It looks like you're offline.
Donate
English (en) Change Website Language
Open Library logo
additional options menu
Last edited by MARC Bot
September 30, 2020 | History
Edit

Damon Runyon

Runyon was best known for his short stories celebrating the world of Broadway in New York City that grew out of the Prohibition era. To New Yorkers of his generation, a "Damon Runyon character" evoked a distinctive social type from the Brooklyn or Midtown demi-monde. The adjective "Runyonesque" refers to this type of character as well as to the type of situations and dialog that Runyon depicted. He spun humorous tales of gamblers, hustlers, actors, and gangsters, few of whom go by "square" names, preferring instead colorful monikers such as "Nathan Detroit," "Benny Southstreet," "Big Jule," "Harry the Horse," "Good Time Charley," "Dave the Dude," or "The Seldom Seen Kid." Runyon wrote these stories in a distinctive vernacular style: a mixture of formal speech and colorful slang, almost always in present tense, and always devoid of contractions.
The musical Guys and Dolls was based on two Runyon stories, "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" and "Blood Pressure".[3] The musical also takes characters and story elements from a few other Runyon stories, most notably "Pick The Winner." The film Little Miss Marker (and its remake, Sorrowful Jones) grew from his short story of the same name.

Runyon was also a newspaperman. He wrote the lead article for UP on Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Presidential inauguration in 1933.
[Wikipedia]

Photo of Damon Runyon

American writer (1880–1946)

Born Oct. 4, 1880
Died Dec. 10, 1946

78 works Add another?

  • Cover of: Guys & dolls: the stories of
    Preview

    First published in 1931 — 11 editions
    Preview Only

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Great Short Stories of the World
    Preview

    Cover of edition greatshortstorie00plea Cover of edition greatshortstorie0000unse_s4d3 Cover of edition greatshortstorie00mont Cover of edition greatshortstorie0000read Cover of edition greatshortstorieplea Cover of edition greatshortstorie00read Cover of edition greatshortstorie0000unse_x3i6 Cover of edition greatshortstorie0000unse_k7k3 First published in 1972 — 9 editions
    Borrow

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Runyon from first to last: containing all the stories written by Damon Runyon and not included in 'Runyonon Broadway'.
    Preview

    First published in 1954 — 5 editions
    Borrow

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Runyon on Broadway: omnibus volume containing all the stories from "More than somewhat," "Furthermore", "Take it easy"

    First published in 1950 — 5 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Miami Noir: The Classics

    First published in 2007 — 5 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: The Damon Runyon omnibus.
    Preview

    First published in 1935 — 4 editions
    Borrow

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Runyon à la carte

    First published in 1944 — 4 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Short takes

    First published in 1946 — 4 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Barnashim ṿa-ḥatikhot

    First published in 1991 — 4 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Furthermore

    First published in 1940 — 3 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: More guys and dolls: thirty-four of the best short stories
    Preview

    First published in 1951 — 3 editions
    Borrow

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Take it easy.

    First published in 1938 — 3 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Trials and other tribulations.

    First published in 1947 — 3 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Damon Runyon Favorites
    Preview

    Cover of edition damonrunyonfavor00runy First published in 1942 — 3 editions
    Borrow

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Great American Short Stories
    Preview

    Cover of edition greatamericansho00plea Cover of edition bwb_P3-DMQ-448 First published in 1977 — 3 editions
    Borrow

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: The Greatest Cat Stories Ever Told: Thirty Unforgettable Cat Tales
    Preview

    First published in 2001 — 2 editions
    Preview Only

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Dream street

    First published in 1989 — 2 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: Guys and dolls and other stories
    Preview

    First published in 1956 — 2 editions
    Borrow

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: More than somewhat

    First published in 1937 — 2 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

  • Cover of: My wife Ethel

    First published in 1939 — 2 editions
    Locate

    My Reading Lists:

    Create a new list

Photo of Damon Runyon

American writer (1880–1946)

Born Oct. 4, 1880
Died Dec. 10, 1946

Subjects

Fiction, Social life and customs, Short stories, Fiction, short stories (single author), New york (n.y.), fiction, short stories, American literature, Children's fiction, History, Horror stories, American Short stories, American fiction (fictional works by one author), Anecdotes, Classic Literature, Horror fiction, Horror tales, Juvenile audience, Manners and customs, Nouvelles, Trials, allegory, change, death, fiction, first-person narrative

Places

Broadway (New York, N.Y.), New York (N.Y.), New York, United States, Jefferson, Mississippi, Yoknapatawpha County, Alabama, Amazon rainforest, Caribbean, Dublin, Ireland, Israel, Justice of the Peace Court, London, Mike Schofield's house, New England, Owl Creek Bridge, Paris, Ship-Trap Island, Tibet, Wall Street

People

Colonel Sartoris, Emily Grierson, Homer Barron, Mr. Grierson, Tobe, Abner Snopes, Bartleby, Bill Hutchinson, Caddy, Cicero, Damon Runyon (1880-1946), Dilsey, Eugene Foster, General Zaroff, Ginger Nut, Harry Graves, Ivan, Jailer, Jason, Jesus, John Jacob Astor, Lennie Snopes, Lizzie, Louise Schofield, Major de Spain

Time

Antebellum era, 1861-65, 1898-1951, 19th century, 20th century

Add to List

My Reading Lists:

Create a new list

ID Numbers

Links outside Open Library

No links yet. Add one?

Alternative names

  • Alfred Damon Runyon

History

Download catalog record: RDF / JSON
September 30, 2020 Edited by MARC Bot add ISNI
March 31, 2017 Edited by MARC Bot add VIAF and wikidata ID
October 19, 2010 Edited by Lestevenon Edited without comment.
October 19, 2010 Edited by Lestevenon Added new photo
April 1, 2008 Created by an anonymous user initial import