32 Facts About Eugene O'Neill

1.

Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was an American playwright awarded the 1936 Nobel Prize in Literature.

2.

Eugene O'Neill was born on October 16,1888 in a hotel, the Barrett House, at Broadway and 43rd Street, on what was then Longacre Square in New York City.

3.

Eugene O'Neill was the son of Irish immigrant actor James O'Neill and Mary Ellen Quinlan, who was of Irish descent.

4.

Eugene O'Neill's father suffered from alcoholism; his mother from an addiction to morphine, prescribed to relieve the pains of the difficult birth of Eugene, who was her third son.

5.

The Eugene O'Neill family reunited for summers at the Monte Cristo Cottage in New London, Connecticut.

6.

Eugene O'Neill spent several years at sea, during which he suffered from depression, alcoholism and dereliction.

7.

Eugene O'Neill joined the Marine Transport Workers Union of the Industrial Workers of the World, which was fighting for improved living conditions for the working class using quick 'on the job' direct action.

8.

Eugene O'Neill had previously been employed by the New London Telegraph, writing poetry as well as reporting.

9.

Eugene O'Neill had a brief romantic relationship with Reed's wife, writer Louise Bryant.

10.

Eugene O'Neill was portrayed by Jack Nicholson in the 1981 film Reds, about the life of John Reed; Louise Bryant was portrayed by Diane Keaton.

11.

Terry Carlin reported that Eugene O'Neill arrived for the summer in Provincetown with "a trunk full of plays", but this was an exaggeration.

12.

Eugene O'Neill was not left alone in the dining-room when the reading had finished.

13.

Eugene O'Neill's first published play, Beyond the Horizon, opened on Broadway in 1920 to great acclaim, and was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

14.

Eugene O'Neill's first major hit was The Emperor Jones, which ran on Broadway in 1920 and obliquely commented on the US occupation of Haiti that was a topic of debate in that year's presidential election.

15.

In 1936, Eugene O'Neill received the Nobel Prize in Literature after he had been nominated that year by Henrik Schuck, member of the Swedish Academy.

16.

When Winther objected that "that would scarcely be enough to justify immortality", Eugene O'Neill answered quickly and firmly: "It would be enough for me".

17.

Eugene O'Neill was part of the modern movement to partially revive the classical heroic mask from ancient Greek theatre and Japanese Noh theatre in some of his plays, such as The Great God Brown and Lazarus Laughed.

18.

In 1917, Eugene O'Neill met Agnes Boulton, a successful writer of commercial fiction, and they married on April 12,1918.

19.

Eugene O'Neill moved to Danville, California in 1937 and lived there until 1944.

20.

Eugene O'Neill later became addicted to potassium bromide, and the marriage deteriorated, resulting in a number of separations, although they never divorced.

21.

In 1943, Eugene O'Neill disowned his daughter Oona for marrying the English actor, director, and producer Charlie Chaplin when she was 18 and Chaplin was 54.

22.

Shane Eugene O'Neill became a heroin addict and moved into the family home in Bermuda, Spithead, with his new wife, where he supported himself by selling off the furnishings.

23.

Eugene O'Neill was disowned by his father before committing suicide a number of years later.

24.

In 1950 Eugene O'Neill joined The Lambs, the famed theater club.

25.

Eugene O'Neill managed to complete Moon for the Misbegotten in 1943, just before leaving Tao House and losing his ability to write.

26.

Eugene O'Neill died at the Sheraton Hotel on Bay State Road in Boston, on November 27,1953, at the age of 65.

27.

In Warren Beatty's 1981 film Reds, Eugene O'Neill is portrayed by Jack Nicholson, who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance.

28.

Eugene O'Neill is a member of the American Theater Hall of Fame.

29.

Eugene O'Neill is referenced by Upton Sinclair in The Cup of Fury, by JK Simmons' character in Whiplash, by Tony Stark in Avengers: Age of Ultron, specifically Long Day's Journey into Night, and Eugene O'Neill's play, Long Day's Journey into Night, is referenced by Patrick Wilson's character in Purple Violets.

30.

Eugene O'Neill is referred to in Moss Hart's 1959 book Act One, later a Broadway play.

31.

The principal collection of Eugene O'Neill papers is at Yale University.

32.

The Eugene O'Neill Theatre has housed musicals and plays such as Yentl, Annie, Grease, M Butterfly, Spring Awakening, and The Book of Mormon.