Thursday , March 28 2024

Graham Greene Centenary Today

Author Graham Greene’s centenary is being celebrated today:

    Writer Sir John Mortimer will join a special gathering on Saturday to mark the centenary of the birth of British author Graham Greene.

    Sir John will be guest a speaker at Greene’s former school, Berkhamsted Collegiate, Hertfordshire.

    The event is one of several Greene tributes this year, following the author’s death in 1991, aged 86.

    Greene’s acclaimed and often controversial works include Brighton Rock and The Third Man.

    Other events being held to celebrate Greene’s life and work include an exhibition of memorabilia at the British Library in London.

    The show highlights the topics that fascinated Greene and gave him rich material for his books, such as espionage, alcoholism and travel.

    A stage musical of Greene’s seaside thriller Brighton Rock will open at London’s Almeida Theatre on 5 October.

    It has been directed by Michael Attenborough, whose father Richard starred in the 1947 film of the novel.

    Norman Sherry, a professor at Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas has also published the third and final volume of his biography, The Life of Graham Greene.

    ….Many of his novels explore the conflict between faith and desire and politics and morality.

    His books also often feature a stiff-upper lipped Briton trying to cope with extreme situations and exotic locations.

    His stories have proved popular with movie directors, who have made feature films from titles such as The Quiet American and The Third Man.

    Greene had a colourful personal life. He worked as a British secret agent in West Africa during World War II.

    And, he had a string of extra-marital affairs and socialised with some of the most famous figures of his time, including TS Eliot, Evelyn Waugh, Ian Fleming, and Noel Coward. [BBC]

For more on Greene, see Koranteng on The Comedians here, John Adams on the same here, Sadi Ranson-Polizzotti on The End of the Affair here and here, Kevin Holtsberry on The Third Man here, Alan Dale on Greene here. I’d say we have covered him quite well.

About Eric Olsen

Career media professional and serial entrepreneur Eric Olsen flung himself into the paranormal world in 2012, creating the America's Most Haunted brand and co-authoring the award-winning America's Most Haunted book, published by Berkley/Penguin in Sept, 2014. Olsen is co-host of the nationally syndicated broadcast and Internet radio talk show After Hours AM; his entertaining and informative America's Most Haunted website and social media outlets are must-reads: Twitter@amhaunted, Facebook.com/amhaunted, Pinterest America's Most Haunted. Olsen is also guitarist/singer for popular and wildly eclectic Cleveland cover band The Props.

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