Alfred Damon Runyon, a celebrated American journalist and author of short stories, came into this world on October 4, 1880, and eventually bid adieu to this mortal coil on December 10, 1946.
In the collective consciousness of New Yorkers who grew up during his lifetime, the term "Damon Runyon character" evoked a specific social archetype hailing from the vibrant, if slightly seedy, environs of Brooklyn or Midtown Manhattan's demi-monde. This phrase not only served as a descriptor for this particular type of character but also encompassed the distinctive narrative situations and dialogue that Runyon masterfully wove throughout his stories. His tales, replete with a cast of memorable characters, frequently featured individuals from the city's underworld, including gamblers, hustlers, actors, and gangsters, each with their own unique persona and alias. These colorful monikers, such as Nathan Detroit, Benny Southstreet, Big Jule, Harry the Horse, Good Time Charley, Dave the Dude, and The Seldom Seen Kid, became an integral part of Runyon's literary landscape, instantly conjuring a world of gritty, high-stakes drama and witty repartee.
Noted American author, Damon Runyon, was renowned for his unique and captivating writing style, which he dubbed "Runyonese". This distinctive vernacular was a masterful blend of formal, polished language and vibrant, colloquial slang. Runyon's signature writing technique was characterized by its use of the present tense, which imbued his narratives with a sense of immediacy and urgency. Moreover, his writing was notable for its lack of contractions, which added to the overall rhythm and cadence of his prose.
Runyon's literary legacy extends beyond his captivating writing style, as he is also credited with popularizing the phrase "Hooray Henry". This term, which has since been adopted in British English, refers to an individual who is perceived as being of upper-class status, loud-mouthed, and arrogant.
Noted American author and journalist Damon Runyon's creative legacy was cemented through the iconic musical production, Guys and Dolls, which drew inspiration from a pair of his remarkable short stories, "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" and "Blood Pressure". This celebrated musical not only borrowed characters and narrative threads from these two Runyon tales, but also incorporated elements from a few other of his notable stories, including "Pick The Winner". Moreover, Runyon's literary prowess was further showcased through the film adaptation of Little Miss Marker, with its two subsequent remakes, Sorrowful Jones and the 1980 version of Little Miss Marker, all of which were directly inspired by his original short story of the same name.
Noted author and journalist Damon Runyon's impressive career extended far beyond his work in fiction, as he made a name for himself as a renowned newspaper reporter, tackling a wide range of topics including sports and general news for various publications and syndicates owned by the influential William Randolph Hearst.
