John Sanford
John Sanford, born Julian L. Shapiro in 1904 in New York City, was a notable American novelist, historian, and lawyer. After completing his education at Lafayette College and Fordham University, he began practicing law in 1928. Influenced by writer Nathanael West, Sanford transitioned to writing, publishing his first novel, *The Water Wheel*, in 1933. He legally changed his name to John Sanford in 1940, likely reflecting his left-wing populist beliefs. His marriage to screenwriter Marguerite Roberts, who shared his political views, coincided with his decision to pursue writing full-time after their meeting at Paramount Studios in 1936. Throughout the 1950s, the couple faced blacklisting due to their Communist Party affiliations, which hindered Sanford's career until a resurgence in the 1970s with the publication of *A More Goodly Country*, a work praised for its imaginative historical perspective. Sanford continued to write prolifically, earning a PEN award in 1986 for his autobiographical series, *Scenes from the Life of an American Jew*. He passed away in 2003, leaving behind a rich legacy of literature that explored history through fictionalized narratives.
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John Sanford
Author
- Born: May 31, 1904
- Birthplace: New York, New York
- Died: March 6, 2003
- Place of death: Santa Barbara, California
Biography
Novelist, historian, and lawyer John Sanford was born in 1904 in New York City. He attended Lafayette College and Fordham University before he became an attorney in 1928. Shortly after he started practicing law, he had a conversation with his old friend, writer Nathanael West, which motivated Sanford to become a writer.
He began writing while he was practicing law, publishing his first novel, The Water Wheel, in 1933 under his birth name, Julian L. Shapiro. West suggested he change his name to Starbuck. Shapiro legally changed his name to John Sanford in 1940, probably because of his association with left-wing populism in the 1930’s. He married Marguerite Roberts, a screenwriter with similar convictions, while on a trip to Los Angeles to pursue the film industry’s interest in his books. He and Roberts met in the writers’ building at Paramount Studios in 1936, and that year he gave up his law practice to become a full-time writer. He married Roberts in 1938 and she encouraged him to stay at home and write his books, while she was the breadwinner for many years.
Although Sanford never belonged to a union, he liked to root for the underdog, leading to his involvement in the Communist Party. His wife also joined the party, and because of their membership the couple was blacklisted throughout the 1950’s. Sanford’s reputation did not recover until the mid- 1970’s, when he published A More Goodly Country: A Personal History of America (1975). In it, he recounted the history of the United States, from the arrival of Leif Ericksson’s ship to President Harry S. Truman’s decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. The book won critical acclaim, and Sanford enjoyed continued success, winning a PEN award in 1986 for the first volume of his five-volume autobiography, Scenes from the Life of an American Jew (1985-1991).
Sanford wrote prolifically throughout his career, producing novels and autobiographical works from the 1930’s into the new millennium. He was respected by critics for the imagination of his historical writing, which frequently recounted familiar historical events from the vantage point of fictionalized eyewitnesses. Sanford died at his home in Santa Barbara, California, in 2003 from an aortic aneurism. His last work of autobiography, A Palace of Silver, was published in 2003.