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{{Short description|English actor and playwright (1901–1957)}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox person
| name = John Van Druten
| image = John Van Druten.jpg
| caption = Van Druten in 1932,<br>photographed by [[Carl Van Vechten]]
| birth_name = John William Van Druten
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1901|06|01|df=yes}}
| birth_place = [[London]], [[England]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1957|12|19|1901|06|01|df=yes}}
| death_place = [[Indio, California|Indio]], [[California]], U.S.
| resting_place = [[Coachella Valley Public Cemetery]]
| occupation = {{hlist|Playwright|theatre director}}
| yearsactive = 1924–1952
| father = Wilhelmus van Druten
| mother = Eva
}}
'''John William Van Druten''' (1 June 1901{{spaced ndash}}19 December 1957) was an English playwright and theatre director.<ref>{{cite book|author=William T Leonard|title=Theatre: Stage to Screen to Television|publisher=Scarecrow Press|year=1981|page=1128}}</ref> He began his career in London, and later moved to America, becoming a U.S. citizen. He was known for his plays of witty and urbane observations of contemporary life and society.<ref name="Vineberg">Vineberg, Steve. “John Van Druten and the Remnants of a Lost Era.” The Threepenny Review, no. 165, 2021, pp. 25–26. JSTOR, [https://www.jstor.org/stable/27094813] Accessed 8 Mar. 2023.</ref>
==Biography==
Van Druten was born in London in 1901, son of a Dutch father named Wilhelmus van Druten and his English wife Eva. He was educated at [[University College School]] and read law at the [[University of London]]. Before commencing his career as a writer, he practised law for a while as a solicitor and university lecturer in Wales.<ref name="Vineberg"/>
He first came to prominence with ''[[Young Woodley (play)|Young Woodley]]'', a slight but charming study of adolescence, produced in New York in 1925. However, it was banned in London by the [[Lord Chamberlain]]'s office owing to its then-controversial portrayal of a schoolboy falling in love with his headmaster's wife. In Britain, it was first produced privately (by Phyllis Whitworth's Three Hundred Club) and then at the [[Arts Theatre]] in 1928. When the ban was lifted, it had a successful run at the [[Savoy Theatre]] in the West End with a cast including [[Frank Lawton]], [[Derrick De Marney]], and [[Jack Hawkins]]. The play was filmed twice. It was revived at the [[Finborough Theatre]], London, in 2006.<ref name="Vineberg"/>
Van Druten was one of the more successful playwrights of the early 1930s in London, with star-studded West End productions of his work, including ''[[Diversion (play)|Diversion]]'' (1927), ''[[After All (play)|After All]]'' (1929), ''[[London Wall (play)|London Wall]]'' (1931) with Frank Lawton and [[John Mills]], ''[[There's Always Juliet]]'' (1931), ''[[Somebody Knows]]'' (1932), ''[[Behold, We Live]]'' (1932) with [[Gertrude Lawrence]] and [[Gerald du Maurier]], ''[[The Distaff Side]]'' (1933), and ''[[Flowers of the Forest (play)|Flowers of the Forest]]'' (1934).
