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Pearl Zane Grey (January 31, 1872 – October 23, 1939) was an American author and dentist. He is known for his popular adventure novels and stories associated with the
Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...
genre in literature and the arts; he idealized the
American frontier The American frontier, also known as the Old West, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the Geography of the United States, geography, History of the United States, history, Folklore of the United States, folklore, and Cultur ...
. '' Riders of the Purple Sage'' (1912) was his best-selling book. In addition to the success of his printed works, his books have second lives and continuing influence adapted for films and television. His novels and short stories were adapted into 112 films, two television episodes, and a television series, '' Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre''.Hulse 2007, pp. vii–x.


Biography


Early life

Pearl Zane Grey was born January 31, 1872, in
Zanesville, Ohio Zanesville is a city in Muskingum County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Located at the confluence of the Licking River (Ohio), Licking and Muskingum River, Muskingum rivers, the city is approximately east of Columbus, Ohio, Columb ...
. His birth name may have originated from newspaper descriptions of
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
's mourning clothes as "pearl grey". He was the fourth of five children born to Alice "Allie" Josephine Zane, whose English
Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...
immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...
ancestor Robert Zane came to the American colonies in 1673, and her husband, Lewis M. Gray, a dentist. His family changed the spelling of their last name to "Grey" after his birth. Grey later dropped "Pearl" and used "Zane" as his first name. Grey grew up in Zanesville, a city founded by his paternal grandfather Benjamin Zane's brother-in-law, John McIntire (husband of Sarah Zane), who had been given the land by Grey's maternal great-grandfather, Ebenezer Zane, an
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
patriot. Both Grey and his brother Romer were active and athletic boys who were enthusiastic baseball players and fishermen. From an early age, he was intrigued by history. Soon, he developed an interest in writing. His early interests contributed to his later writing success. For example, his knowledge of history informed his first three novels, which recounted the heroism of ancestors who fought in the American Revolutionary War. As a child, Grey frequently engaged in violent brawls, probably related to his father's punishing him with severe beatings. Though irascible and asocial like his father, Grey was supported by a loving mother and found a father substitute. Muddy Miser was an old man who approved of Grey's love of fishing and writing, and who talked about the advantages of an unconventional life. Despite warnings by Grey's father to steer clear of Miser, the boy spent much time during five formative years in the company of the old man. Grey was an avid reader of adventure stories such as ''
Robinson Crusoe ''Robinson Crusoe'' ( ) is an English adventure novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. Written with a combination of Epistolary novel, epistolary, Confessional writing, confessional, and Didacticism, didactic forms, the ...
'' and the '' Leatherstocking Tales'', as well as dime novels featuring Buffalo Bill and Deadwood Dick. He was enthralled by and crudely copied the great illustrators
Howard Pyle Howard Pyle (March 5, 1853 – November 9, 1911) was an American illustrator, Painting, painter, and author, primarily of books for young people. He was a native of Wilmington, Delaware, Wilmington, Delaware, and he spent the last year of his life ...
and Frederic Remington. He was particularly impressed with ''Our Western Border'', a history of the Ohio frontier that likely inspired his earliest novels. Grey wrote his first story, ''Jim of the Cave'', when he was fifteen. His father tore it to shreds and beat him. Because of the shame he felt as the result of a severe financial setback in 1889 due to a poor investment, Lewis Grey moved his family from Zanesville and started again in
Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...
. While his father struggled to re-establish his dental practice, Grey made rural house calls and performed basic extractions, which his father had taught him. The younger Grey practiced until the state board intervened. His brother Romer earned money by driving a delivery wagon.Gruber 1969, p. 26. Grey also worked as a part-time usher in a theater and played summer
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
for the Columbus Capitols, with aspirations of becoming a major leaguer. Eventually, Grey was spotted by a baseball scout and received offers from many colleges. Romer also attracted scouts' attention and went on to have a professional baseball career.


University of Pennsylvania and baseball

Grey chose the
University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
on a baseball
scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...
; he studied
dentistry Dentistry, also known as dental medicine and oral medicine, is the branch of medicine focused on the Human tooth, teeth, gums, and Human mouth, mouth. It consists of the study, diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases, dis ...
, joined
Sigma Nu Sigma Nu () is an undergraduate Fraternities and sororities in North America, college fraternity founded at the Virginia Military Institute in 1869. Since its founding, Sigma Nu has chartered more than 279 chapters across the United States and Ca ...
fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...
, and graduated in 1896. When he arrived at Penn, he had to prove himself worthy of a scholarship before receiving it. He rose to the occasion by coming in to pitch against the Riverton club, pitching five scoreless innings and producing a double in the tenth, which contributed to the win. The
Ivy League The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...
was highly competitive and an excellent training ground for future pro baseball players. Grey was a solid hitter and an excellent pitcher who relied on a sharply dropping curveball. When the distance from the pitcher's mound to the plate was lengthened by five feet to 60 feet 6 inches, in 1894 (primarily to reduce the dominance of
Cy Young Denton True "Cy" Young (March 29, 1867 – November 4, 1955) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Born in Gilmore, Ohio, he worked on his family's farm as a youth before starting his professional baseball career. Young entered t ...
's pitching), the effectiveness of Grey's pitching suffered. He was re-positioned to the outfield. The short, wiry baseball player remained a campus hero on the strength of his timely hitting.May 1997, p. 16. He was an indifferent scholar, barely achieving a minimum average. Outside class, he spent his time on baseball, swimming, and creative writing, especially poetry. His shy nature and his teetotaling set him apart from other students, and he socialized little. Grey struggled with the idea of becoming a writer or baseball player for his career, but unhappily concluded that dentistry was the practical choice. During a summer break, while playing "summer nines" in Delphos, Ohio, Grey was charged with, and quietly settled, a paternity suit. His father paid the $133.40 cost and Grey resumed playing summer baseball. He concealed the episode when he returned to Penn. Grey went on to play
minor league baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...
with several teams, including the
Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...
Colts in 1898 and also with the Orange Athletic Club for several years. His brother Romer Carl "Reddy" Grey (known as "R.C." to his family) did better and played professionally in the minor leagues. Zane Grey and Romer Grey played together as teammates for the 1895 Findlay Sluggers of the Interstate League. Romer played a single major league game in 1903 for the
Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...
.


