Harry Behn

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Harry Behn

Born September 24, 1898
McCabe, Arizona, United States
Died September 6, 1973, age 74
Greenwich, Connecticut, US
Spouse(s) Alice Lawrence (1905-1989)

Harry Behn, also known as Giles Behn, was an American screenwriter and children's author.

Contents

[edit] Early life

He was born in 1898 in McCabe, Arizona, which is now a ghost town.

He received his education at Stanford University, which he attended in 1918 and Harvard University (S.B., 1922).

[edit] Academic career

In the mid-1930's, Harry Behn joined the faculty of the University of Arizona, where he was a professor of English and ran the educational radio programs. He founded and edited the Arizona Quarterly, and also founded the Phoenix Little Theater in the 1920's, and the University of Arizona Press in 1960.

[edit] Author

Harry Behn wrote many children's books, and also translated Japanese haiku, with the help of people who knew this language.

[edit] Artist

Harry Behn also produced a number of paintings, although he is not as well known as an artist as he is as a writer. Some of his paintings are owned by his descendants.

[edit] Personal life

Harry Behn was married to Alice Lawrence (1905-1989), and had two sons Prescott Behn and Peter Behn, and one daughter Pamela Behn.
He died in Seville, Spain, while traveling there; his place of residence at the time of his death was Greenwich, Connecticut. He was 74 years old when he died.


[edit] Filmography

[edit] Bibliography

  • Siesta (poetry), Golden Bough, 1931.
  • The Little Hill, Harcourt, 1949.
  • All Kinds of Time, Harcourt, 1950.
  • Rhymes of the Times, under the pen name Jim Hill, published privately, 1950.
  • Windy Morning, Harcourt, 1953.
  • The House beyond the Meadow, Pantheon, 1955.
  • The Wizard in the Well, Harcourt, 1956.
  • Chinese Proverbs from Olden Times, Peter Pauper, 1956.
  • (Translator and illustrator) Rainer Maria Rilke, Duino Elegies, Peter Pauper, 1957.
  • The Painted Cave, Harcourt, 1957.
  • Timmy's Search, Seabury, 1958.
  • The Two Uncles of Pablo, Harcourt, 1959.
  • Sombra (poetry), Christtreau, 1961.
  • Roderick, Harcourt, 1961.
  • (Translator) 300 Classic Haiku, Peter Pauper, 1962.
  • (Translator, along with Peter Beilenson) Haiku Harvest: Japanese haiku. Series IV, Peter Pauper, 1962.
  • The Faraway Lurs, World Publishing, 1963.
  • (Translator) Cricket Songs: Japanese haiku, Harcourt, 1964.
  • Omen of the Birds, World Publishing, 1964.
  • The Golden Hive, Harcourt, 1957-1966.
  • Chrysalis: Concerning Children and Poetry, Harcourt, 1949-1968.
  • What a Beautiful Noise, World Publishing, 1970.
  • (Translator) More Cricket Songs: Japanese haiku, Harcourt, 1971.
  • Crickets and Bullfrogs and Whispers of Thunder: Poems and Pictures, edited by Lee Bennett Hopkins, Harcourt, 1949-1984.
  • Trees: A Poem, illustrated by James Endicott, H. Holt (New York, NY), 1992.
  • Halloween, illustrated by Greg Couch, North-South (New York, NY), 2003.
  • The Grand Canyon: an ode, under the pseudonym Giles Behn, 150 copies published privately (date unknown).

[edit] References

Book Poems: Poems from National Children's Book Week 1959-1998, page 26. Children's Book Council, 1998.
Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2003.
Rememberings, by Alice Lawrence Behn Goebel, edited by Pamela Behn Adam. Published privately, 1983[?].
St. James Guide to Children's Writers, 5th ed. St. James Press, 1999.
HARRY BEHN DEAD; AN EARLY SCENARIST (obituary on page 38 of the New York Times, Monday, September 10, 1973)

[edit] External links

Persondata
NAME Behn, Harry
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Behn, Giles
SHORT DESCRIPTION American screenplay writer and children's author
DATE OF BIRTH September 24, 1898
PLACE OF BIRTH McCabe, Arizona, United States
DATE OF DEATH September 6, 1973, age 75
PLACE OF DEATH Greenwich, Connecticut, US