He later emigrated to America, where he wrote ''[[Leave Her to Heaven (play)|Leave Her to Heaven]]'' (February 1940), a drama set in London and [[Westcliff-on-Sea]] in Essex, which was shortly followed by major successes with ''Old Acquaintance'' (NY December 1940 – May 1941 and London with [[Edith Evans]]) and ''[[The Voice of the Turtle (play)|The Voice of the Turtle]]'' (1943), which ran for three seasons in New York and was filmed with [[Ronald Reagan]]. His subsequent play, ''[[I Remember Mama (play)|I Remember Mama]]'' (1944), ran for 713 performances. It was later made into a [[I Remember Mama (film)|movie]] and a [[Mama (American TV series)|television series]]. In 1944, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. His play ''[[Make Way for Lucia]]'' (1948), based on the [[Mapp and Lucia (novel series)|Mapp and Lucia]] novels of [[E. F. Benson]], was premiered in New York, but did not have its first professional British production until 1995.<ref>''Make Way for Lucia'', Samuel French edition 1999</ref>
His 1951 play ''[[I Am a Camera]]'', together with [[Christopher Isherwood]]'s short stories, ''[[Goodbye to Berlin]]'' (1939), formed the basis of [[Joe Masteroff]]'s book for the [[Kander and Ebb]] musical ''[[Cabaret (musical)|Cabaret]]'' (1966). When ''[[I Am a Camera]]'' opened on Broadway in 1951, ''The New York Times'' drama critic [[Walter Kerr]] wrote a famous three-word review: "Me no Leica."<ref name="Vineberg"/><ref name="jstor.org">Blades, Joe. “The Evolution of ‘Cabaret.’” Literature/Film Quarterly, vol. 1, no. 3, 1973, pp. 226–38. JSTOR, [http://www.jstor.org/stable/43795431] Accessed 9 Mar. 2023.</ref>
In the late 1930s and early 1940s, he was in a relationship with Carter Lodge (died 1995), who was the manager of the AJC Ranch that Van Druten, British actress [[Auriol Lee]] and Lodge bought together in Coachella Valley. When the relationship ended, Lodge continued to live on the ranch with his new partner, Dick Foote. When Van Druten died in 1957, he left the entire property of the ranch to Lodge and the rights in his work, including "I Am a Camera", which entitled Lodge to earn a percentage from the movie ''[[Cabaret (1972 film)|Cabaret]]'' (1972).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Isherwood|first1=Christopher|title=The Sixties: Diaries Volume Two 1960-1969|date=2012|publisher=Random House|page=703|isbn=9781446419304|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gWY8NwJqVd4C&pg=PA703|access-date=21 September 2017}}</ref><ref name="jstor.org"/>
He died at Indio, California on 19 December 1957 of undisclosed causes. He is buried in the [[Coachella Valley Public Cemetery]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Brooks|first1=Patricia|title=Laid to Rest in California: a guide to the cemeteries and grave sites of the rich and famous |chapter=Chapter 8: East L.A. and the Desert |pages=247–8 |year=2006|publisher=Globe Pequot Press|___location=Guilford, CT|isbn=978-0762741014|last2=Brooks |first2=Jonathan |oclc= 70284362}}</ref><ref name="Vineberg"/>
== Association with Vedanta ==
John Van Druten's friend and colleague, [[Christopher Isherwood]] had fled Europe just before WWII broke out. Isherwood settled in the Los Angeles area and began a life-long association with his guru, [[Swami Prabhavananda]]. It was Isherwood who wrote ''[[The Berlin Stories]]'', on which Van Druten based his play, ''[[I Am A Camera]]''. Through Isherwood Van Druten became involved with the [[Vedanta Society#Vedanta Society of Southern California|Vedanta Society of Southern California]] in Hollywood, which was founded in 1930 by Swami Prabhavananda.<ref>[http://www.vedantawritings.com/HVS4.pdf History of Vedanta in Southern California]</ref>
From 1951 until his death in 1957, Van Druten was an Editorial Advisor, along with [[Gerald Heard]], [[Aldous Huxley]], and [[Christopher Isherwood]], for the bi-monthly journal ''Vedanta and the West'', published by the [[Vedanta Society#Vedanta Society of Southern California|Vedanta Society of Southern California]]. During that time, the journal published 10 essays by Van Druten.<ref name="ReferenceA">From the Index of the publication history of ''Vedanta and the West''</ref><ref>“Front Matter.” The Virginia Quarterly Review, vol. 28, no. 4, 1952. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26439659. Accessed 9 Mar. 2023</ref>
