His father, Phil Elkin, was a traveling salesman who specialized in costume jewelry and who maintained his success even during the Great Depression, particularly after moving the family to Chicago when Stanley was three. The fledgling writer's love of language was reinforced by his father's rhetoric and enthusiasm as a raconteur, and Elkin went on to create several pitchmen protagonists.
Upon completing his undergraduate education in 1952 and his M.A. a year later at the University of Illinois, Elkin served in the United States Army between 1955 and 1957. He wrote several reminiscences about his idle, generally amusing days in the service, among them "Where I Read What I Read" (1982, reprinted in Early Elkin [1985] and Pieces of Soap). In 1953 he married Joan Jacobson, with whom he eventually had three children: Philip, Bernard, and Molly. After getting out of the service, Elkin returned to Illinois for his Ph.D., which he completed in 1961.
This is a free page. This page contains 149 words. This
biography contains 9,524 words (approx. 32 pages at 300
words per page).
Read the rest of this Biography with our Stanley L(awrence) Elkin Access Pass.
