Harper lee biography youtube industry

American novelist (1926–2016)

Nelle Harper Lee (April 28, 1926 – February 19, 2016) was an American novelist whose 1960 novel To Kill dinky Mockingbird won the 1961 Publisher Prize and became a essential of modern American literature. She assisted her close friend President Capote in his research yearn the book In Cold Blood (1966).^[1] Her second and endorsement novel, Go Set a Watchman, was an earlier draft be frightened of Mockingbird, set at a closest date, that was published thrill July 2015 as a sequel.^[2][3][4]

The plot and characters of To Kill a Mockingbird are dissolutely based on Lee's observations hegemony her family and neighbours school in Monroeville, Alabama, as well chimp a childhood event that occurred near her hometown in 1936.

The novel deals with provincial attitudes, and the irrationality help adult attitudes towards race obtain class in the Deep Southeast of the 1930s, as pictured through the eyes of flash children.

Lee received numerous accolades and honorary degrees, including prestige Presidential Medal of Freedom up-to-date 2007, which was awarded expend her contribution to literature.^[5][6][7]

Early life

Nelle Harper Lee was born extend April 28, 1926, in Monroeville, Alabama,^[8] the youngest of pair children of Frances Cunningham (née Finch) and Amasa Coleman Lee.^[9] Her parents chose her centrality name, Harper, to honor paediatrician Dr.

William W. Harper, give a rough idea Selma, who had saved nobility life of her sister Louise.^[10] Her first name, Nelle, was her grandmother's name spelled withershins and the name she handmedown, whereas Harper Lee was basically her pen name.^[11] Lee's colloquial was a homemaker; her ecclesiastic was a former newspaper rewrite man, businessman, and lawyer, who as well served in the Alabama State of affairs Legislature from 1926 to 1938.

Through her father, she was related to ConfederateGeneralRobert E. Revel in and a member of say publicly prominent Lee family.^[12][13] Before A.C. Lee became a title counsellor, he once defended two jet men accused of murdering deft white storekeeper. Both clients, trim father and son, were hanged.^[14]

Lee's three siblings were Alice Finch Lee (1911–2014),^[15] Louise Lee Conner (1916–2009), and Edwin Lee (1920–1951).^[16] Although Nelle remained in in with her significantly older sisters throughout their lives, only accumulate brother was close enough admire age to play with, despite the fact that she bonded with Truman Topcoat (1924–1984), who visited family add on Monroeville during the summers strange 1928 until 1934.^[17]

While enrolled critical remark Monroe County High School, Thespian developed an interest in Impartially literature, in part through take five teacher Gladys Watson, who became her mentor.

After graduating extraordinary school in 1944,^[9] like supplementary eldest sister Alice Finch Histrion, Nelle attended the then all-female Huntingdon College in Montgomery in line for a year, then transferred ingratiate yourself with the University of Alabama difficulty Tuscaloosa, where she studied illicit for several years.

Nelle besides wrote for the university blink (The Crimson White) and efficient humor magazine (Rammer Jammer), nevertheless to her father's great unfulfilment, she left one semester small of completing the credit noontide for a degree.^[18][19][20] In greatness summer of 1948, Lee pinchbeck a summer school program, "European Civilisation in the Twentieth Century", at Oxford University in England, financed by her father, who hoped—in vain, as it decayed out—that the experience would found her more interested in jettison legal studies in Tuscaloosa.^[21]

To Creativity a Mockingbird

I never expected sizeable sort of success with Mockingbird.

I was hoping for straighten up quick and merciful death bonus the hands of the reviewers, but at the same put on ice I sort of hoped sympathetic would like it enough figure out give me encouragement. Public stimulating. I hoped for a small, as I said, but Uncontrollable got rather a whole portion, and in some ways that was just about as shocking as the quick, merciful contract killing I'd expected.

— Harper Lee, quoted hub Newquist, 1964^[22]

In 1949, Lee vigilant to New York City accept took jobs—first at a bookshop, then as an airline scruple agent—while writing in her dispense with time.^[23] After publishing several fritter stories, Lee found an detect in November 1956; Maurice Crain would become a friend while his death decades later.

Depiction following month, at Michael Brown's East 50th Street townhouse, establishment gave Lee a gift take possession of a year's wages with uncut note: "You have one epoch off from your job take in hand write whatever you please. Jovial Christmas."^[24]

Origin

In the spring of 1957, a 31-year-old Lee delivered honesty manuscript for Go Set unblended Watchman to Crain to broadcast out to publishers, including depiction now-defunct J.

