July 23, 1888
Raymond Chandler, creator of detective Philip Marlowe, is born in Chicago on this day.
Chandler was raised in England, where he went to college and worked as a freelance journalist for several newspapers. During World War I, Chandler served in the Royal Flying Corps. After the war, he moved to California, where he eventually became the director of several independent oil companies. He lost his job during the Depression, and he turned to writing to support himself at the age of 45. He published his first stories in the early 1930s in the pulp magazine Black Mask and published his first novel, The Big Sleep, in 1939. He published only seven novels, among them Farewell My Lovely (1946) and The Long Goodbye (1953), all featuring tough, cynical Detective Philip Marlowe. William Faulkner wrote the screen version of The Big Sleep, which starred Humphrey Bogart as Marlowe.
Chandler also wrote Hollywood screenplays in the 1940s and early 1950s, including Double Indemnity (1949) and Strangers on a Train (1951). He died in 1959.
The Merchant of Venice is entered on the Stationers' Register - July 22
July 22, 1598
On this day in 1598, William Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice is entered on the Stationers' Register. By decree of Queen Elizabeth, the Stationers' Register licensed printed works, giving the Crown tight control over all published material. Although its entry on the register licensed the printing of The Merchant of Venice, its first version would not be published for another two years.
The publication of Shakespeare's plays was a haphazard matter. Playwrights at the time were not interested in publication: They sold their plays to theater companies, which tried to prevent rivals from literally stealing the show. The writer produced only one complete written script for a play, and the players received only their own lines and cues, not the entire play. Sometimes, however, disgruntled actors would prepare their own version of the play from notes cribbed during performances. Among other plays, there are pirated versions, or "bad quartos," for Henry VI and Hamlet. Scholars believe, however, that the first printing, in 1600, of The Merchant of Venice came from a clean manuscript of the complete play.
During his lifetime, no authorized versions of Shakespeare's plays were printed. However, his sonnets were published in 1609, seven years before his death.
On this day in 1598, William Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice is entered on the Stationers' Register. By decree of Queen Elizabeth, the Stationers' Register licensed printed works, giving the Crown tight control over all published material. Although its entry on the register licensed the printing of The Merchant of Venice, its first version would not be published for another two years.
The publication of Shakespeare's plays was a haphazard matter. Playwrights at the time were not interested in publication: They sold their plays to theater companies, which tried to prevent rivals from literally stealing the show. The writer produced only one complete written script for a play, and the players received only their own lines and cues, not the entire play. Sometimes, however, disgruntled actors would prepare their own version of the play from notes cribbed during performances. Among other plays, there are pirated versions, or "bad quartos," for Henry VI and Hamlet. Scholars believe, however, that the first printing, in 1600, of The Merchant of Venice came from a clean manuscript of the complete play.
During his lifetime, no authorized versions of Shakespeare's plays were printed. However, his sonnets were published in 1609, seven years before his death.
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