Beyond the Horizon is one of Eugene O'Neill's most famous plays, although it started from humble origins. In 1918, after writing several unsuccessful and unproduced longer plays, O'Neill wrote Beyond the Horizon, which was bought by actor and producer John Williams. Two years later, in 1920, the play was finally produced. However, Williams made the choice to start it off as a matinee, using actors borrowed from his other current productions instead of giving the play its own billing. The play soon proved worthy of a run on Broadway.

Overall, the critics praised the play. Says J. Rankin Towse in his 1920 review of the play for the New York Post, "There can be no question that it is a work of uncommon merit and definite ability, distinguished by general superiority from the great bulk of contemporaneous productions." However, Towse also notes that the play "is not quite a...