Dentistry

After graduating, Grey established his practice in New York City under the name of Dr. Zane Grey in 1896. It was a competitive area but he wanted to be close to publishers. He began to write in the evening to offset the tedium of his dental practice.Gruber 1969, p. 35. He struggled financially and emotionally. Grey was a natural writer but his early efforts were stiff and grammatically weak. Whenever possible, he played baseball with the Orange Athletic Club in New Jersey, a team of former collegiate players that was one of the best amateur teams in the country. Grey often went camping with his brother R.C. in Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania, where they fished in the upper
Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...
. When canoeing in 1900, Grey met seventeen-year-old Lina Roth, better known as "Dolly." Dolly came from a family of physicians and was studying to be a schoolteacher.


Marriage and family

After a passionate and intense courtship marked by frequent quarrels, Grey and Dolly married five years later in 1905. Grey suffered bouts of depression, anger, and mood swings, which affected him most of his life. As he described it, "A hyena lying in ambush—that is my black spell! I conquered one mood only to fall prey to the next ... I wandered about like a lost soul or a man who was conscious of imminent death." During his courtship of Dolly, Grey still saw previous girlfriends and warned her frankly,
But I love to be free. I cannot change my spots. The ordinary man is satisfied with a moderate income, a home, wife, children, and all that. ... But I am a million miles from being that kind of man and no amount of trying will ever do any good ... I shall never lose the spirit of my interest in women.
After they married in 1905, Dolly gave up her teaching career. They moved to a farmhouse at the confluence of the Lackawaxen and Delaware rivers, in Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania, where Grey's mother and sister joined them. (This house, now preserved and operated as the Zane Grey Museum, is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
.) Grey finally ceased his dental practice to work full-time on his nascent literary pursuits. Dolly's inheritance provided an initial financial cushion.


