1. Winchell Smith was an American playwright, known for big hit works such as Brewster's Millions and Lightnin'.
23 Facts About Winchell Smith
1. 2.
Winchell Smith spent freely but left a large fortune at his death.
3.
Winchell Smith was born in Hartford, Connecticut, on 5 April 1871.
4.
Winchell Smith began his career in the theater company of William Gillette, his uncle.
5.
Winchell Smith became an assistant property man when he was eighteen, and then stage director.
6.
Winchell Smith was an assistant to Frederic Thompson, owner of the New York Hippodrome, who had a stage version of Brewster's Millions in rehearsal.
7.
Winchell Smith was given the job of rewriting the play, which he did with the help of Byron Ongley.
8.
Winchell Smith's Turn to the Right, produced by Golden and first staged in August 1916, launched Golden's career.
9.
Frank Bacon was fifty-five when he met Winchell Smith, and had always played minor roles.
10.
Winchell Smith is lazy, often drunk and a spinner of entertaining yarns.
11.
Winchell Smith agreed to rewrite it and stage it at the Gaiety Theatre in partnership with Bacon and Golden.
12.
Winchell Smith had agreed that Frank Bacon, co-author and player of the principal role, should appear in the London production.
13.
Winchell Smith wanted to set up a forum so the producers could share ideas, and wanted stop the rival organizations poaching each other's stars.
14.
Winchell Smith continued to work with John Golden Smith decided that The Wisdom Tooth, a comedy by Marc Connelly, should be staged at the Little Theatre in February 1926.
15.
Later that year Winchell Smith's Two Girls Wanted was a greater success.
16.
Winchell Smith was credited as producer and as co-director with Herbert Blache.
17.
Many of Winchell Smith's other plays were made into films, with Winchell Smith given writer credits.
18.
Winchell Smith joined The Lambs in 1899 and remained a member until his death.
19.
Winchell Smith wanted to encourage grain raising in Connecticut, brought costly machinery for harvesting and contracted farmers to plant rye, wheat and buckwheat.
20.
Winchell Smith was not successful in selling the ground flours he produced in the mill, and changed over to producing ground cowfeeds and middlings.
21.
Winchell Smith is buried in the Riverside Cemetery in Farmington.
22.
Winchell Smith was involved in many Broadway productions as an author or director.
23.
Many of Winchell Smith's plays were made into films, for which he was credited as writer.