Martin Archer Flavin (November 2, 1883 – December 27, 1967) was an American playwright and novelist. His novel '' Journey in the Dark'' received both the

Harper Prize The Harper Novel Prize was an award presented by Harper Brothers, an American publishing company located in New York City. The award was presented to the best novel by an "a writer who hitherto had not found a wide audience". A number of the awa ...

for 1943 and a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

for 1944. His play ''The Criminal Code'' was produced on Broadway in 1929, and it was the basis for the movie ''

The Criminal Code ''The Criminal Code'' is a 1931 American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code Romance film, romantic Crime film, crime Drama (film and television), drama film directed by Howard Hawks and starring Walter Huston and Phillips Holmes. The screenplay, base ...

.'' In all, he had eleven plays on Broadway between 1923 and 1937.

Early life

Flavin was born on November 2, 1883, in San Francisco, California. His father was Franklin James Kelley Sr (1858–1924) and his mother was Louise Ann Archer (1863–1952). He grew up in Chicago and was a

Sigma Chi Sigma Chi () International Fraternity is one of the largest North American social Fraternities and sororities, fraternities. The fraternity has 244 active undergraduate chapters and 152 alumni chapters across the United States and Canada and has ...

at the University of Chicago, which he attended from 1903 to 1905. He was an army cavalryman during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, and he enjoyed riding horses for most of his life. Flavin was married three times: to Daphne Virginia Springer on November 14, 1914, in

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County, Illinois, Will County. It had a population of ...

, Sarah Keese Arnold in 1919, and Cornelia Clampett in 1949. He had three children.

Career

Flavin left college to work as a reporter on a Chicago newspaper. He then took over the family's business called the American Wallpaper Company. He wrote plays while working there. He moved to

Carmel-by-the-Sea, California Carmel-by-the-Sea (), commonly known simply as Carmel, is a city in Monterey County, California, located on the Central Coast of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 3,220, down from 3,722 a ...

, in the 1920s. He and playwrights Perry Newberry, and

Ira Remsen Ira Remsen (February 10, 1846 – March 4, 1927) was an American chemist who introduced organic chemistry research and education in the United States along the lines of German universities where he received his early training. He was the first pr ...

produced original dramas at the Carmel Arts and Crafts Club theater at that time. Flavin then won a

for his play ''The Criminal Code.'' By 1929, he had three plays running on Broadway. He wrote the novel '' Journey in the Dark,'' which received both the Harper Prize in 1943 and a

in 1944. He was the oldest writer to win the $10,000 Harper prize. Other novels included ''Mr. Littlejohn'' (1940), ''Corporal Cat'' (1941), ''The Enchanted'' (1947), ''Cameron Hill'' (1957), ''Black and White'' (1950), and ''Red Poppies and White Marble'' (1962). Flavin's play ''Broken Dishes ''(1929), which premiered on Broadway in 1930, served as the foundation for several screen adaptations. It was adapted into the 1931 film '' Too Young to Marry'', the 1936 film ' Love Begins at 20'' (also known as "All One Night"), and the 1940 film ''

Calling All Husbands ''Calling All Husbands'' is a 1940 American comedy film directed by Noel M. Smith and written by Robert E. Kent and based on Martin Flavin's 1929 play "Broken Dishes". The film stars George Tobias, Lucile Fairbanks, Ernest Truex, George R ...

.'' Additionally, it was adapted for television as an episode of the '

Pulitzer Prize Playhouse ''Pulitzer Prize Playhouse'' is an American drama anthology television series which offered adaptations of Pulitzer Prize-winning plays, novels, and stories. The journalist Elmer Davis was the host and narrator of this 1950–1952 ABC series. ...

'' in 1951. Flavin moved to Carmel Highlands during the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

to build a home on Yankee Point south of

Point Lobos Point Lobos and the Point Lobos State Natural Reserve is a state park in California. Adjoining Point Lobos is "one of the richest marine habitats in California". The ocean habitat is protected by two marine protected areas, the Point Lobos Sta ...

. He also owned a ranch in the Cachagua area in upper

Carmel Valley, California Carmel Valley is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community in Monterey County, California, United States. The term "Carmel Valley" generally refers to the Carmel River (California), Carmel River watershed east of California ...

Death

Flavin died at the Carmel Community Hospital on December 27, 1967, in Carmel-by-the-Sea at age 84.

Novels

* ''Mr. Littlejohn'' (1940) * ''Corporal Cat'' (1941) * ''Journey in the Dark'' (1943) * ''The Enchanted'' (1947) * ''Cameron Hill'' (1957)

Non-fiction

''Black and White: From the Cape to the Congo'' (1950)
* ''Red Poppies and White Marble'' (1962)

Plays

* ''Children of the Moon'' (1923, produced on Broadway 1923) * ''Emergency Case'' (1923) * ''Caleb Stone's Death Watch'' (1923, produced on Broadway 1924) * ''Achilles Had a Heel'' (1924, produced on Broadway 1935) * ''Lady of the Rose'' (1925, produced on Broadway 1925) * ''Service for Two'' (1926, produced on Broadway 1926) * ''Brains'' (1926, produced on Broadway 1926) * ''The Criminal Code'' (1929, produced on Broadway 1929), the basis for several motion pictures: the

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...

film of the same name (1931), the Spanish-language version ''El Código penal'' shot simultaneously on the same sets, the 1933 French film ''Criminel'' and two Columbia Pictures remakes: ''

Penitentiary A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state, usually ...

'' (1938) and ''

Convicted In law, a conviction is the determination by a court of law that a defendant is guilty of a crime. A conviction may follow a guilty plea that is accepted by the court, a jury trial in which a verdict of guilty is delivered, or a trial by jud ...

'' (1950). * ''Broken Dishes'' (1929, produced on Broadway 1930) * ''Crossroads'' (1929, produced on Broadway 1929), the basis for the 1932 motion picture '' The Age of Consent'' * ''Tapestry in Gray'' (1935, produced on Broadway 1935) * ''Around the Corner'' (1936, produced on Broadway 1936)

Screenplays

* '' The Big House'' (1930, additional dialogue) * ''

Passion Flower ''Passiflora'', known also as the passion flowers or passion vines, is a genus of about 550 species of flowering plants, the type genus of the family Passifloraceae. ''Passiflora'' species are widely cultivated for their striking flowers, fla ...

'' (1930, adaptation of novel by Kathleen Norris) * ''Laughing Sinners'' (1931, dialogue, uncredited, a.k.a. ''Complete Surrender'') * ''Three Who Loved'' (1931)

References

External links

* *
Photos of the first edition of ''Journey in the Dark''
* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Flavin, Martin 1883 births 1967 deaths 20th-century American novelists American male screenwriters Writers from San Francisco Pulitzer Prize for the Novel winners American male novelists 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights University of Chicago alumni American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers Screenwriters from California Writers from Carmel-by-the-Sea, California 20th-century American screenwriters