death and Taxes (1931)poetry collection
- Big Blonde (1929)short story
- A Star Is Born (1937)film screenplay
Key milestones
- 1919Founding member of the Algonquin Round Table.
- 1929Won the O. Henry Award for her short story 'Big Blonde'.
- 1955Pleaded the Fifth Amendment before HUAC.
Themes
social satiredisillusionmentgender roleslove and losscynicism
Sources: poets.org · naacp.org