Walter Greenwood

Walter Greenwood (17 December 1903 – 13 September 1974) was an English novelist, best known for the socially influential novel Love on the Dole (1933).

Greenwood was born at 56, Ellor Street, his father's house and hairdresser's shop in "Hanky Park", Pendleton, Salford, Lancashire.[1][2] His parents belonged to the radical working classes. His father died when he was nine years old, and his mother provided for him by working as a waitress. Like many children he quit school at the age of 13 to work (as a pawnbroker's clerk). He had a succession of low paid jobs, and continued to educate himself in Salford Public Library. During periods of unemployment he worked for the local Labour Party and began to write short stories.

While unemployed, he wrote his first novel, Love on the Dole, during 1932. It was about the destructive social effects of poverty in his home town. After several rejections, it was published during 1933. It was a critical and commercial success, and a great influence on the British public's opinion of unemployment. It even prompted parliament to investigate, resulting in reforms. The popularity of the novel, which was adapted as a play that had successful runs in both Britain and the United States, meant Greenwood would not have to worry about employment again.

The script for the 1935 Sydney Howard comedy, Where’s George? was written by Greenwood although it had none of the social commentary of his other work.[3]

Greenwood was engaged to a local Salford girl named Alice and stayed in Salford for a while, where he served as a city councilor, but soon relocated to London. He abandoned his fiancée who sued him successfully for breach of promise. During 1937 he married Pearl Alice Osgood, an American actress and dancer.

Although he never matched the success of Love on the Dole, he produced a succession of novels during the 1930s: His Worship The Major (1934), The Time Is Ripe (1935), Standing Room Only, or 'A Laugh In Every Line' (1936), Cleft Stick (1937), Only Mugs Work (1938), The Secret Kingdom (1938) and How The Other Man Lives (1939). He also co-wrote a George Formby movie, No Limit (1935).

While living in Polperro, Cornwall during 1938, Greenwood started a production company, Greenpark Productions Ltd, which trades as a movie archive.[4] During 1941 Love on the Dole was made into a movie featuring Deborah Kerr.

During the Second World War Greenwood produced movies by Greenpark Productions Ltd for the British government, and served with the Royal Army Service Corps. During 1944 he published Something in my Heart, and divorced Pearl.

After the war he wrote the Trelooe trilogy – So Brief The Spring (1952), What Everybody Wants (1954) and Down By The Sea (1956) – and a few plays: The Cure For Love (1945, filmed 1950),[5][6] Date of West End opening "12 July 1945" Too Clever for Love (1952) and Saturday Night at the Crown (1958). He also co-wrote the movie Chance of a Lifetime during 1950, in a similar factory setting to Love on the Dole. During 1951 his book Lancashire of the County Books Series was published by Robert Hale and Company. It has only five chapters of which the first four are short[7] and the fifth (pp. 42-298) contains descriptions of the larger towns and a selection of other places. He retired to Douglas, Isle of Man during the 1950s, and wrote an autobiography There Was A Time (1967) which became a play Hanky Park (1968).

Greenwood's manuscripts and letters are archived in the University of Salford's Walter Greenwood Collection.

He died in Douglas, Isle of Man on 13 September 1974 aged 70.

References

  1. ↑ "56 Ellor Street, Greenwood's birthplace, empty and derelict". The National Archives. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
  2. ↑ "Walter Greenwood Collection". University of Salford Archives and Special Collections. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
  3. ↑ Tony Collins. "'Where's George?': League's Forgotten Feature Film". Rugby Reloaded. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
  4. ↑ Anon. "History of Greenpark Productions". Greenpark Productions. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  5. ↑ Cure for Love (1945, souvenir theatre programme from the pre-West End production of this play dated "Week commencing Monday, June 4th, 1945"
  6. ↑ "Cure for Love". Retrieved 21 February 2010.
  7. ↑ I. '"The classic soil".--II. Lancashire women.--III. Lancashire men.--IV. The younger element.
  • Kunitz, Stanley J. & Haycraft, Howard (1942) Twentieth Century Authors: a biographical dictionary of modern literature. New York: H. W. Wilson Co.
  • Constantine, Stephen (1982) "Love on the Dole and its reception in the 1930s," in Literature and History; 8:2 (1982), 232-49.
  • Gaughan, Matthew (2008) "Palatable Socialism or 'The Real Thing'? Walter Greenwood's Love on the Dole", in: Literature and History; 17:2 (2008), 47-61.
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