W. Somerset Maugham

W. Somerset Maugham

Known for: Writing
Biography: 1874-01-25
Deathday: 1965-12-16 (91 years old)

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Biography

William Somerset Maugham CH (25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German university. He became a medical student in London and qualified as a physician in 1897. He never practised medicine, and became a full-time writer. His first novel, Liza of Lambeth (1897), a study of life in the slums, attracted attention, but it was as a playwright that he first achieved national celebrity. By 1908 he had four plays running at once in the West End of London. He wrote his 32nd and last play in 1933, after which he abandoned the theatre and concentrated on novels and short stories.


Maugham's novels after Liza of Lambeth include Of Human Bondage (1915), The Moon and Sixpence (1919), The Painted Veil (1925), Cakes and Ale (1930) and The Razor's Edge (1944). His short stories were published in collections such as The Casuarina Tree (1926) and The Mixture as Before (1940); many of them have been adapted for radio, cinema and television. His great popularity and prodigious sales provoked adverse reactions from highbrow critics, many of whom sought to belittle him as merely competent. More recent assessments generally rank Of Human Bondage − a book with a large autobiographical element − as a masterpiece, and his short stories are widely held in high critical regard. Maugham's plain prose style became known for its lucidity, but his reliance on clichés attracted adverse critical comment.


During the First World War Maugham worked for the British Secret Service, later drawing on his experiences for stories published in the 1920s. Although primarily homosexual, he attempted to conform to some extent with the norms of his day. He became a father and husband, marrying Syrie Wellcome in 1917, three years into an affair that produced their daughter, Liza. The marriage lasted for twelve years, but before, during and after it, Maugham's principal partner was a younger man, Gerald Haxton. Together they made extended visits to Asia, the South Seas and other destinations; Maugham gathered material for his fiction wherever they went. They lived together in the French Riviera, where Maugham entertained lavishly. After Haxton's death in 1944, Alan Searle became Maugham's secretary-companion for the rest of the author's life. Maugham gave up writing novels shortly after the Second World War, and his last years were marred by senility. He died at the age of 91.


Description above from the Wikipedia article W. Somerset Maugham, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Filmography

all 87

Movies 83

Writer 78

TV Shows 4

self 1

Writer
The Scar

The Scar (2016)

Movie
Writer
The Painted Veil

The Painted Veil (2006)

Movie
8.33
Writer
Being Julia

Being Julia (2004)

Movie
3
Writer
Up at the Villa

Up at the Villa (2000)

Movie
Writer
Change of Fortune

Change of Fortune (1987)

Movie
Writer
The Razor's Edge

The Razor's Edge (1984)

Movie
Writer
Overnight Sensation

Overnight Sensation (1984)

Movie
Writer
The Letter

The Letter (1982)

Movie
Writer
Wilson's Reward

Wilson's Reward (1980)

Movie
Writer
Sly Female… Sly Woman!

Sly Female… Sly Woman! (1980)

Movie
Writer
Gigolo and Gigolette

Gigolo and Gigolette (1980)

Movie
Writer
Jane

Jane (1979)

Movie
Writer
Театр

Театр (1979)

TV
Story
Tales of the Unexpected

Tales of the Unexpected (1979)

TV
Writer
Theatre

Theatre (1978)

Movie
Writer
Diener und andere Herren

Diener und andere Herren (1978)

Movie
Writer
Sonntagsgeschichten

Sonntagsgeschichten (1976)

Movie
Writer
Rex Harrison Presents Stories of Love

Rex Harrison Presents Stories of Love (1974)

Movie
Original Story
The Tragedy of Dr. Hosny

The Tragedy of Dr. Hosny (1973)

Movie
Writer
Eine konsequente Frau

Eine konsequente Frau (1971)

Movie
Novel / Story
Alta comedia

Alta comedia (1970)

TV
Writer
Constance

Constance (1969)

Movie
Theatre Play
Kouzlo domova

Kouzlo domova (1966)

Movie
Writer
Kaakum Karangal

Kaakum Karangal (1965)

Movie
Writer
Of Human Bondage

Of Human Bondage (1964)

Movie
Writer
Der Kreis

Der Kreis (1964)

Movie
Writer
Lady Frederick

Lady Frederick (1963)

Movie
Writer
Heute kündigt mir mein Mann

Heute kündigt mir mein Mann (1963)

Movie
Writer
Adorable Julia

Adorable Julia (1962)

Movie
Writer
Finden Sie, daß Constanze sich richtig verhält?

Finden Sie, daß Constanze sich richtig verhält? (1962)

Movie
Writer
Die ewige Flamme

Die ewige Flamme (1961)

Movie
Writer
A String of Beads

A String of Beads (1961)

Movie
Writer
Finden Sie, dass Constanze sich richtig verhält?

