Lynn Riggs
Lynn Riggs was an American playwright and poet, best known for his play "Green Grow the Lilacs," which inspired the iconic musical "Oklahoma!" by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Born on August 31, 1899, in Claremore, Oklahoma, Riggs drew heavily from his Cherokee heritage and experiences of farm life in Oklahoma, infusing his works with themes of country ballads, folk songs, and cowboy music. Despite facing early challenges, including a failed Broadway production of "Borned in Texas," Riggs eventually found success with "Green Grow the Lilacs," which received acclaim from the Theatre Guild and paved the way for the famous musical adaptation. Throughout his career, Riggs wrote extensively, often contributing to nonprofessional productions and serving as a lecturer at universities. While he may not have achieved widespread fame, Riggs is recognized for his unique contributions to American drama and the use of folklore in theater. He passed away in New York City on June 30, 1954, leaving behind a legacy that continues to be explored and appreciated in the context of American theatrical history.
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Subject Terms
Lynn Riggs
American playwright
- Born: August 31, 1899
- Birthplace: Near Claremore, Indian Territory (now Oklahoma)
- Died: June 30, 1954
- Place of death: New York, New York
Identity: American Indian (Cherokee)
Biography
The success of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II’s musical Oklahoma!, which is based on Green Grow the Lilacs, has kept Lynn Riggs’s name alive. Riggs’s works celebrate and preserve the author’s Cherokee heritage, his recollections of Oklahoma farm life, and his love of the American musical traditions of country ballads, folk songs, and cowboy music.
Rolla Lynn Riggs was born August 31, 1899, at Claremore, Oklahoma, into the life he portrayed so well in his best work. He attended local schools and the state university, sandwiching his education between a variety of jobs, some associated with writing. His poems were published in national magazines before any of his plays were accepted commercially. Borned in Texas, produced as Roadside in 1930, was a failure on Broadway, but Green Grow the Lilacs, which followed, received an excellent Theatre Guild production in 1931. This same group insisted that Rodgers and Hammerstein revise the play as a musical; out of this collaboration, Oklahoma! was born. In the meantime, Riggs went on writing, occasionally appearing as visiting lecturer in universities, and assisting in productions, mostly nonprofessional, of his later works. He died in New York City on June 30, 1954.
Second only to Paul Green in the provocative use of folklore in drama, Riggs was never a popular playwright, yet he continued to write and produce individually excellent plays. Criticism has only begun to evaluate his minor but significant contribution to the American drama.
Bibliography
Braunlich, Phyllis. Haunted by Home: The Life and Letters of Lynn Riggs. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1988. An important biography and critical analysis of Riggs’s works. Illustrations, complete listing of Riggs’s works, extensive bibliography, and index.
Braunlich, Phyllis Cole. “The Oklahoma Plays of R. Lynn Riggs.” World Literature Today 64 (Summer, 1990): 120-136.
Brenton, Joseph. “Some Personal Reminiscences About Lynn Riggs.” Chronicles of Oklahoma 34 (Autumn, 1956): 296-301. A warm remembrance of Riggs by Brenton, who knew him from his earliest college days in Oklahoma to his death in New York. Brenton places some of Riggs’s major decisions and accomplishments into biographical context.
Downer, Alan S. Fifty Years of American Drama. Chicago: Henry Regnery, 1951. In the chapter entitled “Folk Drama,” Downer suggests that Green Grow the Lilacs, and more important, Roadside, epitomize the American folk drama. The plays are distinguished above other Western melodramas by their poetry of speech, warm humanity, and characters. Index.
Erhard, Thomas. Lynn Riggs: Southwest Playwright. Austin, Tex.: Steck-Vaughn, 1970. This forty-four-page monograph provides an excellent biography and critical introduction to Riggs’s plays. Erhard comments on the playwright’s use of the territorial Oklahoma dialect and settings to tell universal stories of human drama.
Wilk, M. OK! The Story of Oklahoma! 1993. Reprint. New York: Applause, 2002. Discusses Riggs’s contribution to the musical theater.