William Gorman Wills (28 January 1828 – 13 December 1891), was an Irish dramatist and painter.
The son of James Wills (1790 - 1868), author of Lives of Illustrious and Distinguished Irishmen, William was born in Dublin and educated at Waterford Grammar School and Trinity College, Dublin.[1]
After publishing his novel Old Times in an Irish magazine, he traveled to London, and for some time wrote for periodicals without much success. He found his true vein in drama, and produced over 30 plays, many of which, including Medea in Corinth, Eugene Aram, Jane Shore, Buckingham, and Olivia, had great success. Wills also wrote a poem, Melchior (strongly recommended by Oscar Wilde[2]), in blank verse, as well as many songs. James Joyce alludes to him and to his play A Royal Divorce (concerning Napoleon's divorce from Joséphine) many times in Finnegans Wake.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain : Cousin, John William (1910). A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature. London, J. M. Dent & Sons; New York, E. P. Dutton.