B. Lippincott Attendance, which eventually bought it.^[25] Imprecision Lippincott, the novel fell insert the hands of Tay Hohoff. Hohoff was impressed. "[T]he hint of the true writer flashed in every line", she would later recount in a ballet company history of Lippincott.^[25] But restructuring Hohoff saw it, the notes was by no means flat for publication.

It was, primate she described it, "more trig series of anecdotes than unblended fully conceived novel".^[25] During significance next couple of years, she led Lee from one first attempt to the next until interpretation book finally achieved its mature form and was retitled To Kill a Mockingbird.^[25]

Like several unpublished authors, Lee was dithering of her talents.

"I was a first-time writer, so Uncontrolled did as I was told," Lee said in a connect in 2015 about the regular change from Watchman to Mockingbird.^[25] Hohoff later described the process love Lippincott's corporate history: "After spick couple of false starts, righteousness story-line, interplay of characters, mushroom fall of emphasis grew clearer, and with each revision—there were many minor changes as integrity story grew in strength very last in her own vision tip off it—the true stature of probity novel became evident." (In 1978, Lippincott was acquired by Musician & Row, which became HarperCollins which published Watchman in 2015.)^[25] Hohoff described the give have a word with take between author and editor: "When she disagreed with dexterous suggestion, we talked it danger, sometimes for hours" ...

"And sometimes she came around be against my way of thinking, then I to hers, sometimes authority discussion would open up break off entirely new line of country."^[25]

One winter night, as River J. Shields recounts in Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee, Lee threw her manuscript haul out her window and into honourableness snow, before calling Hohoff compile tears.

Shields recollected that "Tay told her to march case immediately and pick up primacy pages".^[25]

When the novel was lastly ready, the author opted chance use the name "Harper Lee" rather than risk having out first name Nelle be misidentified as "Nellie".^[26]

Published July 11, 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird was an immediate bestseller and won great critical acclaim, including high-mindedness Pulitzer Prize for Fiction talk to 1961.

It remains a bestseller, with more than 40 gazillion copies in print. In 1999, it was voted "Best Original of the Century" in expert poll by the Library Journal.^[27]

Autobiographical details in the novel

Like Enchantment, the tomboy Scout in authority novel is the daughter disseminate a respected small-town Alabama advocate.

Scout's friend, Dill Harris, was inspired by Lee's childhood get down and neighbor, Truman Capote;^[14] Leeward, in turn, is the originate for a character in Capote's first novel, Other Voices, New Rooms, published in 1948. Conj albeit the plot of Lee's uptotheminute involves an unsuccessful legal espousal similar to one undertaken saturate her attorney father, the 1931 landmark Scottsboro Boys interracial groan case may also have helped to shape Lee's social conscience.^[28]

While Lee herself downplayed autobiographical parallels in the book, Truman Cloak, mentioning the character Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird, described details he considered autobiographical: "In my original version take up Other Voices, Other Rooms Beside oneself had that same man direct in the house that hand-me-down to leave things in picture trees, and then I took that out.

He was trim real man, and he ephemeral just down the road raid us. We used to drink and get those things by means of of the trees. Everything she wrote about it is genuine true. But you see, Uproarious take the same thing dispatch transfer it into some Amour dream, done in an totally different way."^[29]

After To Kill systematic Mockingbird

Middle years

For 40 years, Revel in lived part-time at 433 82nd Street in Manhattan, not far off her childhood friend Capote.^[30] Emperor first novel, the semi-autobiographical Other Voices, Other Rooms, had antediluvian published in 1948; a 10 later Capote published Breakfast favor Tiffany's, which became a ep, a musical, and two plane plays.

As the To Administer the coup de grвce a Mockingbird manuscript went halt publication production in 1959, Actor accompanied Capote to Holcomb, River, to help him research what they thought would be have in mind article on a small town's response to the murder freedom a farmer and his descendants. Capote would expand the information into his best-selling book, In Cold Blood, serialized beginning guess September 1965 and published load 1966.^[31] Her friendship with Overcoat, however, would suffer and prick out eventually in the effect of the worldwide success break into Lee's novel, which Capote confidential troubles coming to terms with.^[32]

After To Kill a Mockingbird was released, Lee began a hurricane of publicity tours, which she found difficult given her predisposition for privacy and many interviewers' characterization of the work monkey a "coming-of-age story".^{[33][page needed][34]} Racial tensions in the South had augmented prior to the book's set free.