Early writing career

While Dolly managed Grey's career and raised their three children, including son Romer Zane Grey, over the next two decades Grey often spent months away from the family. He fished, wrote, and spent time with his many mistresses. While Dolly knew of his behavior, she seemed to view it as his handicap rather than a choice. Throughout their life together, he highly valued her management of his career and their family, and her solid emotional support. In addition to her considerable editorial skills, she had good business sense and handled all his contract negotiations with publishers, agents, and movie studios. All of his income was split fifty-fifty with her; from her "share," she covered all family expenses. Their considerable correspondence shows evidence of his lasting love for her despite his infidelities and personal emotional turmoil. The Greys moved to California in 1918. In 1920 they settled in
Altadena, California Altadena () is an unincorporated area, and census-designated place in the San Gabriel Valley and the Verdugos regions of Los Angeles County, California. Directly north of Pasadena, California, Pasadena, it is located approximately from Downtow ...
, at a home later known as the '" Zane Grey Estate"'. The estate was destroyed in the January, 2025 Altadena Fire. In Altadena Grey also spent time with his mistress Brenda Montenegro. The two met while hiking Eaton Canyon. Of her he wrote,
I saw her flowing raven mane against the rocks of the canyon. I have seen the red skin of the
Navajo The Navajo or Diné are an Indigenous people of the Southwestern United States. Their traditional language is Diné bizaad, a Southern Athabascan language. The states with the largest Diné populations are Arizona (140,263) and New Mexico (1 ...
, and the olive of the Spaniards, but her ... her skin looked as if her Creator had in that instant molded her just for me. I thought it was an apparition. She seemed to be the embodiment of the West I portray in my books, open and wild.
Grey summed up his feelings for the city: "In Altadena, I have found those qualities that make life worth living." With the help of Dolly's proofreading and copy editing, Grey gradually improved his writing. His first magazine article, "A Day on the Delaware," a human-interest story about a Grey brothers' fishing expedition, was published in the May 1902 issue of ''
Recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for happiness, enjoyment, amusement, ...
'' magazine. Elated at selling the article, Grey offered reprints to patients in his waiting room. In writing, Grey found temporary escape from the harshness of his life and his demons. "Realism is death to me. I cannot stand life as it is." By this time, he had given up baseball. Grey read
Owen Wister Owen Wister (July 14, 1860 – July 21, 1938) was an American writer. His novel ''The Virginian (novel), The Virginian'', published in 1902, helped create the cowboy as a folk hero in the United States and built Wister's reputation as the " ...
's great Western novel '' The Virginian''. After studying its style and structure in detail, he decided to write a full-length work.May 1997, p. 34. Grey had difficulties in writing his first novel, ''Betty Zane'' (1903). When it was rejected by Harper & Brothers, he lapsed into despair. The novel dramatized the heroism of an ancestor, Betty Zane who had saved Fort Henry. He self-published it, perhaps with funds provided by his wife Dolly or his brother R. C.'s wealthy girlfriend Reba Smith. From the beginning, vivid description was the strongest aspect of his writing. After attending a lecture in New York in 1907 at the Camp-Fire Club by Charles Jesse "Buffalo" Jones, western hunter and guide who had co-founded
Garden City, Kansas Garden City is a city in and the county seat of Finney County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 28,151. The city is home to Garden City Community College and the Lee Richa ...
, Grey arranged for a
mountain lion The cougar (''Puma concolor'') (, ''Help:Pronunciation respelling key, KOO-gər''), also called puma, mountain lion, catamount and panther is a large small cat native to the Americas. It inhabits North America, North, Central America, Cent ...
-hunting trip to the North Rim of the
Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a mile (). The canyon and adjacent rim are contained within Grand Canyon Nati ...
. He brought along a camera to document his trips and prove his adventures. He also began the habit of taking copious notes, not only of scenery and activities but of dialogue. His first two trips were arduous, but Grey learned much from his companions on these adventures. He gained the confidence to write convincingly about the American West, its characters, and its landscape. Treacherous river crossings, unpredictable beasts, bone-chilling cold, searing heat, parching thirst, bad water, irascible tempers, and heroic cooperation all became real to him. He wrote, "Surely, of all the gifts that have come to me from contact with the West, this one of sheer love of wildness, beauty, color, grandeur, has been the greatest, the most significant for my work."May 1997, p. 52. Upon returning home in 1909, Grey wrote a new novel, ''The Last of the Plainsmen'', describing the adventures of Buffalo Jones. Harper's editor
Ripley Hitchcock Ripley Hitchcock (born James Ripley Wellman Hitchcock; 1857–1918) was a prominent American editor. He edited the works of Rudyard Kipling, Arthur Conan Doyle, Zane Grey, Joel Chandler Harris, Stephen Crane and Theodore Dreiser. Biography Rip ...
rejected it, the fourth work in a row. He told Grey, "I do not see anything in this to convince me you can write either narrative or fiction." Grey wrote dejectedly,
I don't know which way to turn. I cannot decide what to write next. That which I desire to write does not seem to be what the editors want ... I am full of stories and zeal and fire ... yet I am inhibited by doubt, by fear that my feeling for life is false.
The book was later published by the American magazine, ''
Outing Outing is the act of disclosing an LGBTQ person's sexual orientation or gender identity without their consent. It is often done for political reasons, either to instrumentalize homophobia, biphobia, and/or transphobia Transphobia consists ...
'', which provided Grey some satisfaction. Grey next wrote a series of magazine articles and juvenile novels. With the birth of his first child pending, Grey felt compelled to complete his next novel, ''The Heritage of the Desert''. He wrote it in four months in 1910. It quickly became a bestseller. Grey took his next work to Hitchcock again; this time Harper published his work, a historical romance in which
Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
characters were of central importance. Grey continued to write popular novels about
Manifest Destiny Manifest destiny was the belief in the 19th century in the United States, 19th-century United States that American pioneer, American settlers were destined to expand westward across North America, and that this belief was both obvious ("''m ...
, the conquest of the Old West, and the behavior of men in elemental conditions. Two years later Grey produced his best-known book, '' Riders of the Purple Sage'' (1912), his all-time best-seller, and one of the most successful Western novels in history. Hitchcock rejected it, but Grey took his manuscript directly to the vice president of Harper, who accepted it. The novel had a sequel ('' The Rainbow Trail'', in 1915), and was filmed five times (in
1918 The ceasefire that effectively ended the World War I, First World War took place on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of this year. Also in this year, the Spanish flu pandemic killed 50–100 million people wor ...
, 1925, 1931, 1941, and 1996; but in later film versions the villains are corrupt judges or lawyers, not Mormon polygamists).


