Davis Alexander Grubb (July 23, 1919 – July 24, 1980) was an American

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire ...

and

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

writer, best known for his 1953 novel '' The Night of the Hunter'', which was adapted as a film in 1955 by

Charles Laughton Charles Laughton (1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was a British actor. He was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play with his future ...

Biography

Born in

Moundsville, West Virginia Moundsville is a city in Marshall County, West Virginia, United States, along the Ohio River. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia metropolitan area. The population was 8,122 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Marshall County. T ...

, Grubb wanted to combine his creative skills as a

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...

with writing, and attended the

Carnegie Institute of Technology Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technolog ...

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. However, his

color blind Color blindness or color vision deficiency (CVD) is the decreased ability to see color or differences in color. It can impair tasks such as selecting ripe fruit, choosing clothing, and reading traffic lights. Color blindness may make some aca ...

ness was a handicap he could not overcome and he gave up on painting to dedicate himself to writing

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a tradi ...

. He did, however, make a number of drawings and sketches during the course of his career, some of which were incorporated into his writings. In 1940, Grubb moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

where he worked at

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

radio as a writer while using his free time to write short stories. In the mid-1940s he was successful in selling several short stories to major magazines and in the early 1950s he started writing a full-length novel. Influenced by accounts of economic hardship by depression-era Americans that his mother had seen firsthand as a

social worker Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

, Grubb produced a dark tale that mixed the plight of poor children and adults with that of the evil inflicted by others. '' The Night of the Hunter'' became an instant

bestseller A bestseller is a book or other media noted for its top selling status, with bestseller lists published by newspapers, magazines, and book store chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and specialties (novel, nonfiction book, co ...

and was voted a finalist for the 1955

National Book Award The National Book Awards are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. The Nat ...

. That same year, the book was made into a

motion picture A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

that is now regarded as a classic. Deemed "culturally significant" by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The libra ...

, the film was selected for preservation in the United States

National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception ...

. Grubb went on to write a further nine novels and several collections of short stories. His 1969 novel '' Fools' Parade'' would also be made into a motion picture starring

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality ...

. Some of Grubb's short stories were adapted for television by

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

and by

Rod Serling Rodman Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was an American screenwriter, playwright, television producer, and narrator/on-screen host, best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his anthology television series ...

for his ''

Night Gallery ''Night Gallery'' is an American anthology television series that aired on NBC from December 16, 1970, to May 27, 1973, featuring stories of horror and the macabre. Rod Serling, who had gained fame from an earlier series, ''The Twilight Zone ...

'' series. Grubb died in New York City in 1980. His novel ''

Ancient Lights Right to light is a form of easement in English law that gives a long-standing owner of a building with windows a right to maintain an adequate level of illumination (lighting), illumination. The right was traditionally known as the doctrine of " ...

'' was published posthumously in 1982, and St. Martins Press published 18 of his short stories in a book collection titled ''You Never Believe Me and Other Stories'' in 1989.

Bibliography

Novels

*'' The Night of the Hunter'' (1953) *'' A Dream of Kings'' (1955) *''The Watchman'' (1961) *''

The Voices of Glory ''The Voices of Glory'' is a 1962 novel by American author Davis Grubb. Story line and development The novel, a collection of twenty-eight short stories, concerns Marcy Cresap, a social worker and reformer in the town of Glory, West Virginia. I ...

'' (1962) *'' A Tree Full of Stars'' (1965) *'' Shadow of My Brother'' (1966) *''The Golden Sickle'' (1968) *''Fools' Parade'' (1969) *'' The Barefoot Man'' (1971) *''Ancient Lights'' (1982)

Story Collections

*''Twelve Tales of Suspense and the Supernatural'' (UK title: ''

One Foot in the Grave ''One Foot in the Grave'' is a British television sitcom written by David Renwick. There were six series (each consisting of six half-hour shows) and seven Christmas specials over a period of ten years from early 1990 to late 2000. The first fi ...

'') (1964) *''The Siege of 318: Thirteen Mystical Stories'' (1978) *''You Never Believe Me and Other Stories'' (1989)

References

External links