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Frank Harris

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Frank Harris was a prolific Irish-American writer, editor, and publisher.

Frank Harris, Vanity Fair, 1913-11-12
Frank Harris, Vanity Fair, 1913-11-12

His career spanned journalism, novels, and memoirs. He was known for a very aggressive and irascible personality. This personality often drew him into the center of famous social circles. Harris moved between the worlds of manual labor and high literature. He was a man of many different roles and identities. He is most famous today for his controversial autobiography. This work remains a significant part of literary history.

Harris's early life was marked by constant movement and hard work. Born James Thomas Harris in 1856, he grew up in Galway, Ireland. His father, Thomas Vernon Harris, served as a naval officer from Wales. At age 12, Harris moved to Wales for school. He was unhappy there and ran away within a year. In 1869, he emigrated to New York City. He arrived with almost no money to his name. He worked as a boot black and a porter. He also labored on the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. These difficult jobs later provided material for his book, *The Bomb*.

After New York, Harris moved to Chicago to seek new opportunities. He worked as a hotel clerk and eventually a manager. Because Chicago was a center for meat packing, he met many cattlemen. This led him to leave the city to work as a cowboy. Eventually, he decided to pursue a formal education. He enrolled at the University of Kansas to study law. He earned his degree and joined the Kansas state bar. However, he soon grew tired of the legal profession. He chose to pursue a vocation in literature instead.

Harris's literary career took him back to Europe around 1882. He traveled through Germany, Austria, France, and Greece. He eventually settled in London to work in journalism. He became the editor of several important publications. These included the *Evening News* and the *Fortnightly Review*. His highest point in journalism was editing the *Saturday Review*. During this time, he worked with famous writers like H. G. Wells and George Bernard Shaw. From 1908 to 1914, he focused heavily on writing novels. He produced popular books like *The Man Shakespeare* and *The Yellow Ticket*.

During the Great War, Harris returned to the United States. From 1916 to 1922, he edited the American edition of *Pearson's Magazine*. This monthly publication featured short stories and news topics. The magazine faced challenges during the war years. Postmaster General Albert S. Burleson banned one issue from the mails. Despite this, Harris kept the magazine solvent and functioning. He navigated the difficult political landscape of the left-wing press. In April 1921, he officially became a United States citizen.

In 1922, Harris traveled to Berlin to publish his most famous work. This was his four-volume autobiography, *My Life and Loves*. It was published between 1922 and 1927. The book was notorious for its graphic descriptions of sexual encounters. Because of this content, many countries banned the work. Some critics also accused him of exaggerating his life. They claimed he was a "thundering liar" who only told the truth when his imagination failed. A fifth volume appeared in 1954, though its origins are doubtful. This work remains his most enduring, if controversial, legacy.

Harris's life was a complex web of connections and contradictions. He was a lawyer who became a cowboy and then a famous editor. He was an Irish-born man who became an American citizen. He was a friend to many of the greatest thinkers of his era. He wrote biographies of Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw. He even attempted playwriting, though only *Mr. and Mrs. Daventry* reached the stage. He died of a heart attack in Nice, France, in 1931. He was 75 years old at the time of his death. He was buried at the Cimetière Sainte-Marguerite.

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File:Frank Harris, Vanity Fair, 1913-11-12.jpg
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