Clinton Foster Larson (1919–1994) was an American poet and playwright and the founding editor of ''

BYU Studies ''BYU Studies Quarterly'' is an academic journal covering a broad array of topics related to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ( Mormon studies). It is published by the church-owned Brigham Young University. The journal is abstracted ...

''. Larson was born in

American Fork, Utah American Fork is a city in north-central Utah County, Utah, United States, at the foot of Mount Timpanogos in the Wasatch Range, north from Utah Lake. This city is thirty-two miles southeast of Salt Lake City. It is part of the Provo–Ore ...

to Clinton Larson and his wife, the former Lillian Foster. Larson started college at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

at age 16 with plans to study medicine. However, he had an English class with

Brewster Ghiselin Brewster Ghiselin (June 13, 1903 – June 11, 2002) was an American poet and academic. Ghiselin was born in Webster Groves, a suburb of St. Louis. The family home is at 29 Jefferson Road, now designated as a historic landmark. At the age of ...

who convinced him to that he had potential as a writer. He served as an LDS missionary in England and then in New England from 1939–41. In 1942 he married Naomi Barlow in the

Salt Lake Temple The Salt Lake Temple is a temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. At , it is the largest Latter-day Saint temple by floor area. Dedicated in 1893, it is the sixth temple ...

. Around this time he entered the

Army Air Corps Army Air Corps may refer to the following army aviation corps: * Army Air Corps (United Kingdom), the army aviation element of the British Army * Philippine Army Air Corps (1935–1941) * United States Army Air Corps (1926–1942), or its p ...

in which he served during the duration of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He completed his bachelor's degree at the University of Utah and later earned a master's degree from the same institution in 1948. He received a Ph.D. in English from the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private university, private research university in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1864, it is the oldest independent private university in the Mountain States, Rocky Mountain Region of the United States. It is ...

. Larson was professor at

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

. In the early 1970s he was made BYU's first poet-in-residence. Possibly Larson's most widely read work was his 16-volume text of the ''Illustrated Stories of the Book of Mormon'' published by Promised Land Publications.

Works

*''Coriantumer and Moroni'' (1962) *''The Mantle of the Prophet and Other Plays'' (1966) *''The Prophet'' (1971) *''Romaunt of the Rose: A Tapestry of Poems'' (1982) *''The Civil War Poems'' (1988) *''Homestead in Idaho'' (1989)

Sources

BYU Exhibit entry on Larson
*Neal E. Lambert. "Clinton F. Larson: I Miss His Booming Laugh" in ''

'' Vol. 49 (2010) no. 2, p. 178-183.
Mormon Literature Database entry for LarsonLael Woodbury, “Director’s Foreword to ‘The Mantle of the Prophet,’” BYU Studies Quarterly 2, no. 2 (April 1, 1960)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Larson, Clinton F. 1919 births 1994 deaths Latter Day Saints from Utah United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Brigham Young University faculty Latter Day Saint poets University of Denver alumni University of Utah alumni Editors of Latter Day Saint publications 20th-century American poets 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Latter Day Saints from Colorado Mormon playwrights