Peter B. Kyne

Peter B. Kyne
Born October 12, 1880
San Francisco, California, USA
Died November 25, 1957 (aged 77)
San Francisco, California, USA
Other names Peter Bernard Kyne
Years active 1914–1952

Peter B. Kyne (October 12, 1880 November 25, 1957) was an American novelist who wrote between 1904 and 1940. Many of his works were adapted into screenplays starting in the silent era, particularly his first novel, The Three Godfathers, which was published in 1913 and proved to be a huge success. He is credited in 110 films between 1914 and 1952.

When still under 18, he lied about his age and enlisted in Company L, 14th U.S. Infantry, which served in the Philippines from 1898 to 1899. The Spanish-American War and the following insurrection of General Emilio Aguinaldo provided background for many of Kyne's later stories.[1] During World War I, he served as a captain in Battery A of the 144th field Artillery, known as the California Grizzlies.

He was born and died in San Francisco, California.

Selected filmography

Adaptations of The Three Godfathers

Popular culture

”There's an old wooden sign in the park [Sequoia Park in Eureka, California] with a quote from Peter B. Kyne's book The Valley of the Giants that says, 'I'm not going to cut the timber in this valley. I haven't the heart to destroy God's most wonderful handiwork. 'Twas in her mind to give her Valley of the Giants to Sequoia (Eureka) for a city park.' I wanted to know who 'she' was,” Armand said.

”She” was the fictional character in Kyne's Humboldt-inspired book The Valley of the Giants wherein a timber baron's wife's wish of saving a favorite stand of redwoods and creating a park in the middle of a city is made possible by her husband after her death.[3][4]

References

  1. Guide to the Peter B. Kyne papers at the University of Oregon
  2. According to contemporaneous newspaper reports, Action was based on J. Allan Dunn's novel, The Mascotte of the Three Star; Mascotte appeared as the lead novel in the pulp magazine Short Stories, February 1921. See, for example, the San Francisco Chronicle, September 4, 1921.
  3. "Eureka and Sequoia Park," Dione F. Armand, Arcadia Publishing
  4. "Sequoia Park: New book delves into the history of a community oasis," Sharon Letts, Eureka Times Standard, January 20, 2008

External links