Leonard Wibberley

Leonard Wibberley
Leonard Wibberley with actress Rosalind Russell, ca 1956
Born	Leonard Patrick O'Connor Wibberley 9 April 1915 County Dublin, Ireland
Died	22 November 1983 (aged 68) Santa Monica, California, US
Pen name	Patrick O'Connor
Occupation	Writer, author
Genre	Fiction, non-fiction, satire
Children	Cormac Wibberley

Leonard Patrick O'Connor Wibberley (9 April 1915 – 22 November 1983), who also published under the name Patrick O'Connor, among others, was a prolific and versatile Ireland-born author who spent most of his life in the United States.^[1] Wibberley, who published more than 100 books, is perhaps best known for five satirical novels about an imaginary country Grand Fenwick, particularly The Mouse That Roared (1955).^[1]

Wibberley's adult and juvenile publications cut across the categories of fictional novels, history, and biography. He also wrote short stories (several published in The Saturday Evening Post), plays and long verse poems. Some of his books are in series. Besides the 'Mouse' series, as Leonard Holton, he created the eleven-novel 'Father Bredder' mystery series (basis of a television series, Sarge (TV series)) about "a major figure in the clerical crime drama".^[2] Among his more than 50 juvenile books are (with Farrar, Straus and Giroux), a seven-volume 'Treegate' series of historical fiction and a four-volume life of Thomas Jefferson. As Patrick O'Connor, he wrote the Black Tiger series on auto racing, for young adults. Wibberley is also classified as a science fiction writer.

Throughout the decades, scenes and senses of the sea play important parts in both Wibberley's fiction and nonfiction. Three of his novels have been made into movies: The Mouse That Roared (1959), The Mouse on the Moon (1963), and The Hands of Cormac Joyce (1972).

Leonard Wibberley, sailor

Biography

Leonard Wibberley was born in Dublin, the youngest of six children, before his family moved to Cork, and educated in Gaelic until the age of eight at Ring College, Waterford, Ireland, when his family moved to England, where he attended Abbey House, Romsey, Hampshire then Cardinal Vaughan's Memorial School in London.^[3] His father was Thomas Wibberley, FRSA, Professor of Agricultural Research, University College, Cork^[4] (one of the three constituents of the National University of Ireland) and Queen's University Belfast. The elder Wibberley was an experimental agronomist, who wrote several books arguing his methods and inventions, by which he believed the UK might feed itself, absent empire: notably Farming on Factory Lines: continuous cropping for the large farmer (London, 1919)--and was made a Fellow of the Linnean Society (1921). Leonard's second name, "Patrick", was his confirmation name; his third, which he used as one of several noms de plume, was his matronymic, from his school-teacher mother, Shinaid O'Connor".^[5] On his father's death, Wibberley began a long career in newspapers, in London, as copy boy for the Sunday Dispatch (1931–32), then reporter for the Sunday Express (1932–34) and Daily Mirror (London, 1934–36), and was also assistant London editor for the Malayan Straits Times and the Singapore Free Press. He then emigrated for Trinidad, where he held several jobs, first, briefly, as editor of the Trinidad Evening News (1936), thereafter as an oilfield worker for Trinidad Leaseholds Ltd (1936–43), before immigrating to New York City in 1943. There he was initially employed by Walsh Kaiser Shipyards, but soon found important jobs in journalism again, as Cable Dispatch Editor for the Associated Press (New York City) during the war years of 1943-44 and New York Correspondent and Bureau Chief for the London Evening News (1944–46).^[6]

In 1947 Wibberley moved permanently to California, working in newspapers, first (1947) as city editor of the Turlock Daily Journal, then as editor of the Independent Journal, San Rafael (1947–49),^[7] next as copy editor then reporter, for the Los Angeles Times (1950–54). While working for the Times he began his novel-writing career. At age 37 he published his first novel,The King's Beard (1952). Leaving the newspaper business, he settled permanently in Hermosa Beach, California, as a full-time author, publishing 100 more books, at a rate of at least one a year and averaging more than three. Many were with three publishers: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; William Morrow; Dodd, Mead and Company. The best-known of Wibberley's books, The Mouse that Roared, was kept in print for some time by Bantam Books and then Four Walls Eight Windows. It, like the succeeding four 'Mouse' books, is available as an e-book.

Personal life

Wibberley took part in plays, did local radio readings and wrote a weekly syndicated column for the San Francisco Chronicle, 'The Wibberley Papers'.^[8] Some of those columns as well as others are available on the Leonard Wibberley official author website. His writing activities included unpublished and uncompleted projects, such as an unfinished 1958 collaboration with his friend Rosalind Russell on a musical script adaptation from his McGillicuddy McGotham, titled "Little Mac" (note picture above).^[9] His two marriages, in Trinidad with Olga Morton-Gittens, and in California with Hazel Holton, produced seven children, including film writer Cormac Wibberley among six by the latter.^[10]

Death

Wibberley died of a heart attack in Santa Monica, California, aged 68, on 22 November 1983.^[10]

Legacy

Wibberley donated manuscripts and proofs of many of his works to "The Leonard Wibberley Archive" of the library collections of the University of Southern California, where they are available, but not online.^[11]

