Richard Watts Jr. (1898–1981) was an American
theatre
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
critic.
Born in
Parkersburg, West Virginia, Watts was educated at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
. He began his writing career as the film critic for the ''
New York Herald Tribune'' before assuming the post of the newspaper's drama critic in 1936.
After spending
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 opposing ...
in
China as a
war correspondent, Watts became the theatre critic for the ''
New York Post
The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com.
It was established ...
'', a position he held until a few years prior to his death from
cardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and poss ...
. For the ''Post'' he also wrote a regular column entitled "Random Notes on This and That."
External links
New York Times funeral notice
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watts, Richard, Jr.
1898 births
1981 deaths
People from Parkersburg, West Virginia
Columbia University alumni
American theater critics
New York Herald Tribune people
New York Post people