1890-1976
The world's most famous mystery novelist Agatha Christie was born Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller (she was later Dame Agatha, Lady Mallowan) on this day in Torquay, Devon, England. For such a towering literary figure, there is little point in my attempting to write up a synopsis of her life. Suffice to say that she was born into a well of family, to a mother who was born in Belfast and a father who came from an "upper crust" American family. She was the baby of the family and gained the surname "Christie" when she married Archibald Christie in 1914 with whom she had one child--a daughter. The couple would divorce in 1928 and she would marry Sir Max Mallowan in 1930--this is how she gained the title of Lady Mallowan, but for professional purposes, she kept her first married name for publication. She also published romance novels under the pen name Mary Westmacott. Her mystery play The Mousetrap holds the world record for being the longest running play in history. She had actually began to write before her first marriage, but was not published until 1920; and that was The Mysterious Affair at Styles--introducing the world to her exacting Belgian detective: Hercule Poirot. Since this blog in concerned with silent films and films of the 1920's, I will just jump to the two films of her work that were produced in 1928 and 1929 respectively. The first was, not surprisingly, a British mystery feature based on her story "The Coming of Mr. Quinn": The Passing of Mr. Quinn. The other film, Adventures, Inc. (Die Abenteurer G. m. b. H.) is from Germany and is based on her novel The Secret Adversary. Both of these films are silent. It would be a further two years on, when Alibi was released in 1931, that a talkie would be made using her work. Her works are so adaptable, that it is hardly surprising that her writing would be a source for early television. In fact, one of her works made it into one of the earliest television programs in the UK, via the stage. In 1937 her short story "The Wasp's Nest"--a Poirot mystery--was the featured in an episode by the same name in the series Theater Parade. The series featured filmed plays of actual theatrical performances of works of literature. The stage adaptation featured in the episode was adapted for the stage by Christie herself. As of this writing, four projects are in various stages of production adapting her work for the small and large screen. One of them, Death On The Nile--slated for release next year--is a return to the screen of Kenneth Branagh as Poirot. Another, Witness For The Prosecution was just announced, and is set to be directed by Ben Affleck. The other two projects are destined for television. The most recent release, again as of this writing, The ABC Murders is a mini-series made for the BBC and stars John Malkovich as Poirot. Christie died in her Oxfordshire home from natural causes on the 12th of January 1976 at the age of 85. She is buried in the graveyard of St. Mary's in Cholsey. She is the best selling author "of all time" as her website proclaims. This is actually an understatement.
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