William Wister Haines
Encyclopedia
William Wister Haines (September 17, 1908 – November 18, 1989) was an American author, screenwriter
, and playwright
. His most notable work, Command Decision, was published as a novel
, play
, and screenplay
following World War II
.
in 1908, one of three sons of Diedrich Jansen Haines and Ella Wister Haines. His father worked as vice president of a surety bond
company, Southern Surety Company of Iowa, and his mother was a notable author of mysteries and serialized stories
, many of which appeared in The Des Moines Register. His uncle, Owen Wister
, authored the 1902 novel The Virginian
, which popularized the genre of Western fiction
, and later became both a successful film and television series.
Haines was educated at the Scholta-Nollen School, the Culver Military Academy, and Des Moines' Theodore Roosevelt High School
, from which he graduated in 1926. He attended the University of Pennsylvania
, graduating in 1931 with a degree in engineering
. Unable to find employment as an engineer during the Great Depression
, he worked nights as an electric lineman on a railroad running between Chicago
and the Eastern Seaboard
. His experience as a lineman became the basis for his first two books, Slim and High Tension.
Haines joined the United States Army Air Forces
in early 1942, going to the United Kingdom
as an intelligence officer with the U.S. Eighth Air Force
. Haines served nearly three years in Britain, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel
on the staff of the U.S. Strategic Air Forces Europe
, where he worked on the Ultra
Project.
In 1934, Haines married Frances Tuckerman and had two children, William Jr. and Laura. Haines retired in Laguna Niguel, in Southern California
and died of a stroke while on a cruise ship
near Acapulco
.
s. In spite of this, the book has been out of print since 1959. In 1937, the novel was made into the movie Slim starring Henry Fonda
, with Haines writing the screenplay. The illustrations for the hardcover of Slim were by Robert Lawson
and do not appear in the paperback releases.
His next novel, High Tension (1938), was a critical success but less successful financially. His novel The Winter War (1961), about the 1877 winter campaign of the U.S. Army against the Sioux in Montana
, was at the time of its publication a popular western
and was awarded the Spur Award
of the Western Writers of America
. He also published a non-fiction book, Ultra in 1980, also based on his World war II experiences as an intelligence officer. His other books were The Honorable Rocky Slade (1955), Target (1964), and The Image (1968).
His filmography credits are Alibi Ike
(1935), Man of Iron
(1935), Black Legion
(1937), Slim
(1937), Mr. Dodd Takes the Air (1937), Submarine D-1 (1937), The Texans
(1938), Beyond Glory (1948), Command Decision
(1948), The Racket
(1951), One Minute to Zero (1952), The Eternal Sea (1955), The Wings of Eagles
(1957), and Torpedo Run
(1958).
Haines was a member of the Authors Guild and the Dramatists Guild of America
. He also contributed various articles and stories to magazines. His short story
"Remarks-None" was published in the railroad story anthology Headlights and Markers in 1968.
between October 1946 and 1947. In January 1947, the first edition of Command Decision
brought Haines critical and popular acclaim. The success of the novel revived the play
, which ran for 409 performances on Broadway
between October 1947 and September 1948.
In May 1947 Haines reached a deal with MGM Studios
to sell it the film rights for $100,000, with an additional promise of 15% of the play's weekly gross (or approximately $300,000) if the play opened by October 1947.
Command Decision
as a feature film starring Clark Gable
premiered in December 1948. The film and book have been called the first important work of fiction about World War II. They differ from most of the prior war-themed works from that period, which stressed the experiences of average citizens forced to go to war, in that Command Decision explores the pressures of leadership, political in-fighting, moral conflicts, and psychological effects rather than glamorizing combat, and frankly admitting the high losses in men and materiel that characterized air combat. It also takes a "warts and all" approach to the conduct of some U.S. military leaders, depicting occasional propaganda misrepresentations, personal ambitions, opportunism, and information clampdowns in the name of security. The protagonist of the story is a general who must choose between submitting to public relations demands and doing what must be done to defeat Germany. He chooses the latter and is relieved of his command for it, leading to the death of his closest friend in the process.
