Joseph Patrick McEvoy(December 21, 1894 – August 8, 1958), also sometimes credited asJohn P. McEvoyorJoseph P. McEvoy,was anAmerican writerwhose stories were published during the 1920s and 1930s in popular magazines such asLiberty,The Saturday Evening PostandCosmopolitan.
Joseph McEvoy | |
|---|---|
 McEvoy,c. 1928 | |
| Born | December 21, 1894 |
| Died | August 8, 1958(aged 63) |
| Occupation | Writer |
Career
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An orphan, McEvoy told theRockford Morning Starlater in life that he didn’t “remember where he was born—but he has been told that it was New York City and that the year was 1894.” Newspaper comic historian Alex Jay, who records that remark,[1]gives a number of possible birthdates ranging from 1894 to 1897, but McEvoy’s birth certificate reads 21 December 1894.[2]He worked as an editor for theP. F. Volland Companyin 1919 and publicly commented on the death of the firm's founder,Paul Frederick Volland.[3]
In 1920 the P.F. Volland Company published a children's fairy story written by McEvoy, which was illustrated byJohnny Gruelle,creator ofRaggedy Ann.In the story a lazy little girl, named Dorothy Mary, interacts with, and is taught by the Fairy Queen and a bevy of tiny fairies by means of the "Bam Bam Clock". She learns how to pay attention to schedules, and thus not be late for meals, bed-time, and the such. The story was illustrated in color with drawings by Gruelle. Raggedy Ann is mentioned a few times in the story, and within the pictures are five depictions of Raggedy Ann. This is one of the earliest mentions of Raggedy Ann in a story outside of the "Raggedy Ann" series. The book was later picked up byAlgonquin Publishing Co.(circa 1936).
Many of his stories were adapted to movies during this period, includingIt's a Gift(1934) starringW.C. Fields.[4]
McEvoy also had a hit play,The Potters(1923), contributed to theZiegfeld Folliesand wrote a number of novels, includingShow Girl(1928) andHollywood Girl(1929). McEvoy's experiences working for theP. F. Volland Companyare reflected in theShow Girlcharacter of Denny Kerrigan, who was working for the Gleason Greeting Card Company.[5]Denny is the protagonist of McEvoy's third novel,Denny and the Dumb Cluck(1930).
Show GirlandHollywood Girlwere adapted into the moviesShow Girl(1928) andShow Girl in Hollywood(1930), both starringAlice White.He also wrote the books and lyrics for the musical revue,Americanawhich opened on Broadway in 1926 and was revived in 1928 and 1932.
McEvoy is perhaps best known as the creator and writer of the popular newspaper comic stripDixie Dugan,based onShow Girl,which had been serialized in a national magazine with illustrations byJohn H. Striebel,who continued on as the illustrator of the comic strip. With the title character resembling actressLouise Brooks,the strip was distributed by theMcNaught Syndicateand had a long run from 1929 to 1966. McEvoy had previously written a syndicated feature called "Slams of Life"; a collection of these columns was published under the same title in 1919, with the promise "with malice for all and charity toward none." In 2003, James Curtis described the writer's outlook and approach: "In McEvoy's world, nothing ever worked the way it was supposed to and the poor working schlepp always took it in the shorts."
McEvoy was the originator of the quote often attributed toMark Twain:"Whenever the impulse to exercise comes over me, I lie down until it passes away".[6]He also is credited as the originator of the phrase, "Cut to the chase", in 1928.
During the 1940s and 1950s, he was a regular contributor to theReader's Digest.
McEvoy had four children: Dorothy and Dennis with his first wife, and Patricia and Margaret with his third wife, New York journalistMargaret Santry.
Works
editNovels
edit- Show Girl(1928)
- Hollywood Girl(1929)
- Denny and the Dumb Cluck(1930)
- Mister Noodle: An Extravaganza(1931)
- Society(1931)
- Are You Listening?(1932)
- The Dixie Dugan Trilogy(2024:Show Girl/Hollywood Girl/Society)
Plays
edit- The Potters(1923)
- God Loves Us(1926)
Revues
edit- The Comic Supplement(1924)
- Ziegfeld Follies(1924-26)
- Americana(1926)
- No Foolin'(1926)
- Allez-Oop!(1927)
- New Americana(1932)
Poetry
edit- Slams of Life(1919)
- The Sweet Dry and Dry(1919)
- Live Wires in Their Line in Cartoon and Rhyme(1923)
Children’s Book
edit- The Bam Bam Clock(1920)
Nonfiction
edit- Father Meets Son(1937)
- Charlie Would Have Loved This(1956)
References
edit
- ^“Ink-Slinger Profiles: J. P. McEvoy,” <http://strippersguide.blogspot.de/2015/06/ink-slinger-profiles-by-alex-jay-jp.html>, posted 8 June 2015.
- ^McEvoy Papers, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.
- ^Shank, Barry (2004).A Token of My Affection: Greeting Cards and American Business Culture.New York: Columbia University Press. pp.145–146.ISBN0231118783.
- ^Deschner, Donald (1966).The Films of W.C. Fields.New York: Cadillac Publishing by arrangement with The Citadel Press. p.103.Introduction byArthur Knight
- ^Shank, Barry (2004).A Token of My Affection: Greeting Cards and American Business Culture.New York: Columbia University Press. pp.145–148.ISBN0231118783.
- ^Keyes, Ralph (2006).The Quote Verifier: Who Said What, Where, and When.St. Martin's Griffin.ISBN978-0-312-34004-9.
Bibliography
edit- Full text of J.P. McEvoy's "Pretty Damn Seldom"
- Shank, Barry (2004).A Token of My Affection: Greeting Cards and American Business Culture.New York: Columbia University Press.ISBN0231118783.
