Switch to EncyclopediaClose XMCCUTCHEON, GEORGE BARR: 1866-1928.
George Barr McCutcheon, eldest of the three distinguished McCutcheon brothers (see sketches of
Ben Frederick and John Tinney
McCutcheon), was born in Tippecanoe
County, Ind., on July 26, 1866. His
parents were John Barr and Clara Glick
McCutcheon. John Barr McCutcheon was a farmer and
stock raiser. He had literary tastes (he is said to have written a play which he
cast from among his neighbors and produced locally), but he was primarily a follower
of agriculture, and a follower good enough to be selected, from among all those
eligible on the good black earth of Tippecanoe County, to take charge of the first
farm owned by Purdue University after it was opened as Indiana's
"agricultural and mechanical" educational institution.
George Barr McCutcheon attended rural schools and, after the
family had moved to town, those of Lafayette, Ind. He and his brothers all wrote and drew for
amusement–probably not discouraged by their father–and the
first remembered literary effort of George Barr is an unfinished narrative entitled
"Panther Jim": it is to be feared that dime novels had somehow
been introduced into the McCutcheon household.
George Barr–and in due time his
brothers–entered Purdue University, that institution harboring in that
period, besides the McCutcheons, George
Ade and Booth Tarkington–strange worshippers at the shrine of
agriculture and mechanics.
During his brief enrollment (1882-83)
George Barr reported student activities for the LAFAYETTE JOURNAL and, soon finding more glamour in the
newspaper world, left education to take full-time employment. In 1893 he left the JOURNAL for the LAFAYETTE DAILY COURIER, where he acted as city editor until 1901.
After his establishment as a novelist, McCutcheon moved to New York. He married Mrs. Marie Van Antwerp Fay on Sept. 26, 1904. He died on Oct. 23, 1928.
Summarizing McCutcheon's literary career, S. G. B., writing in the
Dictionary of American Biography, says:
"McCutcheon's first published story was 'The AnteMortem
Condition of George Ramor,' which appeared in the
NATIONAL MAGAZINE, October
1896. His letters in dialect, 'Waddleton Mail,' had
previously had newspaper publication. In spare moments at the editorial office he
wrote a romance, Pootoo's Gods, which at first sold poorly, but later,
under the new title, Nedra (1905), became a
season's success. Graustark (1901), written in
the same way and sold for $500, brought McCutcheon his first fame and is
said to have cleared over $250,000 for publishers and theatrical
producers. The publishers later voluntarily paid him royalties. This tale of a
mythical Balkan country, whose name was a combination of the German words Grau and
Stark, with its capital Edelweiss and its princess Yetive, actually deceived many
readers who wrote to ask McCutcheon for the best route to Graustark. His next
romances were Castle Craneycrow (1902),
Brewster's Millions (1902), and The Sherrods
(1903). To test the sales value of his name he published Brewster's
Millions under the pseudonym Richard Greaves. It became a best seller
when The Sherrods had only moderate sales …
"McCutcheon wrote with zest and lived for the time in
his own romances. For Graustark he prepared a complete
geographical and genealogical plan. He wrote only one draft, with pencil, from an
elaborate outline, and produced about a thousand words a day. He worked best in the
afternoon, but he frequently wrote in the evenings. Though his success was in the
realm of romance, he much preferred realism. With an output of almost two books a
year, he published much that was hasty and slight. Even at his best, he can hardly
be called a great romanticist, but he furnished wholesome, not too extravagant,
romances to a public weary of extreme realism and materialism. One editorial at the
time of his death said that he supplied innocent happiness for 'many
college boys, kitchen maids, and daughters of millionaires' (NEW YORK TIMES, Oct. 24, 1928)
…"
Condensed from S. G. B., Dictionary of American Biography,
Vol. XII.
- Pootoo's Gods. (Reissued in 1905 as
Nedra.)
Search "Pootoo's Gods" by MCCUTCHEON, GEORGE BARR: 1866-1928. in:
Close X - Graustark: the Story of a Love Behind a
Throne. Chicago, 1901.
Search "Graustark: the Story of a Love Behind a
Throne" by MCCUTCHEON, GEORGE BARR: 1866-1928. in:
Close X - Castle Craneycrow. Chicago,
1902.
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Close X - Brewster's Millions. (Richard Greaves, pseudonym.) Chicago, 1903.
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Close X - The Sherrods. New York, 1903.
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Close X - The Day of the Dog. New York, 1904.
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Close X - Beverly of Graustark. New York, 1904.
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Close X - Nedra. (A reissue of Pootoo's Gods.) New York,
1905.
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Close X - The Purple Parasol. New York, 1905.
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Close X - Cowardice Court. New York, 1906.
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Close X - Jane Cable. New York, 1906.
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Close X - The Flyers. New York, 1907.
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Close X - The Daughter of Anderson Crow. New York, 1907.
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Close X - The Husbands of Edith. New York,
1908.
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Close X - The Man from Brodney's. New
York, 1908.
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Close X - The Alternative. New York, 1909.
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Close X - Truxton King. New York, 1909.
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Close X - The Rose in the Ring. New York,
1910.
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Close X - The Butterfly Man. New York,
1910.
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Close X - Brood House: a Play in Four Acts.
Chicago, 1910.
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Close X - Mary Midthorne. New York, 1911.
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Close X - What's-His Name. New
York, 1911.
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Close X - The Hollow of Her Hand. New
York, 1912.
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Close X - Her Weight in Gold. New York,
1912.
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Close X - A Fool and His Money. New York,
1913.
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Close X - Black Is White. New York, 1914.
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Close X - The Prince of Graustark. New York, 1914.
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Close X - Mr. Single. New York, 1915.
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Close X - From The Housetops. New York,
1916.
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Close X - The Light That Lies. New York,
1916.
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Close X - Green Fancy. New York, 1917.
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Close X - The City of Masks. New York, 1918.
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Close X - Shot with Crimson. New York, 1918.
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Close X - One Score and Ten; a Comedy in Four Acts.
New York, 1919.
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Close X - Sherry. New York, 1919.
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Close X - Anderson Crow, Detective. New York, 1920.
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Close X - West Wind Drift. New York, 1920.
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Close X - Quill's Window. New York, 1921.
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Close X - Viola Gwyn. New York, 1922.
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Close X - Yollop. New York, 1922.
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Close X - Oliver October. New York, 1923.
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Close X - East of the Setting Sun. New
York, 1924.
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Close X - Romeo in Moon Village. New York,
1925.
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Close X - Kindling and Ashes. New York,
1926.
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Close X - The Inn of the Hawk and the Raven. New
York, 1927.
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Close X - Blades. New York, 1928.
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Close X - The Merivales. New York, 1929.
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Close X - Books Once Were Men: an Essay for Booklovers.
New York, 1931.
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