Share

Edward Gorey biography

1 photo

Quick Facts

Best Known For

Edward Gorey was an American illustrator best known for his cartoons of Edwardian children coming to macabre ends. He work can be seen in the animated credits of PBS' Masterpiece Mystery.

Quiz

Think you know about Biography?

Answer questions and see how you rank against other players.

Play Now

Synopsis

Born on February 22, 1925 in Chicago, Illinois, Edward Gorey attended Harvard University before moving to New York City, where he landed a job in the art department of book publisher Doubleday. As an illustrator, Gorey developed a quirky, unique and macabre style that was a large influence on the work of artists like Tim Burton. After publishing his first work, 1953's Unstrung Harp, he gained a local following,

Quotes

"For some reason, my mission in life is to make everybody as uneasy as possible."
– Edward Gorey

and his popularity continued to grow. Other independent works include The Doubtful Guest (1957), The Hapless Child (1961), The Gashlycrumb Tinies (1963) and The Gilded Bat (1966). Gorey also illustrated numerous works by other writers, including literary greats H.G. Wells, T.S. Eliot, Charles Dickens, Lewis Carroll and Virginia Woolf. In 1978, he won a Tony Award for costume design on the Broadway production of Dracula. His work began even more widely known in 1980 with the premiere of the PBS series Mystery!, the intro of which boasted his illustrations. Gorey died on April 15, 2000, in Hyannis, Massachusetts.

Early Years

Born on February 22, 1925, in Chicago, Illinois, Edward St. John Gorey was a designer, writer and illustrator known for his hybrid artistic style, blending elements of goth and comedy. When Edward Gorey was 11 years old, his parents, Edward Lee Gorey, who worked as a journalist for a time, and Helen Dunham (Garvey) Gorey, divorced (but would reunite in marriage more than a decade later, when Edward was in his late 20s).

Following his graduation from Chicago's Francis W. Parker School in 1942, Gorey was drafted into the U.S. Army, serving during World War II from 1943 to the mid-1940s, after the war's end. Not long after returning from the war, he began attending Harvard University, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in French literature in 1950.

In 1953, Gorey moved to New York City and found work as an illustrator for the book-publishing company Doubleday Anchor, where he would stay for the next eight years. Around the same time he started at Doubleday, Gorey, who had been experimenting for some time with writing in addition to illustrating, published first independent work, The Unstrung Harp (1953).

Commercial Success

Following the publication of Unstrung Harp, Gorey began to gain a local following. His popularity continued to grow thereafter due to the release of additional works, including The Doubtful Guest (1957), his first children's book; The Hapless Child (1961); his 1963 abecedarian book The Gashlycrumb Tinies; The Gilded Bat (1966); and The Deranged Cousins: or, Whatever (1969), as well as his numerous and acclaimed collaborations. Gorey's book-illustration credits from this period include two books by famed author Edward Lear, including 1969's The Dong with a Luminous Nose, as well as the works of H.G. Wells, T.S. Eliot Samuel Beckett, John Updike, Charles Dickens, Lewis Carroll, Edmund Wilson, Virginia Woolf and John Bellairs. By the early '60s, Gorey had developed a reputation for his distinct, dark but humorous, style.

ADVERTISEMENT
40616 40616
profile id: 40616
profile name: Edward Gorey
profile occupation:
related profile id: 40616
related profile name: Edward Gorey
related profile occupation:
related profile img: /imported/images/Biography/Images/Profiles/G/Edward-Gorey-40616-1-402.jpg
related profile URL: /people/edward-gorey-40616
profile
pop
Your Connections

Sign in with Facebook to see how you and your friends are connected to famous icons.

specific profile connection
See More Bio Connections
Your Friends' Connections
specific friend connection
Profile Connections
    Show More Connections
    Included In These Groups

    See all related groups

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Celebrity Connections

    Show More Connections
    Fact Check: We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us!