==Plays==
* ''The Return Half'' (1924)
* ''[[Chance Acquaintance]]'' (1927)
* ''[[Diversion (play)|Diversion]]'' (1927)
* ''[[Young Woodley (play)|Young Woodley]]'' (NY 1925, London 1928)
* ''[[The Return of the Soldier (play)|The Return of the Soldier]]'' (from [[Rebecca West]]'s novel, 1928)
* ''[[After All (play)|After All]]'' (1929, NY 1931)
* ''[[London Wall (play)|London Wall]]'' (1931)
* ''[[Sea Fever (play)|Sea Fever]]'' (with [[Auriol Lee]], from the French, 1931)
* ''[[There's Always Juliet]]'' (1931, NY 1932)
* ''[[Hollywood Holiday]]'' (with [[Benn Levy|Benn W. Levy]], 1931)
* ''[[Somebody Knows]]'' (1932)
* ''[[Behold, We Live]]'' (1932)
* ''[[The Distaff Side]]'' (1933, NY 1934)
* ''[[Flowers of the Forest (play)|Flowers of the Forest]]'' (1934)
* ''[[Most of the Game]]'' (1935)
* ''[[Gertie Maude]]'' (1937)
* ''[[Leave Her to Heaven (play)|Leave Her to Heaven]]'' (1940)
* ''[[Old Acquaintance (play)|Old Acquaintance]]'' (1940, NY 1941 and London with Edith Evans)
* ''Solitaire'' (adaptation, 1942)
* ''[[The Damask Cheek]]'' (with Lloyd Morris, 1942)
* ''[[The Voice of the Turtle (play)|The Voice of the Turtle]]'' (1943), which ran for three seasons in New York
* ''[[I Remember Mama (play)|I Remember Mama]]'' (adaptation of [[Kathryn Forbes]]' family memoir, ''Mama's Bank Account'', 1944)
* ''The Mermaids Singing'' (1945)
* ''[[The Druid Circle]]'' (1947)
* ''[[Make Way for Lucia]]'' (1948)
* ''[[Bell, Book and Candle (play)|Bell, Book and Candle]]'' (1950; [[Bell, Book and Candle|filmed in 1958]] starring [[James Stewart]] and [[Kim Novak]])
* ''[[I Am a Camera]]'' (1951) from [[Christopher Isherwood]]'s ''[[The Berlin Stories|Berlin Stories]]''. New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for 1951–52
* ''[[I've Got Sixpence]]'' (1952)
==Other work==
Van Druten directed the last nine productions of his own plays (see above).
At the [[St. James Theatre]], New York in March 1951, he directed the first production of the musical ''[[The King and I]]'' (1,246 performances) with [[Gertrude Lawrence]] and [[Yul Brynner]]. He also restaged this production at the [[Theatre Royal Drury Lane]], in London, October 1953 (946 performances).
At the [[Theatre Royal, Brighton]] in November 1954, he staged a production of ''The Duchess and the Smugs''.
Van Druten wrote two autobiographies:
* ''The Way to the Present'' (1938)
* ''The Widening Circle: Personal Search'', Charles Scribner's Sons, New York (1957)
He also published two novels: a version of ''Young Woodley'' (1928), and ''The Vicarious Years'' in 1955.
He also published a book on his work, ''Playwright at Work'', just after the [[Second World War]].
== Filmography ==
*''[[The Careless Age]]'', directed by [[John Griffith Wray]] (1929, based on the play ''Diversion'')
*''[[Young Woodley (1930 film)|Young Woodley]]'', directed by [[Thomas Bentley (director)|Thomas Bentley]] (1930, based on the play ''[[Young Woodley (play)|Young Woodley]]'')
*''[[New Morals for Old]]'', directed by [[Charles Brabin]] (1932, based on the play ''After All'')
*''[[After Office Hours (1932 film)|After Office Hours]]'', directed by [[Thomas Bentley (director)|Thomas Bentley]] (1932, based on the play ''[[London Wall (play)|London Wall]]'')
*''[[If I Were Free]]'', directed by [[Elliott Nugent]] (1933, based on the play ''Behold, We Live'')
*''[[One Night in Lisbon]]'', directed by [[Edward H. Griffith]] (1941, based on the play ''There's Always Juliet'')
*''[[Old Acquaintance]]'', directed by [[Vincent Sherman]] (1943, based on the play ''Old Acquaintance'')
*''[[The Voice of the Turtle (film)|The Voice of the Turtle]]'', directed by [[Irving Rapper]] (1947, based on the play ''[[The Voice of the Turtle (play)|The Voice of the Turtle]]'')
*''[[I Remember Mama (film)|I Remember Mama]]'', directed by [[George Stevens]] (1948, based on the play ''[[I Remember Mama (play)|I Remember Mama]]'')
*''[[I Am a Camera (film)|I Am a Camera]]'', directed by [[Henry Cornelius]] (1955, based on the play ''[[I Am a Camera]]'')
*''[[Bell, Book and Candle]]'', directed by [[Richard Quine]] (1958, based on the play ''Bell, Book and Candle'')
*''[[Cabaret (1972 film)|Cabaret]]'', directed by [[Bob Fosse]] (1972, based on the play ''[[I Am a Camera]]'')