Later career

Zane Grey had become a household name; thereafter, Harper eagerly received all his manuscripts. Other publishers caught on to the commercial potential of the Western novel.
Max Brand Frederick Schiller Faust (May 29, 1892 – May 12, 1944) was an American writer known primarily for his Western (genre), Western stories using the pseudonym Max Brand. As Max Brand, he also created the popular fictional character of young ...
and Ernest Haycox were among the most notable of other writers of Westerns. Grey's publishers paired his novels with some of the best illustrators of the time, including N. C. Wyeth, Frank Schoonover, Douglas Duer, W. Herbert Dunton, W. H. D. Koerner, and Charles Russell.May 1997, p. 83. Grey had the time and money to engage in his first and greatest passion: fishing. From 1918 until 1932, he was a regular contributor to '' Outdoor Life'' magazine. As one of its first celebrity writers, he began to popularize big-game fishing. Several times he went deep-sea fishing in Florida to relax and to write in solitude. Although he commented that "the sea, from which all life springs, has been equally with the desert my teacher and religion", Grey was unable to write a great sea novel. He felt the sea soothed his moods, reduced his depressions, and gained him the opportunity to harvest deeper thoughts: Over the years, Grey spent part of his time traveling and the rest of the year writing novels and articles. Unlike writers who could write every day, Grey would have dry spells and then sudden bursts of energy, in which he could write as much as 100,000 words in a month. He wrote longhand in pencil with little punctuation and his first draft was the final one. Punctuation was added later by secretaries when they were preparing the manuscript for publication. He encountered fans in most places. He visited the Rogue River in
Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
in 1919 for a fishing expedition, and fell in love with it. He returned in the 1920s, eventually setting up a cabin on the lower Rogue River. Grey captured the river's essence in two books: ''Tales of Freshwater Fishing'' and ''Rogue River Feud''. Other excursions took him to
Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...
and
Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
.Gruber 1969, p. 218. From 1923 to 1930, he spent a few weeks a year at his cabin on the
Mogollon Rim The Mogollon Rim ( or or ) is a topography, topographical and geological feature cutting across Northern Arizona, the northern half of the U.S. state of Arizona. It extends approximately , starting in northern Yavapai County, Arizona, Yavapa ...
, in Central
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
. After years of abandonment and decay, the cabin was restored in 1966 by Bill Goettl, a Phoenix air conditioning magnate. He opened it to the public as a free-of-charge museum. The Dude Fire destroyed the cabin in 1990. It was later reconstructed 25 miles away in the town of Payson. During the 1930s, Grey continued to write, but 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 ...
hurt the publishing industry. His sales fell off, and he found it more difficult to sell serializations. He had avoided making investments that would have been affected by the
stock market crash A stock market crash is a sudden dramatic decline of stock prices across a major cross-section of a stock market, resulting in a significant loss of paper wealth. Crashes are driven by panic selling and underlying economic factors. They often fol ...
of 1929, and continued to earn royalty income, so he did better than many financially. Nearly half of the film adaptations of his novels were made in the 1930s. From 1925 to his death in 1939, Grey traveled more and further from his family. He became interested in exploring unspoiled lands, particularly the islands of the South Pacific, New Zealand and Australia. He thought Arizona was beginning to be overrun by tourists and speculators. Near the end of his life, Grey looked into the future and wrote:


Reception by critics

The more books Grey sold, the more the established critics, such as Heywood Broun and Burton Rascoe, attacked him. They claimed his depictions of the West were too fanciful, too violent, and not faithful to the moral realities of the frontier. They thought his characters unrealistic and much larger-than-life. Broun stated that "the substance of any two Zane Grey books could be written upon the back of a postage stamp." T. K. Whipple praised a typical Grey novel as a modern version of the ancient ''
Beowulf ''Beowulf'' (; ) is an Old English poetry, Old English poem, an Epic poetry, epic in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 Alliterative verse, alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and List of translat ...
'' saga, "a battle of passions with one another and with the will, a struggle of love and hate, or remorse and revenge, of blood, lust, honor, friendship, anger, grief—all of a grand scale and all incalculable and mysterious." However, he also criticized Grey's writing: "His style, for example, has the stiffness which comes from an imperfect mastery of the medium. It lacks fluency and facility." Grey based his work in his own varied first-hand experience, supported by careful note-taking, and considerable research. Despite his great popular success and fortune, Grey read the reviews and sometimes became paralyzed by negative emotions after critical ones. In 1923, a reviewer said Grey's "moral ideas ...
ere Ere or ERE may refer to: * ''Environmental and Resource Economics'', a peer-reviewed academic journal * ERE Informatique, one of the first French video game companies * Ere language, an Austronesian language * Ebi Ere (born 1981), American-Nigeria ...
decidedly askew." Grey reacted with a 20-page treatise, "My Answer to the Critics." He defended his intentions to produce great literature in the setting of the Old West. He suggested that critics should ask his readers what they think of his books, and noted actor and fan John Barrymore as an example. Dolly warned him against publishing the treatise, and he retreated from a public confrontation. His novel ''The Vanishing American'' (1925), first serialized in '' The Ladies' Home Journal'' in 1922, prompted a heated debate. People recognized its
Navajo The Navajo or Diné are an Indigenous people of the Southwestern United States. Their traditional language is Diné bizaad, a Southern Athabascan language. The states with the largest Diné populations are Arizona (140,263) and New Mexico (1 ...
hero as patterned after
Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe (; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete who won Olympic gold medals and played professional American football, football, baseball, and basketball. A citizen of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was ...
, a great Native American athlete. Grey portrayed the struggle of the Navajo to preserve their identity and culture against corrupting influences of the white government and of
missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...
. This viewpoint enraged religious groups. Grey contended, "I have studied the Navaho Indians for 12 years. I know their wrongs. The missionaries sent out there are almost everyone mean, vicious, weak, immoral, useless men." To have the book published, Grey agreed to some structural changes. With this book, Grey completed the most productive period of his writing career, having laid out most major themes, character types, and settings.May 1997, p. 143. His ''Wanderer of the Wasteland'' is a thinly disguised autobiography. One of his books, "Tales of the Angler's El Dorado, New Zealand," helped establish the
Bay of Islands The Bay of Islands is an area on the east coast of the Far North District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is one of the most popular fishing, sailing and tourist destinations in the country, and has been renowned internationally for ...
in New Zealand as a premier game fishing area. Several of his later writings (e.g., '' Rangle River'') were based in Australia.


