A noted dramatist, novelist, and essayist, Thornton Wilder's name is known to most U.S. high school and college students because of the fame of his play, Our Town. First performed before American theatergoers in 1937, Our Town would soon be produced across the country and abroad, its popularity overshadowing its author's many other works. During Wilder's forty-seven-year career he produced seven novels, six long plays and several short plays, and a collection of essays on literary figures. Also appearing as an actor in several of his dramatic works, Wilder distinguished himself as an educator, teaching at both Harvard University and the University of Chicago. His invitation to read his works before President John F. Kennedy and his cabinet in the early 1960s attests to Wilder's stature as one of the cultural figureheads of twentieth-century America.

In addition to widespread popularity among the general public, Wilder garnered critical kudos...