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
, and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
. His most notable work, Command Decision, was published as a novel
Command Decision (novel)
Command Decision is a war novel by William Wister Haines, serialized in 1946–47 in four parts in The Atlantic Monthly. It was published in book form in 1947. It was developed from the unproduced play of the same title in order to provide a market for a Broadway production that followed in 1947,...
, play
Command Decision (play)
Command Decision was a 1948 play in three acts written by William Wister Haines, and formed the basis for his best-selling novel of the same title. Produced by Kermit Bloomgarden and directed by John O'Shaughnessy, it ran for 409 performances from October 1, 1947 to September 18, 1948 at the Fulton...
, and screenplay
Command Decision (film)
Command Decision is a 1948 war film starring Clark Gable, Walter Pidgeon, Van Johnson and Brian Donlevy and directed by Sam Wood, based on a stage play of the same name written by William Wister Haines, which he based on his best-selling novel. The screenplay for the film was written by George...
following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Personal history
Haines was born in Des Moines, IowaDes Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the US state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small portion of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857...
in 1908, one of three sons of Diedrich Jansen Haines and Ella Wister Haines. His father worked as vice president of a surety bond
Surety bond
A surety bond is a promise to pay one party a certain amount if a second party fails to meet some obligation, such as fulfilling the terms of a contract...
company, Southern Surety Company of Iowa, and his mother was a notable author of mysteries and serialized stories
Serial (literature)
In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous installments—also known as numbers, parts, or fascicles—either issued as separate publications or appearing in sequential issues of a single periodical...
, many of which appeared in The Des Moines Register. His uncle, Owen Wister
Owen Wister
Owen Wister was an American writer and "father" of western fiction.-Early life:Owen Wister was born on July 14, 1860, in Germantown, a well-known neighborhood in the northwestern part of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father, Owen Jones Wister, was a wealthy physician, one of a long line of...
, authored the 1902 novel The Virginian
The Virginian (novel)
This page is about the novel, for other uses see The Virginian .The Virginian is a pioneering 1902 novel set in the Wild West by the American author Owen Wister...
, which popularized the genre of Western fiction
Western fiction
Western fiction is a genre of literature set in the American Old West frontier and typically set from the late eighteenth to the late nineteenth century. Well-known writers of Western fiction include Zane Grey from the early 1900s and Louis L'Amour from the mid 20th century...
, and later became both a successful film and television series.
Haines was educated at the Scholta-Nollen School, the Culver Military Academy, and Des Moines' Theodore Roosevelt High School
Theodore Roosevelt High School (Des Moines)
Theodore Roosevelt High School, usually referred to simply as Roosevelt High School or TRHS, is a secondary school located on the west side of Des Moines, Iowa...
, from which he graduated in 1926. He attended the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, graduating in 1931 with a degree in engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
. Unable to find employment as an engineer during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, he worked nights as an electric lineman on a railroad running between Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
and the Eastern Seaboard
Eastern seaboard
An Eastern seaboard can mean any easternmost part of a continent, or its countries, states and/or cities.Eastern seaboard may also refer to:* East Coast of Australia* East Coast of the United States* Eastern Seaboard of Thailand-See also:...
. His experience as a lineman became the basis for his first two books, Slim and High Tension.
Haines joined the United States Army Air Forces
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
in early 1942, going to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
as an intelligence officer with the U.S. Eighth Air Force
Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command . It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana....
. Haines served nearly three years in Britain, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
on the staff of the U.S. Strategic Air Forces Europe
United States Air Forces in Europe
The United States Air Forces in Europe is the United States Air Force component of U.S. European Command, a Department of Defense unified command, and is one of two Air Force Major Commands outside of the continental United States, the other being the Pacific Air Forces...
, where he worked on the Ultra
Ultra
Ultra was the designation adopted by British military intelligence in June 1941 for wartime signals intelligence obtained by "breaking" high-level encrypted enemy radio and teleprinter communications at the Government Code and Cypher School at Bletchley Park. "Ultra" eventually became the standard...
Project.
