Jump to content

Richard Walton Tully

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Richard Walton Tully
From a 1921 magazine
BornMay 7, 1877
DiedFebruary 1, 1945(1945-02-01) (aged 67)
NationalityAmerican
EducationUniversity of California
OccupationPlaywright
SpouseEleanor Gates[1]

Richard Walton Tully (May 7, 1877 – February 1, 1945) was an American playwright.

Biography

[edit]

Tully was born on May 7, 1877, in Nevada City, California. Tully was married to another playwright Eleanor Gates until he divorced her in 1914.[1]

His best known work was the 1912 play The Bird of Paradise,[2] which caused a long-running court case over alleged plagiarism. A schoolteacher named Grace Fender was initially successful in persuading the court that Tully's play was based on her play In Hawaii, however the case was reversed on appeal.[3]

Tully retired to breed horses. He died on February 1, 1945, in New York City at the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center.[4]

Filmography

[edit]

Screenwriter

[edit]

References

[edit]
A 1916 advertisement for the famous play Bird of Paradise. The 1912 Broadway show popularized Hawaiian music to Americans.
  1. ^ a b "R.W. Tully Seeks Divorce. Playwright Sues Eleanor Gates on Ground of Desertion". New York Times. March 24, 1914. Retrieved October 16, 2010.
  2. ^ "The Bird of Paradise: A Broadway Show – Hawai'i Digital Newspaper Project".
  3. ^ Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Tully, Richard Walton" The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Retrieved October 16, 2010 from Encyclopedia.com:
  4. ^ "Richard W. Tully, Dramatist, is Dead; Author of 'Bird of Paradise,' Was the Victor in Notable Plagiarism Suit Here Law Career Put Aside Decision Is Reversed". New York Times. February 2, 1945. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
[edit]