Willard Huntington Wright

Wright, Willard Huntington (1888–1939), born in Virginia, was educated in California and at Harvard and became an editor of The Smart Set (1913–14), distinguishing himself as a sophisticated student of esoteric subjects. His writings, during this period in New York and a residence in Europe, included Europe After 8:15 (1913), in collaboration with H.L. Mencken and G.J. Nathan, co‐editors of The Smart Set; What Nietzsche Taught (1914); Modern Painting (1915); and The Future of Painting (1923). In 1925 he suffered a serious illness, and, being unable to undertake more formidable work, began writing detective novels. The principal character of his popular series in this genre is the master sleuth Philo Vance, whose urbanity and scholarship were obviously modeled on the author's. The Benson Murder Case (1926) was followed by many other Philo Vance stories, all written under the pseudonym S.S. Van Dine.

Willard Huntington Wright pseud. S. S. Van Dine, 1888-1939, American art critic and mystery story writer, b. Charlottesville, Va. He attended college in California and later studied art in Paris and Munich. Wright was literary critic for the Los Angeles Times and several periodicals and was editor (1912-14) of the Smart Set. Before 1923 he wrote nine books, chiefly art criticism, including Modern Painting (1915), The Creative Will (1916), and The Future of Painting (1923). After suffering a breakdown of health, he began writing highly successful detective stories under his pseudonym, modeling the erudite detective, Philo Vance, after himself. The best of these works include The Benson Murder Case (1926), The Canary Murder Case (1927), and The Bishop Murder Case (1929).

Wright, Willard Huntington. See Macdonald-Wright.