In 1993, Borgo Press published a posthumous book of his last short writings.^[12]

Published adult writing

Short stories, novellas

The Saturday Evening Post

• "The Day New York Was Invaded" (25 December 1954; 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 January 1955)
• "The Hands of Cormac Joyce", novelette (issue includes picture of author): 232, n 29 (16 January 1960)
• "The Time of the Lamb" 233 n 26, combined issues ( 24–31 December 1960)
• "The Captive Outfielder": 234, n 12 (21 March 1961)
• "The Ballad of the Pilgrim Cat": 234, n 44 (18 November 1961)
• "The Man Who Lived on Water": 235, n 13 (31 March 1962)
• "Prevarication Jones": 235, n 24 (2 June 1962); repr. Sept.-Oct. 1994
• "Two Angels on Duty": 235, n 28 (28 July 1962); repr. September 1996

The "Mouse" series

• The Mouse That Roared (The Mouse That Roared, #1). New York: William Morrow. 1955. ISBN 978-0-316-93872-3 (e-book, 2015)
• Beware of the Mouse (The Mouse That Roared, #0). New York: Borgo Press. 1958. ISBN 9780893700010. With Cathy Hill (illustrator) (e-book, 2015)
• The Mouse on the Moon (The Mouse That Roared, #2). New York: William Morrow. 1962. (e-book, 2015)
• The Mouse on Wall Street (The Mouse That Roared, #3). New York: William Morrow. 1969. (e-book, 2015)
• The Mouse that Saved the West (The Mouse That Roared, #4). New York: William Morrow. 1981. (e-book, 2015)

Other novels

• Mrs Searwood's Secret Weapon. Boston: Little, Brown, 1954
• McGillicuddy McGotham. Boston: Little, Brown, 1956; New York: William Morrow, 1966 (e-book, 2016)
• Take Me to Your President. New York: Putnam, 1957
• The Quest of Excalibur. New York: Putnam, 1959
• Stranger At Killknock. New York: Putnam, 1961
• A Feast of Freedom. New York: William Morrow, 1964 (e-book, 2016)
• The Island of the Angels. New York: William Morrow, 1964
• The Centurion. New York: William Morrow, 1966 (e-book, 2015)
• The Road from Toomi. New York: William Morrow, 1967
• The Hands of Cormac Joyce. New York: William Morrow, 1967
• Adventures of an Elephant Boy. New York: William Morrow, 1968
• Meeting with a Great Beast. New York: William Morrow, 1971
• Flint's Island: A sequel to 'Treasure Island' . New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1972 (e-book, 2015)
• The Testament of Theophilus. New York: William Morrow, 1972
• The Last Stand of Father Felix. New York: William Morrow, 1973
• 1776—and All That. New York. William Morrow, 1975
• One in Four. New York: William Morrow, 1976
• Homeward to Ithaka. New York: William Morrow, 1978

As Leonard Holton: "Father Joseph Bredder" mystery series, Dodd, Mead (New York)

• The Saint Maker, 1959 (e-book, 2015)
• A Pact with Satan, 1960 (e-book, 2016)
• Secret of the Doubting Saint, 1961 (e-book, 2015)
• Deliver Us from Wolves, 1963 (e-book, 2015)
• Flowers by Request, 1964 (e-book, 2015)
• Out of the Depths, 1966 (e-book, 2016)
• A Touch of Jonah, 1968
• A Problem in Angels, 1970
• The Mirror of Hell, 1972
• The Devil to Play, 1974
• A Corner of Paradise, 1977

Non-fiction

• The Trouble with the Irish (or the English, Depending on Your Point of View). New York: Henry Holt, 1956
• The Coming of the Green. New York: Henry Holt, 1958
• No Garlic in the Soup!: A Portuguese Adventure. New York: Ives Washburn, 1959
• The Land That Isn't There: An Irish Adventure. New York: Ives Washburn, 1960.
• Yesterday's Land: A Baja California Adventure. New York: Ives Washburn, 1961
• Zebulon Pike: Soldier and Explorer. New York: Funk & Wagnalls, 1961
• Ventures into the Deep. New York: Ives Washburn, 1962
• Ah, Julian!: A Memoir of Julian Brodetsky. New York: William Morrow, 1963
• Fiji: Islands of the Dawn. New York: Ives Washburn, 1964
• Toward a Distant Island: A Sailor's Odyssey. New York: Ives Washburn, 1966.
• Hound of the Sea: The Story of a Racing Yacht. New York: Ives Washburn, 1969
• Voyage by Bus: Seeing America by Land Yacht. New York: William Morrow, 1971
• The Shannon Sailors: A Voyage to the Heart of Ireland. New York: William Morrow, 1972
• The Good-Natured Man: A Portrait of Oliver Goldsmith. New York: William Morrow, 1979

Published youth (juvenile) writing

As Christopher Webb, with Funk & Wagnalls, New York

• Mark Toyman's Inheritance, 1960
• The River of Pee Dee Jack, 1962
• Quest of the Otter, 1963
• Matt Tyler's Chronicle, 1966
• The "Ann and Hope" Mutiny, 1966
• Eusebius the Phoenician, 1969

As Patrick O'Connor

"Black Tiger" series, E. M. Hale (Eau Claire, Wisc.)

