S.S. Van Dine
S. S. Van Dine is the pseudonym used by American art critic Willard Huntington Wright (October 15, 1888 – April 11, 1939) when he wrote detective novels. Wright was an important figure in avant-garde cultural circles in pre-WWI New York, and under the pseudonym (which he originally used to conceal his identity) he created the once immensely popular fictional detective Philo Vance, a sleuth and aesthete who first appeared in books in the 1920s, then in movies and on the radio. Willard Huntington Wright was born to Archibald Davenport Wright and Annie Van Vranken Wright on October 15, 1888, in Charlottesville, Virginia. His younger brother, Stanton Macdonald-Wright, became a respected painter and one of the first American abstract artists, founder of the school of modern art known as "Synchromism". Willard and Stanton were raised in Santa Monica, California, where their father owned a hotel. Willard, a largely self-taught writer, attended St. Vincent College, Pomona College, andHarvard University without graduating. In 1907, he married Katharine Belle Boynton of Seattle, Washington; they had one child, Beverley. After divorcing Katharine, whom he had abandoned early in their marriage, he married for a second time in October 1930. His second wife was Eleanor Rulapaugh, known professionally as Claire De Lisle, a portrait painter and socialite.
Known for
WritingBirthday
October 15, 1888Deathday
April 11, 1939Gender
MaleKnown Movie Credits
26Also known as
Willard Huntington WrightCrew credits
The Bishop Murder Case
NovelThe Dragon Murder Case
NovelThe Gracie Allen Murder Case
StoryThe Kennel Murder Case
WriterThe Casino Murder Case
NovelThe Garden Murder Case
NovelCalling Philo Vance
NovelThe Wall Street Mystery
WriterThe Studio Murder Mystery
WriterThe Skull Murder Mystery
NovelThe Week End Mystery
WriterThe Canary Murder Case
NovelThe Benson Murder Case
NovelThe Greene Murder Case
NovelPhilo Vance Returns
CharactersThe Symphony Murder Mystery
CharactersNight of Mystery
Novel