 | Daphne du Maurier: Encyclopedia - Daphne du Maurier
Daphne du Maurier
Daphne du Maurier DBE (May 13, 1907 – April 19, 1989) was one of the most successful Cornish novelists of all time. Her best-known work, Rebecca (1938), is a literary classic and was the inspiration for Alfred Hitchcock's Oscar-winning film.
She was born in London, the daughter of the actor-manager Sir Gerald du Maurier, and granddaughter of the author and cartoonist, George du Maurier. These gave a head start to her literary career, and her first novel, The Loving Spirit, was published in 1931.
Although married for many years to Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick "Boy" Browning and the mother of one son and two daughters, Daphne du Maurier was bisexual (which she referred to as her "Venetian tendencies"), and had intimate relationships with several women, including actress Gertrude Lawrence.
Her writing went from strength to strength. She is most noted for the novel Rebecca which has been filmed on several occasions. Besides Rebecca, several of her other novels were made into films, including Jamaica Inn (1936), Frenchman's Creek (1942), Hungry Hill (1943) and My Cousin Rachel (1951). The Hitchcock film The Birds (1963) is based on a treatment of one of her short stories, as is the film Don't Look Now (1973). She also wrote non-fiction. One of her most imaginative works, The Glass-Blowers, traces her French ancestry.
She was named a Dame of the British Empire, and died at the age of 81 in 1989, at her home in Cornwall, in a region which had been the setting for many of her books.
Interestingly she was a member of the Cornish nationalist pressure group/political party Mebyon Kernow.
As per her desire, Dame Daphne's body was cremated and her ashes were scattered on the cliffs near her home.
Daphne du Maurier - External link
- Daphne du Maurier
- Daphne du Maurier
- Interview with Daphne du Maurier - 1977
Categories: 1907 births | 1989 deaths | Historical novelists | Cornish people | British novelists | Bisexual writers | Dames Commander of the British Empire
Other related archives1907, 1907 births, 1936, 1938, 1942, 1943, 1951, 1963, 1973, 1989, 1989 deaths, Alfred Hitchcock, April 19, Bisexual writers, British novelists, Cornish, Cornish people, Cornwall, DBE, Dame of the British Empire, Dames Commander of the British Empire, Don't Look Now, Frenchman's Creek, Gertrude Lawrence, Historical novelists, Hungry Hill, Jamaica Inn, Lieutenant-General, London, May 13, Mebyon Kernow, My Cousin Rachel, Oscar, Rebecca, Sir Frederick "Boy" Browning, The Birds, author, bisexual, cartoonist, cremated, non-fiction, novelists
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