Ben Hecht
1894-1964
Chicago & NY journalist, novelist, playwright & Hollywood screenwriter
- About the creator
Ben Hecht was born on Feb. 28, 1893, in New York City, to Russian immigrants. His family moved soon after to Racine, Wisconsin, where Hecht went to school, read voraciously, learned to play violin, and joined a touring circus as an acrobat for a short time. In June of 1910, he enrolled at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, decided after three days that it wasn't for him, and left for Chicago. It was there he met up with his uncle, who introduced him to the publisher of the Chicago Daily Journal...
- About the collection
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Correspondence, works, subject files, personal papers, photographs, scrapbooks, sound recordings, film, video, artifacts, and miscellaneous ephemera documenting the life and literary output of Ben Hecht, his wife Rose, and his daughter Jenny. Hecht's wife Rose, who was an actress and a novelist, was an integral part of Ben's career and life...
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