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Award–winning Novelist Mildred Taylor
Beloved Man of Letters Willie Morris
The MudcatMississippi Department of Archives and History
The Online Mississippi History Newsletter for StudentsVol. 5, No. 1 Winter 2017
Journalist and editor Willie Morris was born in Jackson, Mississippi in November 29, 1934. In 1935, the family moved to Yazoo City. Growing up, Morris liked to play practical jokes and was a good student. When he was in the third grade, Morris was given a fox terrier puppy he named Skip. The terrier later inspired his book My Dog Skip,
which was made into a film released in 2000. While a student at Yazoo City High School, Morris edited the student newspaper and played football. He attended the University of Texas–Austin where he edited The Daily Texan. In 1956, Morris won a Rhodes scholarship and studied history at Oxford University in England. In 1960, he returned to Texas as the editor
of a weekly political newspaper. Two years later, at the age of 33, Morris became the youngest editor of Harper’s Magazine in New York City. In 1967, he started his career as a non-fiction writer and wrote two biographies. He edited essay anthologies and wrote several novels. Morris died of heart failure in Jackson in 1999. An exhibit at the
Willie Morris Library in Jackson shows books, images, and other memorabilia of his life.
Mississippi is the birthplace of many wonderful authors. In 1943 Mildred Taylor joined that list when she was born in Jackson on September 13. Taylor learned her family’s history and the art of storytelling from her father who told stories about life in the segregated South, stories that influenced her work as a novelist. In 1961, Taylor attended the University
the Logan family story in her Newberry Award–winning novel Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, published in 1975. The Logan family story now includes eight novels. The most recent book, The Land, was published in 2001. In 2003, Mississippi governor Haley Barbour declared April 2 “Mildred D. Taylor Day” in her honor. Taylor continues to write today at her home
of Toledo. After college she served in the Peace Corps, teaching English in Ethiopia. She later earned her master’s in journalism from the University of Colorado. In 1973, Taylor wrote her first children’s book, Song of the Trees, a story about the Logans, a fictional African American family living in Mississippi. The book won praise and top awards. She continued
in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.
Image courtesy of Mississippi Public Broadcasting.
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. MDAH.
Prize-winning Playwright Beth HenleyBeth Henley is a playwright and screenwriter from Jackson, Mississippi, born on May 8, 1952. Henley acted in her first play in the fifth grade. She attended Murrah High School in Jackson and Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. While at the university, Henley wrote her first play, Am I Blue. After getting a good response, she knew she wanted to become a professional playwright. In 1976, Henley moved to Los Angeles
to act. While looking for acting parts, she wrote Crimes of the Heart, a play about three adult sisters coping with family troubles and a murder trial. The play won the Great American Play Contest in 1978. In 1981, the play won more awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for drama. Crimes of the Heart was made into a film in 1986. One of Henley’s best-known plays, The Miss Firecracker Contest, follows the life of a young woman
who wants to win a beauty contest. In 1989, that play was also made into a film. Henley’s work has been compared to that of Eudora Welty, one of Mississippi’s most famous authors. Today, Henley continues to write for the stage, television, and movie screen.
Beth Henley. Crimes of the Heart theater ticket. MDAH Collections.
Entertainment Writer Ellis NassourEllis Nassour was born to a Lebanese family in Vicksburg in 1941. From a young age, Nassour wanted to write for the New York Times. In the 1960s, he studied journalism at the University of Mississippi in Oxford and wrote articles for the school newspaper. Nassour later enrolled at Columbia University in New York City, where one of his professors was an editor at the New York Times. That connection led Nassour to a job at the
newspaper. He worked as a copy boy and later wrote articles about the United Nations. In 1973, Nassour published Rock Opera: The Creation of Jesus Christ Superstar. The book follows the musical from the theater to the movie screen. In 1981, Nassour wrote his first biography about country music legend Patsy Cline. He published another book about Cline in 1993. For decades, Nassour continued to write more books and articles about the theater and
worked with many famous composers and musicians. In 2004, Nassour donated his collection of entertainment materials to the University of Mississippi. The collection is called the Mamie and Ellis Nassour Arts and Entertainment Collection, in honor of his parents. He continues to write in Mississippi today. Learn more about his work at http://www.patsyclinehta.com/author.htm.Nassour publications MDAH.
Investigate the Mississippi Writers and Musicians website at http://www.mswritersandmusicians.com/ to learn about Mississippi writers past and present. Not only will you find more writers, but you’ll also find musicians, artists, and actors from our state.
Check out these sites and resources to learn more about Mississippi writers from across the state!
Investigate More
To learn about the life of novelist Eudora Welty, visit the Eudora Welty House and Garden in Jackson. Visit http://www.mdah.ms.gov/welty/ to learn more.
To take a road trip through Mississippi’s literary history, plan your adventure on the Southern Literary Trail. The trail crosses Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. Visit http://www.southernliterarytrail.org/events-ms.html to map out your journey today.
Visit your local library and check out these works from other authors around the state!
If you are in Oxford, visit Rowan Oak, the home of celebrated author William Faulkner. Visit http://www.rowanoak.com/ for more information.
Show What You Know!
How would you like to see a catfish of your own creation on the cover of the Mudcat? If you’re an artist — or even if you’re not — craft a cool catfish graphic, send it in to the Mudcat, and YOUR catfish could win a coveted spot on the cover of the next issue! Send all entries via mail or email to:
Outreach Programs CoordinatorMuseum Division, MDAH
P.O. Box 571Jackson, MS 39205-0571
Phone: [email protected]
Create a Catfish Competition
Contents © 2017 Mississippi Department of Archives and History http://www.mdah.ms.gov/new/learn/students/the-mudcat-newsletter/
Vocabularybiography: a record of a person’s life written by someone else. career: a job someone does for a long time.editor: the person who is in charge of the final content of a written work, such as a book.journalist: a person who reports news for a newspaper, magazine, radio, or television broadcasts.non-fiction: writing that is based on real events, real people, and facts.novelist: a person who writes books based on the imagination, but not necessarily real events or people.playwright: a person who writes stories to be performed on a stage in the theater.screenwriter: a person who writes the script for a movie.storytelling: when a person recites or writes a story.
You can be a Writer, too! Write your own short story or article about a random day at school or your home town on the lines below.
Congrats to Nathan E. from
Richland for your winning Mudcat
cover!
