William Sydney Porter

Excellent biography share brother David.

I remember reading "The Gift Of The Magi".

Thank you my friend SGT (Join to see) for making us aware that on July 24, 1901,William Sydney Porter [author O. Henry] was released from prison in Austin, Texas after serving three years for embezzlement from a bank.
I well remember reading The Gift of the Magi and the wonderful Ransom of Red Chief. Both of which have been made into wonderful short movies IMHO.
Rest in peace William Sydney Porter

O. Henry's Texas Connection on CSPAN
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvyzUX-YXhg

Images
1. William Sydney Porter aka O Henry seated with a sardonic smirk
2. William Sydney Porter [O. Henry] as a young man in Austin, Texas. Austin History Center, Austin Public Library
3. William Sydney Porter [O. Henry] (center) worked as a bank clerk in First National Bank in Austin, Texas until 1894. Austin History Center, Austin Public
4. The Porter family, early 1890s – Athol, daughter Margaret, William

Biographies:
1. Imdb.com/name/nm0377958/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm
2. northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/o-henry-1862-1910

1. Background from {[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0377958/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm]}
O. Henry Biography
Overview (4)
Born September 11, 1862 in Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
Died June 5, 1910 in New York City, New York, USA
Birth Name William Sidney Porter
Height 5' 7" (1.7 m)

Mini Bio (1)
O. Henry was an American writer whose short stories are known for wit, wordplay and clever twist endings. He wrote nearly 600 stories about life in America.

He was born William Sidney Porter on September 11, 1862, in Greensboro, North Carolina. His father, Algernon Sidney Porter, was a medical doctor. When William was three his mother died and he was raised by his grandmother and aunt. He left school at the age of 15 and then had a number of jobs, including bank clerk. In 1896 he was accused of embezzlement. He absconded from the law to New Orleans and later fled to Honduras. When he learned that his wife was dying, he returned to US and surrendered to police. Although there has been much debate over his actual guilt, he was convicted of embezzling funds from the bank that employed him, he was sentenced to 5 years in jail. In 1898 he was sent to the penitentiary at Columbus, Ohio.

While in prison he began writing short stories in order to support his young daughter Margaret. His first published story was "Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking" (1899). He used a pseudonym, Olivier Henry, only once and changed his pen name to O. Henry, not wanting his readers to know he was in jail. He published 12 stories while in prison. After serving 3 years of the five-year sentence, he was released for good behavior. He moved to New York City in 1902 and wrote a story a week for the New York World, and also for other publishers. His first collection of stories was "Cabbages and Kings" (1904). The next collection, "The Four Million" (1906), included his well-known stories "The Gift of the Magi", "The Skylight Room" and "The Green Door". One of his last stories, "The Ransom of Red Chief" (1910), is perhaps the best known of his works. Among its film adaptations are Ruthless People (1986) with Danny DeVito and Bette Midler, The Ransom of Red Chief (1998), The Ransom of Red Chief (1911) and Business People (1963) (aka "Business People") by director Leonid Gaidai, starring Georgiy Vitsin and Yuriy Nikulin

In his lifetime O. Henry was able to see the silent film adaptations of his stories; The Sacrifice (1909), Trying to Get Arrested (1909) and His Duty (1909). His success brought the attendant pressure, and he suffered from alcohol addiction. His second marriage lasted 2 years, and his wife left him in 1909. He died of cirrhosis of the liver, on June 5, 1910, in New York, New York.

O. Henry is credited for creation of The Cisco Kid, whose character alludes to Robin Hood and Don Quixote. The Arizona Kid (1930) and The Cisco Kid (1931) are among the best known adaptations of his works.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Steve Shelokhonov

Spouse (2)
Sara Lindsey Coleman (27 November 1907 - 1908) ( separated)
Athol Estes (5 July 1887 - 25 July 1897) ( her death) ( 2 children)

Trivia (10)
1. Arrested and convicted of embezzling funds from the bank that employed him, he was sent to the penitentiary at Columbus, Ohio to serve a five year sentence. He began writing his by-now famous short stories in prison in order to help support his daughter, Margaret. He was released after three years and soon after changed his pen name to O. Henry.
2. Though many sources indicate O. Henry's real name as "William Sydney Porter", his middle name at birth was actually Sidney with an "i". He changed the spelling of his middle name to "Sydney" when he began working for newspapers in the 1880s.
3. Porter is said to have derived the pen-name O. Henry from the name of a girlfriend's cat.
4. His only formal education was received at the school of his Aunt Lina, where he developed a lifelong love of books.
5. Died at the age of forty seven. An alcoholic, he died virtually penniless.
6. Licensed as a pharmacist at 19 (1881). He worked as a pharmacist during his imprisonment for embezzlement (1898-1901).
7. In 1888, his wife gave birth to a premature son, who died a few hours later. Their daughter Margaret Worth Porter was born on September 30, 1889.
8. Second wife Sara Lindsey Coleman was his childhood sweetheart.
9. Worked as a draftsman in the Texas General Land Office (Austin), and is believed to have illustrated J. W. Wilbarger's "Indian Depredations in Texas" (1889).
10. Inducted into the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame in 1996 (inaugural class).

