Lillian began her career in Hollywood as a
reader for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, otherwise known as MGM. This consisted of reading novels and other
literature to then summarize them for potential screenplays. She then met Dashiell Hammett and divorced
her husband. In 1932 she came back to
New York City and continued her affair with Hammett, who was 12 years older
than her at the time.
Hellman’s first hit play, The Children’s Hour, was written and
staged on Broadway in 1934. The play’s
subject matter dealt with homosexuality, which at the time was illegal to put
on stage. But because of the play’s
success this law was not enforced.
Lillian Hellman’s other notable pieces
include Days to Come, The Little Foxes,
Watch on the Rhine, Another Part of the Forest, and The Autumn Garden. Hellman
later combined these plays into one collective book with the fitting title, Six Plays By Lillian Hellman.
Lillian died in 1984 at the age of 79, still
travelling, lecturing and promoting her political beliefs.
Lillian seemed to have quite the exciting life as a young woman. One thing I found interesting was her move back to New York City. Was this strictly for reasons of the heart or did she miss the theatre scene? Also, I wondered why someone who was working with screenplays and doing work out in Hollywood, would go back to the theatre, with what seems to me as almost no theatre experience.
ReplyDeleteIt seems Lilian is a brave woman who dare to pursue love she wants. I am curious if there is any interview about her perspective to marriage and love? I always trust women in any time have self-struggle in pursuing love, freedom, and respect. For Lilian, a woman who walks far ahead of time, how does she evaluate her own life at her late age?
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