Edward "Ned" Salisbury Field Jr. (February 28, 1878 – September 20, 1936) was an American author, playwright, artist, poet, and journalist.

Biography

He was born on February 28, 1878 in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of U.S. state and territorial capitals, state capital and List of U.S. states' largest cities by population, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat, seat of ...

to Edward Salisbury and Sarah Mills Hubbard Field. He was the husband of

Isobel Osbourne Isobel "Belle" Osbourne Strong Field (September 18, 1858 – June 26, 1953) was an author and the daughter of Fanny Stevenson and sister of Lloyd Osbourne. Through her mother's second marriage, she was a stepdaughter of Robert Louis Stevenson. B ...

(the step-daughter of

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as '' Treasure Island'', '' Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...

) and he was step-father of playwright Austin Strong (Isobel's son from a former marriage). Field was an employee and friend of

William Randolf Hearst William Randolph Hearst Sr. (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American businessman, newspaper publisher, and politician known for developing the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His flamboyan ...

where he made drawings for Hearst newspapers, signing his drawings with the

nom de plume A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

, Childe Harold. As a young news man in his 20s, Field became the secretary, protégé, and possibly lover of

Fanny Stevenson Frances "Fanny" Matilda Van de Grift Osbourne Stevenson (10 March 1840 – 18 February 1914) was an American magazine writer. She became a supporter and later the wife of Robert Louis Stevenson, and the mother of Isobel Osbourne, Samuel Lloyd O ...

(who was 38 years older), after the death of her husband

. After Fanny's death in 1914, Field married her daughter,

, who was 20 years his senior. Field became a successful Southern California real estate developer. In the 1920s, oil was discovered on some of his property which made them wealthy. In 1926, Field purchased Zaca Lake and surrounding land on

Figueroa Mountain Figueroa Mountain is a summit in Santa Barbara County in the U.S. state of California. It is in the San Rafael Mountains, part of the Transverse Ranges group of ranges. The mountain is located in Los Padres National Forest. Figueroa Mountain wa ...

near

Los Olivos, California Los Olivos (; Spanish for "the olive trees") is an unincorporated community in the Santa Ynez Valley of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tourism is popular in this rural area which is an agricultural region with an emphasis on w ...

. His wife, Isobel, built an artists studio there, and the Field home became a popular meeting place for writers and actors. Field's best known works were the film scripts for ''Wedding Bells'' (based on his play of the same name) and ''Twin Beds'' (based on a novel and subsequent play). The

screwball comedy Screwball comedy is a subgenre of the romantic comedy genre that became popular during the Great Depression, beginning in the early 1930s and thriving until the early 1940s, that satirizes the traditional love story. It has secondary characterist ...

novel ''Twin Beds'' (1913) was filmed four times; as '' Twin Beds'' in 1920 starring Carter and

Flora Parker DeHaven Flora Parker DeHaven (September 1, 1883 – September 9, 1950) was an American actress. Flora Parker, who was a Paramount-Artcraft co-star with her husband, Carter DeHaven, was born at Perth Amboy, New Jersey. Early in life, she displayed ...

; '' Twin Beds'' in 1929 starring

Jack Mulhall John Joseph Francis Mulhall (October 7, 1887 – June 1, 1979) was an American film actor beginning in the silent film era who successfully transitioned to sound films, appearing in over 430 films in a career spanning 50 years. Early years Mu ...

; as ''The Life of the Party'' in 1934; and as '' Twin Beds'' in 1942 with

George Brent George Brent (born George Brendan Nolan; 15 March 1904 – 26 May 1979) was an Irish-American stage, film, and television actor. He is best remembered for the eleven films he made with Bette Davis, which included ''Jezebel'' and '' Dark Victor ...

and

Joan Bennett Joan Geraldine Bennett (February 27, 1910 – December 7, 1990) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She came from a show-business family, one of three acting sisters. Beginning her career on the stage, Bennett appeared in more t ...

. It was also adapted to stage, co-written with Margaret Mayo.Twin Beds
at

The Neglected Books Page ''The Neglected Books Page'' is a book review website. The site features reviews of books that have been, according to the site, "neglected, overlooked, forgotten, or stranded by changing tides in critical or popular taste." The site was founded i ...

, February 2011 Field died September 20, 1936 at Zaca Lake, of an apparent heart attack while taking a nap. He was 58 years old.

Bibliography

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Notes

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Field, Edward Salisbury 1878 births 1936 deaths Writers from Indianapolis Robert Louis Stevenson American male novelists Novelists from Indiana