Don Marquis
A New York newspaperman who gave voice to a philosophical cockroach and a free-verse feline, capturing the city's bohemian soul in column inches.
1878–1937 (age 59)·American writer·Birthday: July 29·The Gilded Age
Biography
Don Marquis arrived in New York from the Midwest, a newspaperman with a poet's heart and a satirist's eye. In the smoky newsrooms of the Evening Sun and the Tribune, he carved out a space for whimsy and social commentary. His most enduring creation emerged from a fictional premise: a cockroach named Archy, who typed free-verse poems by hurling himself at typewriter keys (unable to use shift, hence no capitals), recounting the misadventures of Mehitabel, an alley cat with the soul of a reincarnated Egyptian queen. Through this insect and feline, Marquis explored themes of fate, poverty, and artistic struggle, his column becoming a must-read for a generation that saw its own ragged, hopeful spirit in his characters.
The Gilded Age
1860–1882
Born during or after the Civil War, they built industrial America — the railroads, the steel mills, the first skyscrapers. An era of massive wealth, massive inequality, and the belief that the future belonged to whoever could build it fastest.
Don was born in 1878, placing them squarely in The Gilded Age. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Don Was Born
The biggest hits of 1878
Don's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1878Born
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1883Started school
President: Chester A. Arthur
1891Became a teenager
President: Benjamin Harrison
1894Could drive
President: Grover Cleveland
1896Could vote
First modern Olympic Games held in Athens
President: Grover Cleveland
1899Turned 21
President: William McKinley
1908Turned 30
Ford Model T goes into production
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1918Turned 40
World War I ends; Spanish flu pandemic kills millions
President: Woodrow Wilson
1928Turned 50
Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin; Mickey Mouse debuts
President: Calvin Coolidge"Ol' Man River" — Paul WhitemanBest Picture: Wings
1937Died at 59
Hindenburg disaster; Golden Gate Bridge opens
Gas: $0.20/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"A-Tisket, A-Tasket" — Ella FitzgeraldBest Picture: The Life of Emile Zola
Key Achievements
- Created the beloved literary characters Archy the cockroach and Mehitabel the cat, whose collected works remain in print a century later.
- Wrote the successful Broadway play 'The Old Soak,' based on his newspaper character celebrating pre-Prohibition drinking culture.
- Authored numerous novels, essays, and poems, establishing himself as a major American humorist of the early 20th century.
Did You Know?
His character Archy's lowercase, free-verse style is considered a precursor to the work of later poets like E. E. Cummings.
The Broadway success of 'The Old Soak' made him financially secure enough to leave daily newspaper work for a time.
He was a close friend of fellow humorist and columnist Christopher Morley.
“an optimist is a guy that has never had much experience.”
