Damon Runyon

a.k.a. Alfred Damon Runyon, Alfred Damon Runyan, A. Mugg *

Author Code: AADR

Runyon began working as a journalist under his father in Pueblo, Colorado and worked for a number of local newspapers in the area before moving to New York City in 1910. He worked for the New York American as a sports columnist until 1920. Runyon wrote numerous essays and short stories during these years and also evolved friendships with many of New York's shadier characters, such as Dutch Schultz's accountant, Otto Berman. For many years, he was the Hearst newspaper's baseball columnist and in 1967 he was inducted into the writer's section of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Runyon invented many endearing characters including Nathan Detroit, Good Time Charlie and Sky, which epitomized the gambling and prohibition era. The musical Guys and Dolls was based on two of his short stories, The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown (1933) and Blood Pressure (1930), and his stories inspired many Hollywood films such as Little Miss Marker and The Big Street. Runyon died of throat cancer and the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation was established in his honor. His works included The Tents of Trouble (1911), Rhymes of the Firing Line (1912), Dreamers in Hasbeenville (1913), Dark Dolores (1929), The Brain Goes Home (1931), Blue Plate Special (1934), Money From Home (1935), Take It Easy (1938), My Wife Ethel (1939), Short Takes (1946) and In Our Town (1946).