*''[[Rich and Famous (1981 film)|Rich and Famous]]'', directed by [[George Cukor]] (1981, based on the play ''Old Acquaintance'')
=== Screenwriter ===
*''[[Unfaithful (1931 film)|Unfaithful]]'', directed by [[John Cromwell (director)|John Cromwell]] (1931)
*''[[Night Must Fall (1937 film)|Night Must Fall]]'', directed by [[Richard Thorpe]] (1937)
*''[[Parnell (film)|Parnell]]'', directed by [[John M. Stahl]] (1937)
*''[[Raffles (1939 film)|Raffles]]'', directed by [[Sam Wood]] (1939)
*''[[Lucky Partners]]'', directed by [[Lewis Milestone]] (1940)
*''[[My Life with Caroline]]'', directed by [[Lewis Milestone]] (1941)
*''[[Johnny Come Lately]]'', directed by [[William K. Howard]] (1943)
*''[[Gaslight (1944 film)|Gaslight]]'', directed by [[George Cukor]] (1944)
=== Articles published in ''Vedanta and the West'' ===
John Van Druten contributed articles to ''Vedanta and the West'', the bi-monthly journal published by [[Vedanta Society#Vedanta Society of Southern California|Vedanta Society of Southern California]] from March 1943 until March 1958. From January 1951 to January 1958, John Van Druten was the Editorial Advisor to the journal, together with [[Christopher Isherwood]], [[Aldous Huxley]], and [[Gerald Heard]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref>“Front Matter.” The Virginia Quarterly Review, vol. 28, no. 4, 1952. JSTOR, [http://www.jstor.org/stable/26439659] Accessed 9 Mar. 2023</ref><ref>“Brief Comments.” The American Scholar, vol. 21, no. 1, 1951, pp. 125–28. JSTOR, [http://www.jstor.org/stable/41206876] Accessed 9 Mar. 2023.</ref>
* ''I am Where I Have Always Been'' - March - April, 1943
* ''Maya and Mortal Mind'' - January - February, 1944
* ''Prayer'' - March - April, 1944
* ''A Letter'' - March - April, 1945
* ''One Element'' - July - August, 1950
* ''Vivekananda'' - January - February, 1952
* ''What Vedanta Means to Me'' - March - April, 1952
* ''Waste Its Sweetness'' - November - December, 1954
* ''Religion and the Drama'' - September - October, 1955
* ''The Final Unbandaging'' - March - April, 1958
==Sources==
* ''Who's Who in the Theatre'', Twelfth edition, ed John Parker, Pitman, London (1957)
* ''The Oxford Companion to the Theatre'', ed [[Phyllis Hartnoll]], Oxford (1985) {{ISBN|0-19-211546-4}}
* ''The Oxford Companion to American Theatre'', ed [[Gerald Bordman]], Oxford (1992) {{ISBN|0-19-507246-4}}
== References ==
<references />
==External links==
{{Commons category|John Van Druten}}
{{wikisource|works=or}}
* {{IBDB name}}
* {{IMDb name|0886668}}
* {{FadedPage|id=van Druten, John|name=John van Druten|author=yes}}
* [http://archives.nypl.org/the/21311 John Van Druten papers, 1901–1957], held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division, [[New York Public Library for the Performing Arts]]
* [http://archives.nypl.org/mss/3134 John Van Druten papers, circa 1920–1957], held by the Manuscripts and Archives Division, [[New York Public Library]]
* {{Find a Grave|9754|John William Van Druten|work=Actor, playwright|date=3 June 2000|access-date=1 July 2011}}
* [https://archive.org/download/BestPlays/BestPlays53-08-0245TheresAlwaysJuliet.mp3 1953 ''Best Plays'' adaptation of "There's Always Juliet"] at [[Internet Archive]]
* [https://archive.org/download/TheaterGuildontheAir/Tgoa_52-12-07_ep130-The_Damask_Cheek.mp3 1952 ''Theatre Guild on the Air'' radio adaptation of "The Damask Cheek"] at [[Internet Archive]]
* {{Internet Archive|id=iremembermama00vand|name=I Remember Mama, by Van Druten, John; 1945, New York, : Harcourt, Brace and Company}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vandruten, John}}
[[Category:1901 births]]
[[Category:1957 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century English male writers]]
[[Category:20th-century English screenwriters]]
[[Category:Alumni of the University of London]]
[[Category:Burials at Coachella Valley Public Cemetery]]
[[Category:Donaldson Award winners]]
[[Category:English emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:English LGBTQ screenwriters]]
[[Category:English LGBTQ writers]]
[[Category:English male screenwriters]]
[[Category:English people of Dutch descent]]
[[Category:People educated at University College School]]
[[Category:Writers from London]]
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