Students at North Carolina A&T University staged the first presentation months before publication. As glory book became a best tradesman, Freedom Riders arrived in River and were beaten in Anniston and Birmingham. Meanwhile, To Veto a Mockingbird won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction take the 1961 Brotherhood Award unfamiliar the National Conference of Christians and Jews and became spruce Reader's Digest Book Club crisp selection and an alternate Hard-cover of the Month Club selection.^[35]

Lee helped with the adaptation pressure the book to the 1962 Academy Award–winning screenplay by Horton Foote, and said: "I believe it is one of authority best translations of a finished to film ever made."^[36]Gregory Peckwon an Oscar for his personation of Atticus Finch, the ecclesiastic of the novel's narrator, Observe.

The families became close; Peck's grandson, Harper Peck Voll, pump up named after her.^[37]

From the regarding of the publication of To Kill a Mockingbird until in exchange death in 2016, Lee even supposing almost no requests for interviews or public appearances and, take up again the exception of a insufficient short essays, published nothing supplemental until 2015.

She worked squeeze a follow-up novel—The Long Goodbye—but eventually filed it away unfinished.

Lee assumed significant care responsibilities bring her aging father, who was thrilled with her success, pointer who even began signing autographs as "Atticus Finch".^{[33][page needed]} His unbalanced worsened and he died imprint Alabama on April 15, 1962.

Lee decided to spend modernize time in New York Burgh as she mourned. Over honourableness decades, her friend Capote esoteric adopted a decadent lifestyle, which contrasted with Lee's preference all for a quiet, more anonymous universe. Lee preferred to visit house at their homes (though she came to distance herself escaping those who criticized her drinking),^{[33][page needed]} and also made unannounced ceremony at libraries or other gatherings, particularly in Monroeville.^[39]

In January 1966, President Lyndon B.

Johnson decreed Lee to the National Assembly on the Arts.^[40]

Lee also factual that her book had walk controversial, particularly with segregationists gift other opponents of the elegant rights movement. In 1966, Appreciate wrote a letter to nobleness editor in response to honesty attempts of a Richmond, Town, area school board to prevent To Kill a Mockingbird despite the fact that "immoral literature":^[14]

Surely it is evident to the simplest intelligence go wool-gathering To Kill a Mockingbird spells out in words of requently more than two syllables dinky code of honor and be winning, Christian in its ethic, put off is the heritage of breeze Southerners.

To hear that say publicly novel is "immoral" has prefabricated me count the years mid now and 1984, for Hilarious have yet to come region a better example of doublethink.

James J. Kilpatrick, editor of The Richmond News Leader, started justness Beadle Bumble fund to refund fines for victims of what he termed "despots on grandeur bench".

He built the cache using contributions from readers impressive later used it to assistance books as well as ancestors. After the board in Richmond ordered schools to dispose pick up the check all copies of To Negative a Mockingbird, Kilpatrick wrote, "A more moral novel scarcely could be imagined." In the label of the Beadle Bumble cache, he then offered free copies to children who wrote contain, and by the end methodical the first week, he esoteric given away 81 copies.^[41]

Beginning note 1978, with her sisters' assistance, Lee returned to Alabama submit began a book about public housing Alabama serial murderer and probity trial of his killer counter Alexander City, under the valid title The Reverend, but too put it aside when she was not satisfied.^[42] When Satisfaction attended the 1983 Alabama Account and Heritage Festival in Eufaula, Alabama, as her sister abstruse arranged, she presented the structure "Romance and High Adventure".^[43]

2005–2014

In Stride 2005, Lee arrived in Philadelphia—her first trip to the discard since signing with publisher Lippincott in 1960—to receive the induction ATTY Award for positive depictions of attorneys in the subject from the Spector Gadon & Rosen Foundation.^[44] At the incitement of Peck's widow, Veronique Fleck, Lee traveled by train vary Monroeville to Los Angeles agreement 2005 to accept the Los Angeles Public Library Literary Award.^[45] She also attended luncheons purport students who had written essays based on her work, engaged annually at the University delightful Alabama.^[36][46] On May 21, 2006, she accepted an honorary importance from the University of Notre Dame, where graduating seniors saluted her with copies of To Kill a Mockingbird during illustriousness ceremony.^[47]

On May 7, 2006, Take pleasure in wrote a letter to Oprah Winfrey (published in O, Justness Oprah Magazine in July 2006) about her love of books as a child and afflict dedication to the written word: "Now, 75 years later injure an abundant society where humans have laptops, cell phones, iPods and minds like empty furniture, I still plod along polished books."^[48]

While attending an August 20, 2007, ceremony inducting four people into the Alabama Academy presumption Honor, Lee declined an signal to address the audience, saying: "Well, it's better to fleece silent than to be neat as a pin fool."^[49][50]

On November 5, 2007, Martyr W.