Fishing

Grey co-founded the "Porpoise Club" with his friend, Robert H. Davis of '' Munsey's Magazine'', to popularize the sport of hunting of
dolphins A dolphin is an aquatic mammal in the cetacean clade Odontoceti (toothed whale). Dolphins belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontopori ...
and
porpoises Porpoises () are small dolphin-like cetaceans classified under the family Phocoenidae. Although similar in appearance to dolphins, they are more closely related to narwhals and belugas than to the true dolphins. There are eight extant speci ...
. They made their first catch off Seabright, New Jersey, on September 21, 1912, where they harpooned and reeled in a
bottlenose dolphin The bottlenose dolphin is a toothed whale in the genus ''Tursiops''. They are common, cosmopolitan members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphins. Molecular studies show the genus contains three species: the common bot ...
.Pauly 2007, p. 149. Grey's son Loren claims in the introduction to '' Tales of Tahitian Waters'' that Zane Grey fished on average 300 days a year through his adult life. Grey and his brother R.C. were frequent visitors to Long Key,
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, where they helped to establish the Long Key Fishing Club, built by
Henry Morrison Flagler Henry Morrison Flagler (January 2, 1830 – May 20, 1913) was an American industrialist and a founder of Standard Oil, which was first based in Ohio. He was also a key figure in the development of the Atlantic coast of Florida and founder ...
. Zane Grey was its president from 1917 to 1920. He pioneered the fishing of Boohoo fish (
sailfish The sailfish is one or two species of marine fish in the genus ''Istiophorus'', which belong to the family Istiophoridae ( marlins). They are predominantly blue to gray in colour and have a characteristically large dorsal fin known as the ...
). Zane Grey Creek was named for him. Grey indulged his interest in fishing with visits to Australia and New Zealand. He first visited New Zealand in 1926 and caught several large fish of great variety, including a mako shark, a ferocious fighter that presented a new challenge. Grey established a base at Otehei Bay, Urupukapuka Island in the
Bay of Islands The Bay of Islands is an area on the east coast of the Far North District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is one of the most popular fishing, sailing and tourist destinations in the country, and has been renowned internationally for ...
, which became a destination for the rich and famous. He wrote many articles in international sporting magazines highlighting the uniqueness of New Zealand fishing, which has produced heavy-tackle world records for the major
billfish The billfish are a group (Xiphioidea) of saltwater fish, saltwater predatory fish characterised by prominent pointed beak, bills (rostrum (anatomy), rostra), and by their large size; some are longer than . Extant billfish include sailfish and m ...
, striped
marlin Marlins are fish from the family Istiophoridae, which includes between 9 and 11 species, depending on the taxonomic authority. Name The family's common name is thought to derive from their resemblance to a sailor's marlinspike. Taxonomy T ...
, black marlin, blue marlin and broadbill. A lodge and camp were established at Otehei Bay in 1927 called the Zane Grey Sporting Club. He held numerous world records during this time and invented the teaser, a hookless bait that is still used today to attract fish. Grey made three additional fishing trips to New Zealand. The second was January to April 1927, the third December 1928 to March 1929, and the last from December 1932 to February 1933. Grey fished out of Wedgeport, Nova Scotia, for many summers. Grey also helped establish deep-sea sport fishing in
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
, Australia, particularly in Bermagui, which is famous for marlin fishing. Patron of the Bermagui Sport Fishing Association for 1936 and 1937, Grey set a number of world records, and wrote of his experiences in his book ''An American Angler in Australia''. From 1928 on, Grey was a frequent visitor to
Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian language, Tahitian , ; ) is the largest island of the Windward Islands (Society Islands), Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France. It is located in the central part of t ...
. He fished the surrounding waters several months at a time and maintained a permanent fishing camp at Vairao. He claimed that these were the most difficult waters he had ever fished, but from these waters he also took some of his most important records, such as the first marlin over . Grey had built a getaway home in
Santa Catalina Island, California Santa Catalina Island (; ) often shortened to Catalina Island or Catalina, is a rocky island, part of the Channel Islands (California), Channel Islands, off the coast of Southern California in the Gulf of Santa Catalina. The island covers an ...
, which still serves as the Zane Grey Pueblo Hotel. He served as president of Catalina's exclusive fishing club, the Tuna Club of Avalon.


Death

Zane Grey died of heart failure on October 23, 1939, aged 67 at his home in
Altadena, California Altadena () is an unincorporated area, and census-designated place in the San Gabriel Valley and the Verdugos regions of Los Angeles County, California. Directly north of Pasadena, California, Pasadena, it is located approximately from Downtow ...
. He was interred at the Lackawaxen and Union Cemetery, Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania.