In 1934, Haines married Frances Tuckerman and had two children, William Jr. and Laura. Haines retired in Laguna Niguel, in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
and died of a stroke while on a cruise ship
Cruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...
near Acapulco
Acapulco
Acapulco is a city, municipality and major sea port in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast of Mexico, southwest from Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semi-circular bay and has been a port since the early colonial period of Mexico’s history...
.
Works
Slim, published in 1934, won him critical and popular acclaim as a writer. The novel was part adventure tale, part social commentary, and part time capsule of the Great Depression, notable for its realism and its on-target portrayal of working class attitudes and language during that period. Slim continues to have an audience today and is a sought-after book, especially among utility linemen and railfanRailfan
A railfan or rail buff , railway enthusiast or railway buff , or trainspotter , is a person interested in a recreational capacity in rail transport...
s. In spite of this, the book has been out of print since 1959. In 1937, the novel was made into the movie Slim starring Henry Fonda
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda was an American film and stage actor.Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor. He also appeared in 1938 in plays performed in White Plains, New York, with Joan Tompkins...
, with Haines writing the screenplay. The illustrations for the hardcover of Slim were by Robert Lawson
Robert Lawson (author)
Robert Lawson was an American author and illustrator of children's books. During World War I, he also served as a camouflage artist.-Background:Born in New York City, Lawson spent his early life in Montclair, New Jersey...
and do not appear in the paperback releases.
His next novel, High Tension (1938), was a critical success but less successful financially. His novel The Winter War (1961), about the 1877 winter campaign of the U.S. Army against the Sioux in Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
, was at the time of its publication a popular western
Western fiction
Western fiction is a genre of literature set in the American Old West frontier and typically set from the late eighteenth to the late nineteenth century. Well-known writers of Western fiction include Zane Grey from the early 1900s and Louis L'Amour from the mid 20th century...
and was awarded the Spur Award
Spur Award
The Spur Award is an annual literary prize awarded by the Western Writers of America. Founded in 1953 with only four categories , the award today has expanded to include the following categories:...
of the Western Writers of America
Western Writers of America
Western Writers of America, founded 1953, promotes literature, both fiction and non-fiction, pertaining to the American West. Although its founders wrote traditional western fiction, the more than five hundred current members also include historians and other non-fiction writers as well as authors...
. He also published a non-fiction book, Ultra in 1980, also based on his World war II experiences as an intelligence officer. His other books were The Honorable Rocky Slade (1955), Target (1964), and The Image (1968).
His filmography credits are Alibi Ike
Alibi Ike
Alibi Ike is a short story written by Ring Lardner and first published in the Saturday Evening Post on July 31, 1915. The story is about Frank X. Farrell, a baseball player who continually makes excuses for everything that goes wrong or right...
(1935), Man of Iron
Man of Iron
Man of Iron is a 1981 film directed by Andrzej Wajda. It depicts the Solidarity labour movement and its first success in persuading the Polish government to recognize the workers' right to an independent union....
(1935), Black Legion
Black Legion (film)
Black Legion is a 1937 melodrama film, directed by Archie Mayo, with a script by Abem Finkel and William Wister Haines based on an original story by producer Robert Lord. The film stars Humphrey Bogart, Dick Foran, Erin O'Brien-Moore and Ann Sheridan and is a fictionalized story about the...
(1937), Slim
Slim (film)
Slim is a 1937 movie starring Henry Fonda. The movie is sometimes called Slim the Lineman.It is a film adaptation of the 1934 novel Slim, written by William Wister Haines, which concerns linemen in the electric power industry...
(1937), Mr. Dodd Takes the Air (1937), Submarine D-1 (1937), The Texans
The Texans
The Texans is a 1938 film made by Paramount Pictures, directed by James P. Hogan, and starring by Joan Bennett, Randolph Scott. The screenplay was written by William Wister Haines, Bertram Millhauser and Paul Sloane and is based on the story North of '36 by Emerson Hough.Most of the exterior scenes...
