Patricia Highsmith
A Texas-born comic-book scriptwriter whose first novel became a Hitchcock film, who created Tom Ripley, and who published a lesbian love story under another name, then spent her last decades in Europe.
The Talented Mr. Ripley
The 1955 novel that introduced Tom Ripley, the character she returned to in four more books.14 It won France's Grand Prix de Littérature Policière in 1957.2
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At a glance
- Born
- Mary Patricia Plangman, January 19, 1921, in Fort Worth, Texas14
- Parents
- The commercial artists Jay Bernard Plangman and Mary Coates; she took the name of her stepfather, Stanley Highsmith21
- Education
- Barnard College, graduated 19421
- First job
- Freelance comic-book scriptwriter, 1942 to the late 1940s42
- Pen name
- Claire Morgan, for The Price of Salt (1952)13
- Homes
- New York; from the 1960s England and France; her last years in Switzerland24
- Died
- February 4, 1995, in Locarno, Switzerland, aged 741
- Major awards
- Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, 1957, for The Talented Mr. Ripley2
- Crime Writers' Association Silver Dagger, 1964, for The Two Faces of January2
Patricia Highsmith's Backstory
Early life
Mary Patricia Plangman was born on January 19, 1921, in Fort Worth, Texas, the only child of the commercial artists Jay Bernard Plangman and Mary Coates, who divorced shortly after her birth.142 Her mother married Stanley Highsmith in 1924, and she took his name; she was raised for long stretches by her maternal grandmother in Fort Worth and moved to New York City as a child.24
New York and the comics
She graduated from Barnard College in 1942 and spent the next several years writing comic-book scripts, including romance comics for the companies that later became Marvel.14 Her story “The Heroine” appeared in Harper’s Bazaar in 1945.4 On Truman Capote’s recommendation she spent the summer of 1948 at the Yaddo artists’ colony, where she drafted her first novel.2
Strangers on a Train and Claire Morgan
Strangers on a Train was published in 1950, and Alfred Hitchcock’s film of it followed in 1951.1 In 1952 she published The Price of Salt, a love story between two women, under the name Claire Morgan, because she feared being labeled a writer of lesbian books; it was reissued under her own name as Carol in 1990.3
Ripley
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955) introduced Tom Ripley, a charming con man and killer whom she brought back in Ripley Under Ground (1970), Ripley’s Game (1974), The Boy Who Followed Ripley (1980) and Ripley Under Water (1991).14 The first novel won France’s Grand Prix de Littérature Policière in 1957, and The Two Faces of January won the Crime Writers’ Association’s Silver Dagger in 1964.2
Europe
She moved to England in 1963 and to France in 1967, and spent her last years in Switzerland, near Locarno.24 France made her a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters in 1990.4 She died in Locarno on February 4, 1995, at 74, of aplastic anemia and lung cancer, and left her estate to Yaddo.21 Her diaries and notebooks, edited by Anna von Planta, were published in 2021.1
Fun facts
- Before her first novel she wrote scripts for comic books, including romance comics for Timely and Atlas, the companies that became Marvel.4
- Truman Capote recommended her for the Yaddo artists' colony in 1948, and she drafted Strangers on a Train there.2
- The Price of Salt grew from a temporary Christmas job in Bloomingdale's toy department in 1948, where she noticed a blonde woman in a mink coat buy a doll and outlined a story about her that night.3
- The 25-cent Bantam paperback of The Price of Salt sold nearly a million copies, and fan letters reached her addressed to "Claire Morgan."3
- She kept snails as pets and once let them roam over the table at a dinner party.2
- In 1958 she co-wrote a children's picture book, Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda, with Doris Sanders.4
- She left her estate, about $3 million, and her future royalties to Yaddo.2
Books
In order of first publication. Each series is kept together, in reading order, starting where its first book appeared. Novels, with first-publication years, from Wikipedia's Patricia Highsmith article, checked against Britannica; other books from Britannica and the Library of America.214
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- 1950
- 1952The Price of Salt (Carol)
First published as by Claire Morgan; reissued as Carol under her own name in 1990.3
- 1954The Blunderer
Ripley (the Ripliad)
- 1955
- 1970Book 2Ripley Under Ground
- 1974Book 3Ripley's Game
- 1980Book 4The Boy Who Followed Ripley
- 1991Book 5Ripley Under Water
- 1957Deep Water
- 1958A Game for the Living
- 1958Miranda the Panda Is on the Veranda
- 1960This Sweet Sickness
- 1962The Cry of the Owl
- 1964The Glass Cell
- 1964The Two Faces of January
Won the Crime Writers' Association Silver Dagger.2
- 1965
- 1966Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction
A book on her craft, revised and enlarged in 1981.1
- 1967Those Who Walk Away
- 1969The Tremor of Forgery
- 1972A Dog's Ransom
- 1975The Animal-Lover's Book of Beastly Murder
- 1977Edith's Diary
- 1981The Black House
- 1983People Who Knock on the Door
- 1986Found in the Street
- 1987Tales of Natural and Unnatural Catastrophes
- 1995
- 2002Nothing That Meets the Eye: The Uncollected Stories
Published after her death.4
- 2021Patricia Highsmith: Her Diaries and Notebooks, 1941–1995
Edited by Anna von Planta and published after her death.1
Latest news
A Talent for Murder, a film starring Helen Mirren as Highsmith, opened in U.S. theaters from Bleecker Street; Anton Corbijn directed it from Joanna Murray-Smith's adaptation of her own play Switzerland.5
Adaptations and other media
Film
- Strangers on a Train1951Based on Strangers on a Train
Alfred Hitchcock's film, with a screenplay by Raymond Chandler and Czenzi Ormonde, starring Farley Granger and Robert Walker.14
- Purple Noon (Plein soleil)1960
A French film of her work, released in English as Purple Noon.2
- The American Friend1977Based on Ripley's Game
A film based on Ripley's Game.2
- The Talented Mr. Ripley1999Based on The Talented Mr. Ripley
An American film of the novel.2
- Carol2015Based on The Price of Salt (Carol)
Todd Haynes's film of The Price of Salt, with Cate Blanchett as Carol and Rooney Mara as Therese.3
- Deep Water2022Based on Deep Water
A film directed by Adrian Lyne.2
Television
- Ripley2024
A Netflix limited series starring Andrew Scott.2
Myth and record
Timeline
Born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas.1
Graduates from Barnard College and begins writing comic-book scripts.12
Stays at the Yaddo artists' colony, where she drafts Strangers on a Train.24
Strangers on a Train is published.1
Alfred Hitchcock's film of Strangers on a Train is released.1
The Price of Salt is published under the name Claire Morgan.3
The Talented Mr. Ripley is published.1
Moves to England.2
Moves to France.2
The Price of Salt is reissued as Carol under her own name.3
Ripley Under Water, the last Ripley novel, is published.1
Dies in Locarno, Switzerland, at 74.1
Patricia Highsmith: Her Diaries and Notebooks, 1941–1995 is published.1
The film A Talent for Murder, with Helen Mirren as Highsmith, opens in the U.S.5
What came after
Her literary estate is held by the Swiss Literary Archives in Bern, with the Swiss publisher Diogenes as her literary executor.2
Sources
- Patricia Highsmith Encyclopaedia BritannicaReference
- Patricia Highsmith Wikipedia (mirror)Reference
- The Price of Salt WikipediaReference
- Patricia Highsmith Library of America (Women Crime Writers)Reference
- A Talent for Murder: Helen Mirren as Patricia Highsmith Books of BrillianceNews
- The Talented Mr. Ripley (W. W. Norton paperback) Past ForwardWebsite