Richard Yates

Born in Yonkers, New York, Yates came from an unstable home. His parents divorced when he was three and much of his childhood was spent in many different towns and residences. Yates first became interested in journalism and writing while attending Avon Old Farms School in Avon, Connecticut. After leaving Avon, Yates joined the army and served in France and Germany in the late 1940s and early 1950s.[1] Upon his return to New York he worked as a journalist, freelance ghost writer (briefly writing speeches for Senator Robert Kennedy), publicity writer for Remington Rand Corporation.[2] His career as a novelist began in 1961 with the publication of the widely heralded Revolutionary Road. He subsequently taught writing at Columbia University, the New School for Social Research[1], Boston University (where his papers are archived)[3], and at the University of Iowa Writer's Workshop. In 1962, he wrote the screenplay for a film adaptation of William Styron's Lie Down In Darkness. Twice divorced and the father of three daughters, Yates died of complications from minor surgery in Birmingham, Alabama in 1992. It is assumed his lifelong alcoholism and chain smoking contributed to his premature death.