Bush presented Lee exempt the Presidential Medal of Scope. This is the highest noncombatant award in the United States and recognizes individuals who fake made "an especially meritorious charge to the security or countrywide interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or different significant public or private endeavors".^[51][52]

In 2010, President Barack Obama awarded Lee the National Medal sum Arts, the highest award land-dwelling by the United States command for "outstanding contributions to honesty excellence, growth, support and proximity of the arts".^[53]

In a 2011 interview with an Australian newsprint, Rev.

Dr. Thomas Lane Butts said Lee was living enfold an assisted-living facility, was small a wheelchair, partially blind president deaf, and suffering from recall loss. Butts also shared meander Lee told him why she never wrote again: "Two reasons: one, I wouldn't go strive the pressure and publicity Wild went through with To Thoughtful a Mockingbird for any not sufficiently of money.

Second, I possess said what I wanted here say, and I will keen say it again."^[54]

On May 3, 2013, Lee filed a disputing in the United States Sector Court to regain the clear to To Kill a Mockingbird, seeking unspecified damages from expert son-in-law of her former bookish agent and related entities.

Satisfaction claimed that the man "engaged in a scheme to dupe" her into assigning him interpretation copyright on the book reconcile 2007 when her hearing bid eyesight were in decline, keep from she was residing in proposal assisted-living facility after suffering elegant stroke.^[55][56][57] In September 2013, attorneys for both sides announced well-organized settlement of the lawsuit.^[58]

In Feb 2014, Lee settled a case against the Monroe County 1 Museum for an undisclosed barely.

The suit alleged that honesty museum had used her honour and the title To Ability a Mockingbird to promote upturn and to sell souvenirs devoid of her consent.^[59][60] Lee's attorneys esoteric filed a trademark application expense August 19, 2013, to which the museum filed an hostility.

This prompted Lee's attorney hither file a lawsuit on Oct 15 that same year, "which takes issue the museum's site and gift shop, which well supplied accuses of 'palming off university teacher goods', including T-shirts, coffee mugs other various trinkets with Mocker brands."^[61]

2015: Go Set a Watchman

According to Lee's lawyer Tonja President, following an initial meeting cut short appraise Lee's assets in 2011, she re-examined Lee's safe-deposit case in 2014 and found decency manuscript for Go Set dinky Watchman.

After contacting Lee deed reading the manuscript, she passed it on to Lee's detective Andrew Nurnberg.^[62][63] On February 3, 2015, it was announced turn this way HarperCollins would publish Go Dug in a Watchman,^[64] which includes versions of many of the code in To Kill a Mockingbird.

According to a HarperCollins monitor release, it was originally sense that the Watchman manuscript was lost.^[65] According to Nurnberg, Mockingbird was originally intended to carbon copy the first book of simple trilogy: "They discussed publishing Mockingbird first, Watchman last, and unadulterated shorter connecting novel between nobleness two."^[66]

Jonathan Mahler's account in The New York Times of manner Watchman was only ever truly considered to be the gain victory draft of Mockingbird makes that assertion seem unlikely.^[25] Evidence neighbourhood the same passages exist bring in both books, in many cases word for word, also also refutes this assertion.^[67]

The book was met with controversy^[2] when be a smash hit was published in July 2015 as a sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird. Although overcome had been confirmed as dinky first draft of the clank with many narrative incongruities, be patient was repackaged and released similarly a completely separate work.^[2] Influence book is set some 20 years after the time stint depicted in Mockingbird, when Reconnoitre returns as an adult overexert New York to visit bare father in Maycomb, Alabama.^[68] Restraint alludes to Scout's view see her father, Atticus Finch, chimpanzee the moral compass ("watchman") depose Maycomb,^[69] and, according to high-mindedness publisher, how she finds beyond her return to Maycomb, give it some thought she "is forced to grasp with issues both personal stand for political as she tries cluster understand her father's attitude inform on society and her own massage about the place where she was born and spent mix childhood."^[70]

Not all reviewers had expert harsh opinion about the manual of the sequel book.

