Thomas Quinn Curtiss
Encyclopedia
Thomas Quinn Curtiss was a writer, and film and theatre critic.
The son of Roy A. Curtiss and Ethel Quinn, he graduated from the Browning School
in New York in 1933. He went on to study film and theatre in Vienna and Moscow, where he was a student of the film director Sergei Eisenstein
.
In summer 1937, he met writer Klaus Mann
in Budapest
and followed him through Europe. Their homosexual relationship lasted for several years, but eventually Tomski (as Curtiss is called in Mann's diaries) left him because of Mann's on-going heroin addiction. Mann's suicidal novel Vergittertes Fenster is dedicated to him.
Curtiss enlisted in the New York 7th Regiment before World War II. He was stationed with Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force
in Europe in 1944 and later with the US 8th Air Force, where he secured the hidden film library from the Luftwaffe
for the Allies. This act that won him the Legion of Honor from the French government, which was presented by General Charles de Gaulle
.
After the war, he became a film and theatre critic for various newspapers and magazines, including New York Herald Tribune
, The New York Times
, and Variety
, before joining the International Herald Tribune
for which he continued to write until long after his retirement.
Curtiss stayed regularly in Paris, where he frequently went out with movie actors and directors.
He wrote several books, including a biography of Erich von Stroheim
, whom he had already admired in his youth. He also appeared in the documentary The Man You Loved To Hate on Stroheim's life. He wrote the script for the 1973 screen adaptation of Eugene O'Neill
's The Iceman Cometh
.
The son of Roy A. Curtiss and Ethel Quinn, he graduated from the Browning School
Browning School
The Browning School is a United States college preparatory school for boys founded in 1888 by John A. Browning. It offers study from Pre-Primary level through Form VI and is ranked as one of the top private schools in New York City...
in New York in 1933. He went on to study film and theatre in Vienna and Moscow, where he was a student of the film director Sergei Eisenstein
Sergei Eisenstein
Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein , né Eizenshtein, was a pioneering Soviet Russian film director and film theorist, often considered to be the "Father of Montage"...
.
In summer 1937, he met writer Klaus Mann
Klaus Mann
- Life and work :Born in Munich, Klaus Mann was the son of German writer Thomas Mann and his wife, Katia Pringsheim. His father was baptized as a Lutheran, while his mother was from a family of secular Jews. He began writing short stories in 1924 and the following year became drama critic for a...
in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
and followed him through Europe. Their homosexual relationship lasted for several years, but eventually Tomski (as Curtiss is called in Mann's diaries) left him because of Mann's on-going heroin addiction. Mann's suicidal novel Vergittertes Fenster is dedicated to him.
Curtiss enlisted in the New York 7th Regiment before World War II. He was stationed with Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force
Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force
Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force , was the headquarters of the Commander of Allied forces in north west Europe, from late 1943 until the end of World War II. U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower was in command of SHAEF throughout its existence...
in Europe in 1944 and later with the US 8th Air Force, where he secured the hidden film library from the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
for the Allies. This act that won him the Legion of Honor from the French government, which was presented by General Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
.
After the war, he became a film and theatre critic for various newspapers and magazines, including New York Herald Tribune
New York Herald Tribune
The New York Herald Tribune was a daily newspaper created in 1924 when the New York Tribune acquired the New York Herald.Other predecessors, which had earlier merged into the New York Tribune, included the original The New Yorker newsweekly , and the Whig Party's Log Cabin.The paper was home to...
, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, and Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, before joining the International Herald Tribune
International Herald Tribune
The International Herald Tribune is a widely read English language international newspaper. It combines the resources of its own correspondents with those of The New York Times and is printed at 38 sites throughout the world, for sale in more than 160 countries and territories...
for which he continued to write until long after his retirement.
Curtiss stayed regularly in Paris, where he frequently went out with movie actors and directors.
He wrote several books, including a biography of Erich von Stroheim
Erich von Stroheim
Erich von Stroheim was an Austrian-born film star of the silent era, subsequently noted as an auteur for his directorial work.-Background:...
, whom he had already admired in his youth. He also appeared in the documentary The Man You Loved To Hate on Stroheim's life. He wrote the script for the 1973 screen adaptation of Eugene O'Neill
Eugene O'Neill
Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in Literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into American drama techniques of realism earlier associated with Russian playwright Anton Chekhov, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, and Swedish...
's The Iceman Cometh
The Iceman Cometh
The Iceman Cometh is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939. First published in 1940 the play premiered on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on 9 October 1946, directed by Eddie Dowling where it ran for 136 performances to close on 15 March 1947.-Characters:* Night Hawk-...
.
Selected bibliography
- Thomas Quinn Curtiss: Von Stroheim. Vintage Books, New York 1973. ISBN 0394718984
- Thomas Quinn Curtiss: The Smart Set: George Jean Nathan and H.L. Mencken. Applause, New York 1998. ISBN 1557833125
- Thomas Quinn Curtiss (Ed.): The Magic Mirror. Selected Writings On The Theatre. Knopf, New York 1960.