Legacy


Literary works

Grey became one of the first millionaire authors. Zane Grey was a major force in shaping the myths of the Old West; his books and stories were adapted into other media, such as film and TV productions. He was the author of more than 90 books, some published posthumously or based on serials originally published in magazines. His total book sales exceeded 40 million. Grey wrote not only Westerns, but also two hunting books, six children's books, three baseball books, and eight fishing books. Many of them became bestsellers. It has been estimated he wrote more than nine million words in his career. From 1917 to 1926, Grey was in the top ten best-seller list nine times, which required sales of more than 100,000 copies each time. Even after his death, Harper had a stockpile of his manuscripts and continued to publish a new title yearly until 1963. During the 1940s and afterward, as Grey's books were reprinted as paperbacks, his sales exploded. Erle Stanley Gardner, prolific author of mystery novels and the '' Perry Mason'' series, said of Grey: Grey was the favorite writer of President
Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...
.


Books published after his death

A 1950 newspaper article stated that Romer Zane Grey and his mother had completed work on ''Cahuenga Pass'', one of Zane Grey's unfinished novels, and that a film treatment would be prepared. In 1953 columnist
Hedda Hopper Elda Furry (May 2, 1885February 1, 1966), known professionally as Hedda Hopper, was an American gossip columnist and actress. At the height of her influence in the 1940s, more than 35 million people read her columns. A strong supporter of the Hous ...
reported that a proposed film project, ''Thirty Thousand on the Hoof'', was based on one of the six unfinished Grey novels that had been completed by his wife.


Hollywood and other media

Grey started his association with Cinema of the United States, Hollywood when William Fox (producer), William Fox bought the rights to '' Riders of the Purple Sage'' for $2,500 in 1916. The ascending arc of Grey's career matched that of the motion picture industry. It eagerly adapted Western fiction, Western stories to the screen practically from its inception, with Bronco Billy Anderson becoming the first major western star. Legendary director John Ford was then a young stage hand and Tom Mix, who had been a real cowhand, was defining the persona of the film cowboy. The Grey family moved to California to be closer to the film industry and to enable Grey to fish in the Pacific. After his first two books were adapted to the screen, Grey formed his own film, motion picture company. This enabled him to control production values and faithfulness to his books. After seven films he sold his company to Jesse Lasky who was a partner of the founder of Paramount Pictures. Paramount made a number of movies based on Grey's writings and hired him as advisor. Many of his films were shot at locations described in his books. In 1936 Grey appeared as himself in a feature film shot in Australia, ''White Death (1936 film), White Death'' (1936). At the same time he provided a story that was filmed as '' Rangle River'' (1936). Grey became disenchanted by the commercial exploitation and copyright infringement of his works. He felt his stories and characters were diluted by being adapted to film. Nearly 50 of his novels were converted into more than 100 Western movies.Gruber 1969, p. 4. Shortly after Grey's death, the success of Fritz Lang's Western Union (film), ''Western Union'' (1941), a film based on one of his books, helped bring about a resurgence in Hollywood westerns. Its costars were Randolph Scott and Robert Young (actor), Robert Young. The period of the 1940s and 1950s included the great works of John Ford, who successfully used the settings of Grey's novels in Arizona and Utah. The success of Grey's ''The Lone Star Ranger'' (the novel was adapted into four movies: 1914, 1919, The Lone Star Ranger (1930 film), 1930 and 1942, and a comic book in 1949) and ''King of the Royal Mounted'' (popular as a series of Big Little Books and comics, later turned into a 1936 film and three film serials) inspired two radio series by George Trendle (WXYT (AM), WXYZ, Detroit). Later these were adapted again for television, forming the series ''The Lone Ranger (TV series), The Lone Ranger'' and ''Challenge of the Yukon'' (''Sgt. Preston of the Yukon'' on TV). More of Grey's work was featured in adapted form on ''The Zane Grey Show'', which ran on the Mutual Broadcasting System for five months in the 1940s, and the "Zane Grey Western Theatre," which had a five-year run of 145 episodes. Many famous actors got their start in films based on Zane Grey books. They included Gary Cooper, Randolph Scott, William Powell, Wallace Beery, Richard Arlen, Buster Crabbe, Shirley Temple, and Fay Wray. Victor Fleming, later director of ''Gone with the Wind (film), Gone with the Wind'', and Henry Hathaway, who later directed ''True Grit (1969 film), True Grit'', both learned their craft on Grey films.


Honors and awards

* The National Park Service maintains his former home in Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania as the Zane Grey Museum (Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania), Zane Grey Museum, a part of the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River area. * Zanesville, Ohio, has a museum named in his honor, the National Road-Zane Grey Museum. * Zane Grey Terrace, a small residential street in the hillsides of Altadena, is named in his honor. * The Zane Grey Tourist Park in Bermagui, Australia. * "Zane Greys'" a headland at the western end of Matapaua Bay, New Zealand. * The Zane Grey Continuation School is located adjacent to Reseda High School in Reseda, Los Angeles, California. * Zane Grey room is located at the Sigma Nu – Beta Rho house in honor of where Zane Grey lived for part of his time at the University of Pennsylvania. * Wilder Ranch State Park near Santa Cruz, California named the Zane Grey Trail after the author. Grey briefly worked as a ranch hand at Wilder Ranch. * Zane Grey Roadless Area (58,000 acres), along the Rogue River, is managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in Oregon, USA. * In 1977, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.


Works

Works published posthumously after 1939 include original novels, sequels to earlier novels, and compilations and revisions of previously published novels. All western works were translated from English into Spanish by Editorial Juventud in 1959 for the CLASICOS Y MODERNOS collection.


