Biography of Larry McMurtry

Larry Jeff McMurtry was an American novelist, screenwriter, essayist, and antiquarian bibliophile from Texas best known for his Lonesome Dove book series. The eldest of four children, McMurtry grew up on his grandparents' ranch before moving to Archer City so that he and his siblings could more easily attend school. McMurtry loved reading despite the fact that in his early years, the only book in the household was a Bible. When a cousin left to fight in World War II, he gifted McMurtry a box of adventure novels that set the young boy on his literary path. McMurtry attended Rice Institute for three semesters before transferring to North Texas State College, where he received a B.A. in English in 1958. After graduating, McMurtry developed a fastidious writing schedule and eventually returned to Rice to complete his M.A.

In one of his writing classes, McMurtry expanded a short story he wrote into a novel that would eventually land him as a William Stegner fellow at Stanford University's creating writing program. Other fellowship recipients included Wendell Berry and Ken Kesey. McMurtry subsequently taught creative writing at different universities, all the while working on his novels. In 1964, McMurtry received a Guggenheim Fellowship for creative writing. Eventually, McMurtry generated enough income from the film sales of his books to stop teaching and focus on other endeavors.

In 1970, McMurtry opened an antiquarian bookshop called Booked Up with two partners in Washington D.C. Eventually, McMurtry returned to Archer City and opened another Booked Up location. The author penned his famous novel Lonesome Dove in 1985, and the book went on to become a bestseller, win a Pulitzer prize, and be adapted into an award-winning TV series. However, McMurtry expressed frustration at what he felt was a misrepresentation of his intentions. In interviews, he states his desire to "write a novel that demythologized the West." Unfortunately for him, the Lonesome Dove series "became a chief source of western mythology."

In 2005, McMurtry and Diana Ossana co-wrote the screenplay for Brokeback Mountain. They received the best adapted screenplay award. Over the years, McMurtry continued producing novels until his death in 2021.