Finden Sie, dass Constanze sich richtig verhält? (1960)

Movie
Writer
Bezaubernde Julia

Bezaubernde Julia (1960)

Movie
Writer
Das Land der Verheißung

Das Land der Verheißung (1960)

Movie
Writer
The Moon and Sixpence

The Moon and Sixpence (1959)

Movie
Story
The Traitor

The Traitor (1959)

Movie
Writer
The Seventh Sin

The Seventh Sin (1957)

Movie
Writer
Three Cases of Murder

Three Cases of Murder (1955)

Movie
Writer
Three for the Show

Three for the Show (1955)

Movie
Writer
The Beachcomber

The Beachcomber (1954)

Movie
Writer
Miss Sadie Thompson

Miss Sadie Thompson (1953)

Movie
Self and Narrator / Story
Encore

Encore (1951)

Movie
Somerset Maugham Theatre

Somerset Maugham Theatre (1950)

TV
Writer
Trio

Trio (1950)

Movie
Writer
Quartet

Quartet (1948)

Movie
6
Writer
The Unfaithful

The Unfaithful (1947)

Movie
2
Writer
The Razor's Edge

The Razor's Edge (1946)

Movie
Novel
Of Human Bondage

Of Human Bondage (1946)

Movie
Writer
Somewhere in the Night

Somewhere in the Night (1946)

Movie
Writer
Dirty Gertie from Harlem U.S.A.

Dirty Gertie from Harlem U.S.A. (1946)

Movie
Writer
Christmas Holiday

Christmas Holiday (1944)

Movie
Writer
The Hour Before the Dawn

The Hour Before the Dawn (1944)

Movie
Writer
The Moon and Sixpence

The Moon and Sixpence (1942)

Movie
Writer
The Letter

The Letter (1940)

Movie
4.25
Writer
Too Many Husbands

Too Many Husbands (1940)

Movie
Writer
The Circle

The Circle (1939)

Movie
Writer
Vessel of Wrath

Vessel of Wrath (1938)

Movie
Writer
Another Dawn

Another Dawn (1937)

Movie
Writer
Isle of Fury

Isle of Fury (1936)

Movie
Writer
The Tenth Man

The Tenth Man (1936)

Movie
Writer
Secret Agent

Secret Agent (1936)

Movie
4.8
Writer
The Right to Live

The Right to Live (1935)

Movie
Writer
The Painted Veil

The Painted Veil (1934)

Movie
Writer
Of Human Bondage

Of Human Bondage (1934)

Movie
Writer
The Narrow Corner

The Narrow Corner (1933)

Movie
Writer
Our Betters

Our Betters (1933)

Movie
Writer
Rain

Rain (1932)

Movie
Writer
The Holy Flames

The Holy Flames (1931)

Movie
Writer
The Letter

The Letter (1931)

Movie
Writer
Woman in the Jungle

Woman in the Jungle (1931)

Movie
Writer
The Letter

The Letter (1930)

Movie
Writer
Strictly Unconventional

Strictly Unconventional (1930)

Movie
Writer
The Sacred Flame

The Sacred Flame (1929)

Movie
Writer
Charming Sinners

Charming Sinners (1929)

Movie
Writer
The Letter

The Letter (1929)

Movie
Writer
Sadie Thompson

Sadie Thompson (1928)

Movie
Writer
The Canadian

The Canadian (1926)

Movie
Writer
The Magician

The Magician (1926)

Movie
6
Monsieur Duval
Camille: The Fate of a Coquette

Camille: The Fate of a Coquette (1926)

Movie
Writer
Infatuation

Infatuation (1925)

Movie
Writer
The Circle

The Circle (1925)

Movie
8
Writer
East of Suez

East of Suez (1925)

Movie
Writer
The Ordeal

The Ordeal (1922)

Movie
Writer
Jack Straw

Jack Straw (1920)

Movie
Writer
The Divorcee

The Divorcee (1919)

Movie
Writer
The Land of Promise

The Land of Promise (1917)

Movie

Ratings

Average 4.94
Based on 194 Thousand movie and tv ratings over time
1917
1934
1951
1937
2016
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Information

Known For
Writing

Gender
Male

Birthday
1874-01-25

Deathday
1965-12-16 (91 years old)

Birth Place
Paris, France

Height

Relationships
Syrie Maugham (1917-05-01 - 1929-01-01)

Children
Mary Elizabeth Maugham

Father
Robert Ormond Maugham

Mother
Edith Mary Snell

Siblings
Henry Neville Maugham

Citizenships
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom

Also Known As
William Somerset Maugham, Somerset Maugham

Awards
Companion of Honour


This article uses material from Wikipedia.
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