Personal Quotes (6)
1. Write what you like; there is no other rule.
2. Inject a few raisins of conversation into the tasteless dough of life.
3. Life is sobs, sniffles, and smiles, with sniffles predominating.
4. If man knew how women pass the time when they are alone, they'd never marry.
5. [his reported last words] Please turn on the light. I don't want to go home in the dark.
6. A straw vote only shows which way the hot air blows."

2.Background from {[http://northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/o-henry-1862-1910/]}
"O. Henry (1862 – 1910) Written by Jonathan Martin
William Sydney Porter, or more famously known by his pen name O. Henry, was a popular short story writer during the early twentieth century. A writer whose personal life paralleled his fictional works, Porter lived a varied life throughout the South, Honduras, and New York City. Most importantly though are not the places where Porter traveled but his early childhood in Greensboro, North Carolina. Born on September 11, 1862, to a middle-class family, William was the middle child of three sons. He was only three years old when his mother and brother passed away from tuberculosis. Surviving family members were William’s mother and brother, and they influenced the future author in a drastic way.

Grandma Porter, a self-trained doctor and local figure in Greensboro, raised the Porter children after William’s mother passed away. Will’s father and physician, Algernon Porter, cared for his children, but an infatuation with inventing a perpetual motion machine and drinking whiskey hindered him from being a true father figure to William. Despite Algernon’s personal struggles, Will enjoyed a tranquil childhood, and he learned much about writing and literature from his Aunt Lina Porter. From 1867 to 1876, Aunt Lina taught William privately, and he garnered an affinity and knack for storytelling, writing, and drawing. Three years after his studies with his aunt, William apprenticed at the W. C. Porter Company drugstore beginning in 1879. William’s uncle, Clark Porter, allowed him to work at the pharmacy for several years, and he soon became a licensed pharmacist. It was during his time at his uncle’s drugstore that he fell in love with Sara Lindsay Coleman or “Sall.” 19 years old at the time, William was so shy that he could never ask Sall out on a date. In 1881, William left Sara, his family, and North Carolina behind; he headed west to the state of Texas.

While in Texas, William became a cowboy of sorts and he earned recognition as a broncobuster. In addition to his knowledge of the frontier, the author became proficient in Spanish, memorized most of Webster’s dictionary, and he started writing stories of the wild west. Yet, William was not confident that the public would accept his work; he never submitted his western stories, destroying stories as soon as he wrote them. Growing in his love of Texas, William decided to move to Austin in 1884. He soon accepted a job as a bank teller at the First National Bank. In 1887, William eloped with Athol Estes, and they would later have a son who died shortly after birth. However, in 1889 the couple had a daughter, Margaret, but Athol’s health worsened drastically after Margaret’s birth. Despite Athol’s health troubles, she continued to encourage William to write and at the request of his wife, he submitted his publications to the Detroit Free Press.

William eventually grew bored with his job as a bank teller in Austin, and he decided to start his own magazine called The Rolling Stone. A solo project, William devoted most of his time to writing and drawing for the new magazine, eventually quitting his bank job. The Rolling Stone gained popularity with residents in Austin, but struggling to keep the presses rolling, William had to discontinue the magazine a year shy of its first publication.

From 1894 to 1897, William would experience two traumatic events that would eventually spur the true writings from the fledging author. In 1895 William worked as a columnist at the Houston Daily Post, but he was soon ordered to court in Austin on charges of embezzlement during his employment at First National Bank. The manager and owner had filed a report that claimed William had stole nearly $5,000 while he worked at the bank. Upon hearing the charges against him, William made his way to New Orleans where he boarded a boat for Honduras. (Honduras, at that time, had no extradition treaty with the U.S.). While in Honduras, William became friends with Al Jennings, the notorious train robber. Jennings would later write a book about his relationship with the author, and he even claimed that William and his posse had toured across South America.