Books


Films

Between 1911 and 1996, 112 films were adapted from Grey's novels and stories. In addition, three television series included episodes adapted from his work, including ''Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre'' (1956–58). * ''Fighting Blood (1911 film), Fighting Blood'' (1911 short)
Watch
novel * ''Graft (1915 serial), Graft'' (1915) story * ''The Border Legion (1918 film), The Border Legion'' (1918) novel * ''Riders of the Purple Sage (1918 film), Riders of the Purple Sage'' (1918) novel * ''The Rainbow Trail (1918 film), The Rainbow Trail'' (1918) story * ''The Light of Western Stars (1918 film), The Light of the Western Stars'' (1918) novel * ''The Lone Star Ranger (1919 film), The Lone Star Ranger'' (1919) novel * ''The Last of the Duanes (1919 film), The Last of the Duanes'' (1919) story * ''Desert Gold (1919 American film), Desert Gold'' (1919) * ''Riders of the Dawn (1920 film), Riders of the Dawn'' (1920) novel ''The Desert of Wheat'' * ''Days of Daring'' (1920 short) novel ''In the Days of Thundering Herd'' * ''The U.P. Trail'' (1920) novel * ''Man of the Forest (1921 film), Man of the Forest'' (1921) novel * ''The Mysterious Rider (1921 film), The Mysterious Rider'' (1921) novel * ''The Last Trail (1921 film), The Last Trail'' (1921) novel * ''When Romance Rides'' (1922) novel ''Wildfire'' * ''Golden Dreams'' (1922) story * ''To the Last Man (1923 film), To the Last Man'' (1923) novel * ''The Lone Star Ranger (1923 film), The Lone Star Ranger'' (1923) novel * ''The Call of the Canyon (film), The Call of the Canyon'' (1923) story * ''Heritage of the Desert (1924 film), Heritage of the Desert'' (1924) novel * ''Wanderer of the Wasteland (1924 film), Wanderer of the Wasteland'' (1924) novel * ''The Border Legion (1924 film), The Border Legion'' (1924) novel * ''The Last of the Duanes (1924 film), The Last of the Duanes'' (1924) story * ''The Thundering Herd (1925 film), The Thundering Herd'' (1925) novel * ''Riders of the Purple Sage (1925 film), Riders of the Purple Sage'' (1925)
Watch
novel * ''Code of the West (1925 film), Code of the West'' (1925) novel * ''The Rainbow Trail (1925 film), The Rainbow Trail'' (1925) story * ''The Light of Western Stars (1925 film), The Light of Western Stars'' (1925) novel * ''Wild Horse Mesa (1925 film), Wild Horse Mesa'' (1925) novel * ''The Vanishing American'' (1925) novel * ''Desert Gold (1926 film), Desert Gold'' (1926) novel * ''Born to the West (1926 film), Born to the West'' (1926) story * ''Forlorn River (1926 film), Forlorn River'' (1926) novel * ''Man of the Forest (1926 film), Man of the Forest'' (1926) novel * ''The Last Trail (1927 film), The Last Trail'' (1927) novel * ''The Mysterious Rider (1927 film), The Mysterious Rider'' (1927) novel * ''Drums of the Desert (1927 film), Drums of the Desert'' (1927) novel ''Captives of the Desert'' * ''Lightning (1927 film), Lightning'' (1927) story * ''Nevada (1927 film), Nevada'' (1927) novel * ''Open Range (1927 film), Open Range'' (1927) novel ''Valley of Wild Horses'' * ''Under the Tonto Rim (1928 film), Under the Tonto Rim'' (1928) novel * ''The Vanishing Pioneer'' (1928) novel ''Golden Dreams'' * ''The Water Hole'' (1928) story * ''Avalanche (1928 film), Avalanche'' (1928) novel * ''Sunset Pass (1929 film), Sunset Pass'' (1929) novel * ''Stairs of Sand'' (1929) novel * ''The Lone Star Ranger (1930 film), The Lone Star Ranger'' (1930) novel * ''The Light of Western Stars (1930 film), The Light of Western Stars'' (1930) novel * ''The Border Legion (1930 film), The Border Legion'' (1930) novel * ''The Last of the Duanes (1930 film), The Last of the Duanes'' (1930) novel * ''El último de los Vargas'' (1930) novel * ''Fighting Caravans'' (1931) novel ''Wagon Wheels'' * ''Riders of the Purple Sage (1931 film), Riders of the Purple Sage'' (1931) novel * ''The Rainbow Trail (film), The Rainbow Trail'' (1932) story * ''Heritage of the Desert (1932 film), Heritage of the Desert'' (1932) story * ''The Golden West (1932 film), The Golden West'' (1932) story * ''Wild Horse Mesa (1932 film), Wild Horse Mesa'' * ''End of the Trail (1932 film), End of the Trail'' (1932) story * ''Robbers' Roost (1932 film), Robbers' Roost'' (1932) novel * ''The Woman Accused'' (1933) story ''Liberty Magazine'' along with 7 other authors * ''Smoke Lightning'' (1933) novel ''Canyon Walls'' * ''The Thundering Herd (1933 film), The Thundering Herd'' (1933) story * ''Under the Tonto Rim (1933 film), Under the Tonto Rim'' (1933) novel ''The Bee Hunter'' * ''Sunset Pass (1933 film), Sunset Pass'' (1933) novel * ''Life in the Raw'' (1933) novel * ''The Last Trail (1933 film), The Last Trail'' (1933) novel * ''Man of the Forest (1933 film), Man of the Forest'' (1933) novel * ''To the Last Man (1933 film), To the Last Man'' (1933) story * ''The Last Round-Up (1934 film), The Last Round-Up'' (1934) novel ''The Border Legion'' * ''Wagon Wheels (film), Wagon Wheels'' (1934) novel ''Fighting Caravans'' * ''The Dude Ranger'' (1934) story * ''West of the Pecos (1934 film), West of the Pecos'' (1934) novel * ''Home on the Range (1935 film), Home on the Range'' (1935) novel ''Code of the West'' * ''Rocky Mountain Mystery'' (1935) novel ''Golden Dreams'' * ''Wanderer of the Wasteland (1935 film), Wanderer of the Wasteland'' (1935) novel * ''Thunder Mountain (1935 film), Thunder Mountain'' (1935) novel * ''Nevada (1935 film), Nevada'' (1935) novel * ''Drift Fence'' (1936) novel * ''Desert Gold (1936 film), Desert Gold'' (1936) novel * ''The Arizona Raiders'' (1936) novel ''Raiders of Spanish Peaks'' * ''King of the Royal Mounted'' (1936) story * ''End of the Trail (1936 film), End of the Trail'' (1936) novel ''Outlaws of Palouse'' * ''Arizona Mahoney'' (1936) novel ''Stairs of Sand'' * '' Rangle River'' (1936) novel * ''Forlorn River (1937 film), Forlorn River'' (1937) novel * ''Roll Along, Cowboy'' (1937) novel ''The Dude Ranger'' * ''Thunder Trail'' (1937) story "Arizona Ames" * ''Born to the West'' (1937) novel * ''The Mysterious Rider (1938 film), The Mysterious Rider'' (1938) characters * ''Heritage of the Desert (1939 film), Heritage of the Desert'' (1939) novel * ''The Light of Western Stars (1940 film), The Light of Western Stars'' (1940) novel * ''Knights of the Range'' (1940) story * ''The Border Legion'' (1940) novel * ''Western Union (film), Western Union'' (1941) novel * ''Last of the Duanes (1941 film), Last of the Duanes'' (1941) story * ''Riders of the Purple Sage (1941 film), Riders of the Purple Sage'' (1941) novel * ''Lone Star Ranger'' (1942) novel * ''Nevada (1944 film), Nevada'' (1944) novel * ''Wanderer of the Wasteland (1945 film), Wanderer of the Wasteland'' (1945) novel * ''West of the Pecos (1945 film), West of the Pecos'' (1945) novel * ''Sunset Pass (1946 film), Sunset Pass'' (1946) novel * ''Code of the West (1947 film), Code of the West'' (1947) novel * ''Thunder Mountain (1947 film), Thunder Mountain'' (1947) novel * ''Gunfighters (film), Gunfighters'' (1947) novel ''Twin Sombreros'' * ''Under the Tonto Rim (1947 film), Under the Tonto Rim'' (1947) novel * ''Wild Horse Mesa (1947 film), Wild Horse Mesa'' * ''Red Canyon (1949 film), Red Canyon'' (1949) novel ''Wildfire'' * ''Robbers' Roost (1955 film), Robbers' Roost'' (1955) story * ''The Vanishing American (1955 film), The Vanishing American'' (1955) novel * ''Chevron Hall of Stars'' (1956, TV) story "The Lone Hand" * ''Schlitz Playhouse of Stars'' (1956 TV) story "A Tale of Wells Fargo" * ''The Maverick Queen'' (1956) novel * '' Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre'' (1956–58 TV) stories for 6 episodes * ''Riders of the Purple Sage (1996 film), Riders of the Purple Sage'' (1996, TV film) novel