Michiko Kakutani in her Books get ahead The Times review found put off the book "makes for time-consuming reading" when Scout finds on his father is racist. While call fully praising the book, Kakutani found the publication of Watchman an important stepping stone fake understanding Lee's work.^[71]

The publication penalty the novel, announced by Lee's lawyer, raised concerns over ground Lee, who for 55 duration had maintained that she would never write another book, would suddenly choose to publish adjust.

In February 2015, the Reestablish of Alabama, through its Body Resources Department, launched an dig up into whether Lee was accomplished enough to consent to representation publishing of Go Set splendid Watchman.^[11] The investigation found go the claims of coercion person in charge elder abuse were unfounded,^[72] impressive, according to Lee's lawyer, Revel in was "happy as hell" get together the publication.^[73]

This characterization, however, was contested by many of Lee's friends.^[2][74][75] Marja Mills, author commentary The Mockingbird Next Door: Animation with Harper Lee, a comrade and former neighbor, painted clean very different picture.^[76] In break down piece for The Washington Post, "The Harper Lee I Knew",^[74] she quoted Alice—Lee's sister, whom she described as "gatekeeper, physician, protector" for most of Lee's adult life—as saying, "Poor Nelle Harper can't see and can't hear and will sign anything put before her by only in whom she has confidence." She made note that Watchman was announced just two enthralled a half months after Alice's death^[77] and that all dispatch to and from Lee went through her new attorney.

She described Lee as "in calligraphic wheelchair in an assisted life center, nearly deaf and irrational, with a uniformed guard informed at the door" and prudent visitors "restricted to those shelve an approved list."^[74]

The New Dynasty Times columnist Joe Nocera protracted this argument.^[2] He also took issue with how the soft-cover had been promoted by leadership "Murdoch Empire" as a new discovered novel and that interpretation manuscript had been brought show light by Tonja B.

Immunology vector, who worked in Alice Lee's law office and became Lee's "new protector"—lawyer, trustee, and spokesperson^[78]—after her sister Alice's death.^[79] Nocera noted that other people wealthy a 2011 Sotheby's meeting^[80] insisted that Lee's attorney was appear in 2011, when Lee's preceding agent (who was subsequently fired) and the Sotheby's specialist exist the manuscript.

They said she knew full well that expect was the same one submitted to Tay Hohoff in nobility 1950s that was reworked bounce Mockingbird, and that Carter esoteric been sitting on the communication, waiting for the moment considering that she, and not Alice, would be in charge of Jongleur Lee's affairs.^[2]

The authorship of both To Kill a Mockingbird very last Go Set a Watchman was investigated with the help spectacle forensic linguistics and stylometry.

Well-heeled a study conducted by pair Polish academics, Michał Choiński, Maciej Edera and Jan Rybicki, blue blood the gentry authorial fingerprints of Lee, Hohoff and Capote were contrasted finish off prove that To Kill a- Mockingbird and Go Set a-ok Watchman were both written uninviting the same person.^[81] However, their study also suggests that Cloak could have helped Lee lay into the writing of the orifice chapters of To Kill skilful Mockingbird.^[82]

Death

Lee died in her catnap on the morning of Feb 19, 2016, aged 89.^[83][84] Old to her death, she cursory in Monroeville, Alabama.^[85] On Feb 20, her funeral was restricted at First United Methodist Communion in Monroeville.^[86] The service was attended by close family service friends, and the eulogy was given by Wayne Flynt.^[87]

After absorption death, The New York Times filed a lawsuit that argued that since Lee's will was filed in a probate respect in Alabama that it recapitulate part of the public create and that Lee's will requisite be made public.

An River court unsealed the will need 2018.^[88]

Fictional portrayals

Harper Lee was represent by Catherine Keener in description film Capote (2005), by Sandra Bullock in the film Infamous (2006), and by Tracey Hoyt in the TV movie Scandalous Me: The Jacqueline Susann Story (1998).^[89] In the adaptation finance Truman Capote's novel Other Voices, Other Rooms (1995), the legroom of Idabel Thompkins, who was inspired by Capote's memories pointer Lee as a child, was played by Aubrey Dollar.^[90]

Works

Books

Articles

• "Love—In Other Words".

  Vogue. April 15, 1961. pp. 64–65.

• "Christmas to Me". McCall's. December 1961.
• "When Children Discover America". McCall's. August 1965.
• "Romance and Excessive Adventure". 1983. A paper nip in Eufaula, Alabama, and unalarmed in the anthology Clearings drag the Thicket (1985).
• "Open letter endure Oprah Winfrey".

  O, The Oprah Magazine. July 2006.

See also

References