After 7 months in Honduras, William returned to Austin in 1897 because his wife was very ill. Upon his return to Texas, William was formally charged with embezzlement, and his wife died several months later. In February 1898, William, now thirty-five years old, was found guilty and sentenced to five years in prison at the Ohio Penitentiary. When confronted with his crime, William would write his mother-in-law and claim, “I am absolutely innocent of wrongdoing in that bank matter…I care not so much for the opinion of the general public, but I would have a few of my friends still believe there is good in me.”The Ohio Penitentiary was a harsh life for prisoners, but William received partial treatment due to his skills as a pharmacist. Allowed a higher status than the normal prisoner, William was given more free time, and it was during these long night hours that William adopted the pseudonym O. Henry and penned some of his best short stories. Although historians and literary critics disagree, many believed Porter chose the pseudonym “O. Henry” because his childhood cat, Henry the Proud, answered to the young William’s call “Henry, Oh Henry.” However, others believe that William simply wanted a catchy and memorably name.

O. Henry wrote numerous short stories while in prison. His first story, “Whistling Dick’s Christmas Stocking,” was published by McClure’s Magazine and became a steppingstone for the author’s success. The mysterious author grew in fame and recognition, but publishers and readers alike were clueless regarding O. Henry’s identity. (William would send his stories to the wife of another incarcerated banker who would then send them along to magazines in the U.S.). O. Henry received widespread acclaim because of his trademark tales of gentle, warm-hearted characters and ironic plot twists at the end of the story. These iconic plot transitions were soon referred to as “O. Henry Endings.”

Released in 1901 on good behavior, O. Henry moved to New York at the request of his editor in the big city. He would soon enter a writing spree for Ainslee’s and McClure’s Magazine, and he wrote over 100 short stories in only two years. While living in the city, O. Henry was finally free to experience the urban lifestyle and write about his time in North Carolina, Texas, and his new life in the city. Flourishing in this new habitat, the author was even quoted as saying he “would like to live a lifetime in each street in New York. Every house has a drama in it.”

Even though O. Henry wanted a lifetime in the city of New York, fate decided differently. The author would later marry his childhood sweetheart, Sarah Coleman, and he moved to Asheville in 1907. Despite his vigor to continue writing, O. Henry’s health prevented him from fully accomplishing his goal from experiencing every crevice of the Big Apple. He eventually moved back to New York with his wife, but he passed away on June 5, 1910, due to complications from diabetes and other illnesses. O. Henry’s wife took his body back to Asheville, and today the author is buried in the historic Riverside Cemetery. Overlooking a beautiful mountainous landscape, the Riverside Cemetery is also the burial site of other famous North Carolinians including Thomas Wolfe, Robert Brank Vance, and Zebulon B. Vance.

From 1910 to 1920, five single volume collections were released after O. Henry’s death. In addition to a complete collection of his most famous works, C. Alphonso Smith, O. Henry’s childhood friend, finished a biography on the author in 1916. O. Henry’s unique plot twists and interesting character personalities influenced the American short story genre to a large extent, particularly his stories “The Ransom of Red Chief,” “The Gift of the Magi,” and “Memoirs of a Yellow Dog.” He would impact other short story authors such as Lilian Jackson Braun, Orson Scott Card, and Helen Eustis. In addition, the O. Henry Festival, founded in 1985, honors the life of William Sydney Porter every April. Presently, Greensboro College hosts the festival as well as mini-dramas that detail the author’s life which are held on his birthday, September 11th, every year.

O. Henry’s Tar Heel and middle-class background directly influenced his literary style.. The culture of the Reconstructed South, along with his childhood in Greensboro, affected Porter’s voice and his connection to his birthplace. For example, O. Henry wrote a story that was inspired by the journalist Charles Evans’s fictional character, the Fool-Killer. Originally a writing persona that described his journey through Piedmont North Carolina, the Fool-Killer was a feisty character that would beat any fool he met along his way across the state. Interestingly, even after Porter had moved to New York and transitioned into writing about the big city, the North Carolinian author hoped to pen stories that compared the New South with the antebellum culture shortly before his death. In addition, O. Henry wrote nearly thirty stories during his last years in New York, and all of these short stories were either set in the South or they expounded the intricacies of antebellum culture.

Sources
“Drugstores, Fiction, Fool-Killer, Riverside Cemetery.” William S. Powell, ed. Encyclopedia of North Carolina (University of North Carolina Press: Chapel Hill, NC 2006).

O. Henry: A Study of the Short Fiction. Twayne’s Studies in Short Fiction, No. 49. Eugene Current-Garcia and Gordon Weaver, ed. Oklahoma State University. New York, 1993.

"O. Henry.” North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program website. A Division of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. ncmarkers.com/Results.aspx?k=Search&ct=btn,(accessed on October 10, 2011).

"O. Henry A Life As Surprising as His Stories.” Mellissa Burdick Harmon. Biography, Dec.2010. Volume 4, Issue 12."

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