Romer Zane Grey
Romer Zane Grey | |
|---|---|
| Born | Romer Zane Grey October 1, 1909 Manhattan, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | March 8, 1976 (aged 66) Pasadena, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Romer Grey |
| Occupations | Writer, producer |
| Spouses | Dorothy Olson
(m. 1930; div. 1934)Wilma Morris
(m. 1935, divorced)Octave Grey (before 1976) |
| Children | 1 |
Romer Zane Grey (October 1, 1909 – March 8, 1976) was an American author and screenwriter. He was the eldest son of the Western novelist Zane Grey.[1] He wrote Western novels[2] and books on fishing.[3] Grey was also a scenario writer[4] for Paramount Pictures,[5] and a producer of feature movies or television episodes based on his father’s novels, along with his younger brother Loren Grey.[6]
Early life
Grey was born in Manhattan, New York City, on October 1, 1909,[7] the son of Lina "Dolly" Roth Grey.[8] and Zane Grey. He had a younger brother (Loren Grey and sister.[9]
He attended Pasadena Military Academy, in Pasadena, California and when he was eleven he and 15 of his classmates spent five weeks hiking the High Sierras in eastern California on the border with Nevada.[10]
Writing career
Grey attended the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), but left before graduation to begin writing. In 1929, when he was 20 years old, he wrote The Cruise of the Fisherman on his father's yacht, The Fisherman.[3] In 1930 it was reported he was writing a travel book for boys about a recent trip to the South Seas islands.[11]
Much of his work was connected to his father’s books and projects. He helped his father gather material for Zane Grey books,[12] and is credited as the author of the Big Little Book series based on Zane Grey’s King of the Royal Mounted newspaper comic. After his father’s death, Grey wrote new stories about characters from his father’s novels, including Buck Duane[13] and Laramie Nelson.[14]
Animation
In 1930, when Grey was 21, he rented a studio in Hollywood and hired a staff of animators to make cartoons[15] about Binko the Bear Cub, but the endeavor was not successful; Grey never secured a distribution deal amidst fierce competition. Grey lured animators from Walt Disney Studio with higher pay; the McKimson brothers, Robert, Thomas and Charles, created Binko and worked on the films as animators before being hired by what would later become Warner Bros. Cartoons, working on the vastly more successful Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series.[16]
Movie and television work
In 1935 Grey was signed as a writer for Paramount Pictures in Hollywood,[17] and in October of that year it was reported he was adapting two of his father’s novels for the movie studio.[18] In 1937 (the year of his father's death), he was producing short movie theater films that featured his father trout fishing.[19] In 1955 Grey, his younger brother Loren, and Hal Hudson created Zane Grey Productions, Inc. to produce television shows based on his father’s books.[20]
Personal life
Grey married Dorothy Olson on April 12, 1930, at an Episcopal church in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was a double wedding with Lionel Bernard, Jr. (friend of Grey) and Jean Read (friend of the bride) also marrying. The two couples left for a double honeymoon trip to "points of interest in Utah and Arizona" before the Greys and the Bands returned to Pasadena, where they would be living.[11]
Four years later, in 1934 Dorothy Grey filed for divorce, charging that Grey "failed to manifest interest in making a home for her". The couple had been separated since November 1, 1932. Mrs. Grey sought custody of their 21-month-old son Romer Zane Grey, Jr.[21] The divorce was granted September 14, 1934. Mrs. Grey was given custody of their son, and Romer Grey was ordered to pay $50 per month in support.[22]
A year after the divorce, on October 19, 1935, Grey eloped with his father’s secretary, Wilma Morris.[18] In June 1939, when Wilma Grey went to local court on a drunk driving charge, it was reported that "$500 bail was posted by her estranged husband Romer Grey."[23]
When Grey died of pneumonia at age 66 in 1976, he was married to Octave "Bee" Grey. She died in 1985.[24]
Later life and death
Grey’s brother, Loren Grey, stated that Romer died an alcoholic from working as a writer in the shadow of his famous father.[25]
Grey died on March 8, 1976, at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, California from complications of pneumonia at age 66.[26] Grey was survived by his widow, brother and sister, his son, and five grandchildren.[27]
Works
Fiction
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Nonfiction
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References
- ^ "Grey's Pen Is Still By Death". The Idaho Statesman (Boise, Idaho), October 24, 1939, p. 1.
- ^ Bookshelf, The Week Ahead (Fair Lawn, New Jersey), May 28, 1980, page 10
- ^ a b "Sorority Will Heed Betrothal". The Los Angeles Times, April 12, 1930, p. 32.
- ^ Zane Grey’s Son Elopes, Buffalo Evening News (Buffalo, New York) October 29, 1935, page 1
- ^ "Screen Notes" Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) June 6, 1935, p. 17.
- ^ "Romer Grey Returns From Talent Search". The Los Angeles Times, September 6, 1953, p. 59.
- ^ New York, New York City Births, 1846 - 1909 data base, FHL microfilm 1,992,843
- ^ "Widow of Western Novel Writer Dies". Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, New Mexico), July 27, 1957, p. 11.
- ^ "Author’s Son Dead at Age 66". Marysville Journal-Tribune (Marysville, Ohio), March 11, 1976, p. 8.
- ^ "Sixteen Lads Hike High Sierras". The Pasadena Post, August 18, 1921, p. 7.
- ^ a b "Visits Author’s Camp - Bride Sees Girl Chum Wed at Same Time". The Pasadena Post, April 22, 1930, p, 9.
- ^ "Writing Enjoyable Despite Long Hours, Says Zane Grey on Visit Here". The Salt Lake Tribune, May 29, 1937, p. 32.
- ^ "Paperback Rack". El Paso Times, February 24, 1980, p. 66.
- ^ "Bert Heward, Paperbacks". The Ottawa Citizen, January 11, 1980, p. 71.
- ^ "Screen Gossip". The Times (Munster, Indiana), November 25, 1930, p. 8.
- ^ McKimson Jr., Robert (2012). "I Say, I Say ... Son!": A Tribute to Legendary Animators Bob, Chuck, and Tom McKimson. Santa Monica Press. ISBN 978-1-59580-069-5.
- ^ "Screen Notes". Times Union (Brooklyn, New York) June 6, 1935, p. 17.
- ^ a b "Zane Grey’s Son Weds". News Journal (Mansfield, Ohio), October 29, 1935, p. 9.
- ^ "Short Subject Reviews - Oregon Steelhead". The Film Daily, October 15, 1937, p. 16.
- ^ "Eight Firms Empowered to Sell Film-TV Stock". Los Angeles Evening Citizen News, October 7, 1955, p. 3.
- ^ "Sues Son of Zane Grey for Divorce, Support". The Morning News (Wilmington, Delaware), August 22, 1934, p. 7.
- ^ "Wife Divorces Zane Grey Son". The Los Angeles Times, September 15, 1934, p. 17.
- ^ "Zane Grey’s 'In-Law' Granted Delay". News-Pilot (San Pedro, California) June 14, 1939, p. 1.
- ^ "Grey". The Desert Sun (Palm Springs, California), December 13, 1985, p. 3.
- ^ "Jon Markman, A Homage From Zane Grey’s Son: Loren Grey, 70, writes Tribute to Father He Hated". The Los Angeles Times, May 28, 1986, p. 94.
- ^ "Romer Zane Grey". Daily News (New York, New York), March 11, 1976, p. 326.
- ^ "Author’s Son Dead at Age 66". Marysville Journal-Tribune (Marysville, Ohio), March 11, 1976, p. 8.
External links
- Romer Grey at IMDb