(1938), Beyond Glory (1948), Command Decision
Command Decision (film)
Command Decision is a 1948 war film starring Clark Gable, Walter Pidgeon, Van Johnson and Brian Donlevy and directed by Sam Wood, based on a stage play of the same name written by William Wister Haines, which he based on his best-selling novel. The screenplay for the film was written by George...
(1948), The Racket
The Racket (1951 film)
The Racket is a 1951 remake of the the 1928 film The Racket. This film noir-style black-and-white film was directed by John Cromwell with uncredited directing help from Nicholas Ray and Mel Ferrer. The police crime drama is based on a popular Bartlett Cormack play. The Racket is a 1951 remake of...
(1951), One Minute to Zero (1952), The Eternal Sea (1955), The Wings of Eagles
The Wings of Eagles
The Wings of Eagles is a 1957 Metrocolor film about Frank "Spig" Wead and US Naval aviation from its inception through World War II. The film is a tribute to Wead from his friend, director John Ford....
(1957), and Torpedo Run
Torpedo Run
Torpedo Run is a 1958 Metrocolor war film starring Glenn Ford as a World War II submarine commander in the Pacific who is obsessed with sinking a particular Japanese aircraft carrier.It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.- Plot :...
(1958).
Haines was a member of the Authors Guild and the Dramatists Guild of America
Dramatists Guild of America
The Dramatists Guild of America is a professional organization for playwrights, composers, and lyricists working in the U.S. theatre market.Membership as an Associate Member is open to any person having written at least one stage play. Active Members are playwrights who have had at least one play...
. He also contributed various articles and stories to magazines. His short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
"Remarks-None" was published in the railroad story anthology Headlights and Markers in 1968.
Command Decision
While in Europe, Haines began writing a stage play, "Command Decision", based on his 8th Air Force experiences, but was unable to sell it. Many producers rejected it, feeling it followed too closely the war's end to have popular appeal. A publisher suggested he write it as a novel, which first appeared as a four-part serial in The Atlantic MonthlyThe Atlantic Monthly
The Atlantic is an American magazine founded in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1857. It was created as a literary and cultural commentary magazine. It quickly achieved a national reputation, which it held for more than a century. It was important for recognizing and publishing new writers and poets,...
between October 1946 and 1947. In January 1947, the first edition of Command Decision
Command Decision (novel)
Command Decision is a war novel by William Wister Haines, serialized in 1946–47 in four parts in The Atlantic Monthly. It was published in book form in 1947. It was developed from the unproduced play of the same title in order to provide a market for a Broadway production that followed in 1947,...
brought Haines critical and popular acclaim. The success of the novel revived the play
Command Decision (play)
Command Decision was a 1948 play in three acts written by William Wister Haines, and formed the basis for his best-selling novel of the same title. Produced by Kermit Bloomgarden and directed by John O'Shaughnessy, it ran for 409 performances from October 1, 1947 to September 18, 1948 at the Fulton...
, which ran for 409 performances on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
between October 1947 and September 1948.
In May 1947 Haines reached a deal with MGM Studios
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
to sell it the film rights for $100,000, with an additional promise of 15% of the play's weekly gross (or approximately $300,000) if the play opened by October 1947.
Command Decision
Command Decision (film)
Command Decision is a 1948 war film starring Clark Gable, Walter Pidgeon, Van Johnson and Brian Donlevy and directed by Sam Wood, based on a stage play of the same name written by William Wister Haines, which he based on his best-selling novel. The screenplay for the film was written by George...
as a feature film starring Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
premiered in December 1948. The film and book have been called the first important work of fiction about World War II. They differ from most of the prior war-themed works from that period, which stressed the experiences of average citizens forced to go to war, in that Command Decision explores the pressures of leadership, political in-fighting, moral conflicts, and psychological effects rather than glamorizing combat, and frankly admitting the high losses in men and materiel that characterized air combat. It also takes a "warts and all" approach to the conduct of some U.S. military leaders, depicting occasional propaganda misrepresentations, personal ambitions, opportunism, and information clampdowns in the name of security. The protagonist of the story is a general who must choose between submitting to public relations demands and doing what must be done to defeat Germany. He chooses the latter and is relieved of his command for it, leading to the death of his closest friend in the process.