1. John Steinbeck
B I O G R A P H Y

2. John Steinbeck was one of the best-
known and most widely read American
writers of the 20th century.

3. About John Steinbeck´s Life
(year)
(event)
John Ernst Steinbeck was born in Salinas (CA) on February 27.
1902
J.Steinbeck´s family:
His father John Ernst Steinbeck, Sr., was a County Treasurer, his mother Olive Hamilton Steinbeck was a teacher. J.Steinbeck was their third child. He had two older sisters: Elizabeth and Esther and a younger one, Mary.
information
Graduated from Salinas High School in June.
1919

4. 1919 1925 J.Steinbeck started to study at Stanford University.
information
information
During his studies he worked periodically at various jobs to earn money.
He left Stanford University without a degree and pursued his writing career in New York.
1925
information
He left Stanford because he disliked the university lifestyle. In New York he was not successful in getting his writing published, so he returned back to California.

5. 1929 1930 His first novel Cup of Gold was published.
He married his first wife, Carol Henning
( divorced 1942).
1930

6. Tortilla Flat was published turning point in his literary career.
1935
information
T. F. marked the turning point in his literary career when he was awarded the California Commonwealth Club's Gold Medal for best novel by a Californian author. Now he was famous and people knew his name.
1937
Of Mice and Men is published.

7. 1939 1940 1942 The Grapes of Wrath won the Pulitzer Prize.
He travelled around the Gulf of California with his friend Ed Ricketts. Both were very interested in marine biology.
1940
1942
He divorced his first wife, Carol Henning. That same year he married Gwyn Conger, his second wife.

8. 1943
In the Second World War Steinbeck was a war correspondent for a New Yorker newspaper.
His first son, Thomas Myles Steinbeck, was born.
1944
1946
John Steinbeck IV was born.
information
Thomas and John were Steinbeck´s only children.
1948
He divorced his second wife, Gwyn Conger.

9. 1949
Ed Ricketts died.
He married his third wife Elaine Scott.
1950
information
Elaine Scott was the ex-wife of actor Zachary Scott. They stayed married until his death.
1952
He wrote one of his most popular novels, East of Eden.

10. 1960
He wrote Travels with Charley. [Charley was Steinbeck‘s dog.]
information
He wrote the book during a coast-to-coast road trip he took across the U.S. The reason for the trip was that he knew he would die and he wanted to see his country one last time.
He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature “...for his realistic as well as imaginative writings, distinguished by a sympathetic humor and a keen social perception.”
1962

11. 1964
He got the United States Medal of Freedom from President Lyndon B. Johnson.
1967
He went to Vietnam as a war correspondent.
1968
John Steinbeck died in New York City on December 20th after a heart attack.
information
His body was cremated and his ashes were put in an urn at the family gravesite, like he had wished.

12. parents J.S. Olive Hamilton Steinbeck John Ernst Steinbeck Sr.
Elizabeth
Esther
Mary
J.S.
best friend: Ed Ricketts
first wife: Carol Henning
(12 years)
third wife: Elaine Scott
(18 years – until his death)
second wife: Gwyn Conger
sons:
(6 years)
John St. IV
Thomas Myles

13. To John Steinbeck his hometown Salinas played an important role
To John Steinbeck his hometown Salinas played an important role. When he lived in big cities like New York, he often visited Salinas. That was the place where he felt „at home“.
In his childhood he spent summers working on nearby ranches and he often worked together with migrant labourers. So he got to know a lot of information about them.
He also explored the area when he walked across local forests, fields and farms.
All this material is the background for most of his short stories.
Many stories were made into film, for example East of Eden and also Of Mice and Men.

14. Franka Dreyer & Kristina Gessat
resources: steinbeck.org / wikipedia.de
a presentation by
Franka Dreyer & Kristina Gessat

15. THE END