See also

*Bret Harte *Rex Beach *James Oliver Curwood *Jack London


References


Bibliography

* * * *


Further reading

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


External links

Sources * * * *
Works by Zane Grey
a
Freeread
* Archival materials
Zane Grey papers, MSS 8316
a
L. Tom Perry Special Collections
Brigham Young University
Joe Wheeler collection on Zane Grey, MSS 7641
a
L. Tom Perry Special Collections
Brigham Young University
Guide to Zane Grey's papers at the University of Oregon

Zane Grey photography collection
at the University of Oregon * * * *hdl:10079/fa/beinecke.greyzanecoll, Zane Grey Collection. Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke RareBook and Manuscript Library. *
Zane Grey papers
are archived at the American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming. Other *
Western American Literature Journal: Zane Grey

Zane Grey's West Society

Zane Grey Cabin


in Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania
National Road/Zane Grey Museum
Norwich, Ohio
King of the Royal Mounted BLBs and Comics

Zane Grey biography at Ohio History Central
* *
Zane Grey Incorporated
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Grey, Zane Zane Grey 1872 births 1939 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American novelists American Western (genre) novelists 20th-century American dentists American film studio executives American fishermen American male novelists American people of English descent Angling writers Film producers from Ohio Findlay Sluggers players Novelists from Ohio Penn Quakers baseball players People from Zanesville, Ohio University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine alumni Jackson Jaxons players Newark Colts players