American writer (1862-1910). Born
William Sydney Porter in
Greenboro, North Carolina, he left
school at the age of 15 to work at a variety of jobs in
Texas--he worked as a
ranchhand, a
bank clerk, and a
reporter and
columnist for the
Houston Post. He also became a
heavy drinker. In 1894, he was accused of embezzling
money from the bank and fled to
Honduras. He returned the next year because his
wife was
dying and was
convicted of
embezzlement in 1897.
While in
prison in
Columbus, Ohio, he started writing
short stories to support his
daughter. His first story, "
Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking", was published in
McClure's Magazine in 1899. After serving three years of his five year
sentence, he was released from
prison in 1901 and officially changed his
name to O. Henry. He moved to
New York City and began writing a
story a week for the
New York World. A number of
collections of his
stories were published, but his
final years were plagued by
alcoholism, poor
health, and
financial troubles. He died of
tuberculosis on June 5, 1910.
O. Henry wrote an
astounding 600 short stories. His stories are best known for their
ironic twist endings, and he also preferred to
write about the
everyday lives of
ordinary people, especially
New Yorkers and
rural Texans. Some of his best known stories are "
The Gift of the Magi", "
The Furnished Room", "
The Last Leaf", and "
The Ransom of Red Chief".