An American playwright and screenwriter, Tennessee Williams was regarded in his literary prime with an equal measure of esteem and notoriety. After Eugene O'Neill, Williams was the first playwright to gain international respect for the emerging American dramatic genre. Williams excelled at creating richly realized characters peppered with humor and poignancy. The ever-shifting autobiography of Williams is equally renowned—always casual with fact, the playwright shone in an era that adored celebrity and encouraged excess.

Tennessee Williams was born Thomas Lanier Williams on March 26, 1911 in Columbus, Mississippi. His father, Cornelius Coffin Williams, was a rough man with a fine Southern pedigree. Absent for long periods of time, Cornelius moved his family from town to town throughout Williams' childhood. His mother, Edwina Dakin Williams, imagined herself to be a Southern belle in her youth; born in Ohio, Edwina insisted that her sickly young son focus...