• The Black Tiger, 1956
• Mexican Road Race, 1957
• Black Tiger at Le Mans, 1958
• Black Tiger at Bonneville, 1960
• Black Tiger at Indianapolis, 1962
• A Car Called Camellia, 1970

Ives Washburn (New York)

• Society of Foxes (illus. Clyde N. Geary), 1954
• Flight of the Peacock, 1954
• The Watermelon Mystery, 1955
• Gunpowder for Washington, 1956
• The Lost Harpooner, 1957
• The Five-Dollar Watch Mystery, 1959
• Treasure at Twenty Fathoms, 1961
• The Raising of the Dubhe, 1964
• Seawind from Hawaii, 1965
• South Swell, 1967
• Beyond Hawaii, 1969

Farrar, Straus & Giroux Ariel youth books

• The King's Beard, 1952 (before FS & G bought Ariel)
• The Secret of the Hawk, 1953
• Deadmen's Cave, 1954
• The Wound of Peter Wayne, 1955
• Kevin O'Connor and the Light Brigade, 1957
• Encounter Near Venus, 1967
• Attar of the Ice Valley, 1968
• Journey to Untor, 1970
• The Last Battle, 1976
• Perilous Gold, 1978
• The Crime of Martin Coverly, 1980

"John Treegate" series (originally four)

• John Treegate's Musket, 1959
• Peter Treegate's War, 1960 (e-book, 2013)
• Sea Captain from Salem, 1961 (e-book, 2010)
• Treegate's Raiders, 1962
• Leopard's Prey, 1971
• Red Pawns, 1973 (sequel)

Non-fictional F S & G books

• The Coronation Book: The dramatic story in its history and legend. Ariel, 1953
• The Epics of Everest, 1955
• The Life of Winston Churchill, 1956
• John Barry—Father of the Navy, 1957
• Wes Powell—Conqueror of the Colorado, 1958
• Guarneri: Story of a Genius, 1974

Life of Thomas Jefferson historical novels

• Young Man from the Piedmont: The Youth of Thomas Jefferson (1963)
• A Dawn in the Trees: Thomas Jefferson, the Years 1776–1789 (1964)
• The Gales of Spring: Thomas Jefferson, the Years 1789–1801 (1965)
• Time of the Harvest: Thomas Jefferson, the Years 1801–1826 (1966)

Other juvenile fiction

• Little League Family. New York: Doubleday, 1978

Collected short works

• Something to Read: A personal selection from his writing by this thoughtful, humorous man. New York: Ives Washburn, 1959

Plays and long verse pieces

• Once, in a Garden: A dramatic full length play. Chicago: Dramatic Publishing Co., 1975
• 1776—And All That. New York: Morrow, 1975.
• Black Jack Rides Again. Chicago: Dramatic Publishing Co., 1971.
• The Gift of a Star
• The Heavenly Quarterback
• The Mouse on Mars
• The Mouse that Roared
• Take Me to Your President
• Two Angels on Duty
• The Shepherd's Reward: A Christmas Legend. New York: Ives Washburn, 1959
• The Ballad of the Pilgrim Cat. New York: Ives Washburn, 1962. Available as free audiobook, read by author.

Posthumously published short works

• Christopher and Hazel Wibberley (eds.) (1993). Shamrocks and Sea Silver, and Other Illuminations. San Bernardino: Borgo Press. ISBN 978-0893704025.

References

1. Kerr, Peter (25 November 1983). "LEONARD WIBBERLEY, 68, DIES; WROTE 'MOUSE THAT ROARED'". The New York Times.
2. "Leonard Holton's Father Bredder", ch. 10 of William David Spencer, Mysterium and Mystery: The Clerical Crime Novel (Southern Illinois University Press: 1998).
3. http://oxfordindex.oup.com/view/10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1603095
4. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30092829?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
5. "Leonard Wibberley says", dust jacket of The Trouble with the Irish (see "Non-fiction" in bibliog. above).
6. D.L. Kirkpatrick & Tracy Chevalier, eds, Twentieth Century Children's Writers (Chicago & London: St James Press, 1989), pp. 1330-1334.
7. Daily Independent Journal (San Rafael, California), Dec 2, 1949: 12
8. "Wibberley, Leonard Patrick O'Connor", Who Was Who in America (Marquis Who's Who), vol. viii, 1982-85, p. 425.
9. Bernard F. Dick, Forever Mame: The Life of Rosalind Russell (U. Mississippi Press, 2006), p. 142; Sam Zolotow, "Leprechaun Tale May Become Show", New York Times (Nov. 12, 1958, p. 41)
10. Kerr, Peter (25 November 1983). "LEONARD WIBBERLEY, 68, DIES; WROTE 'MOUSE THAT ROARED'". The New York Times.
11. http://libguides.usc.edu/amlit?p=1560333
12. Christopher and Hazel Wibberley (eds.) (1993). Shamrocks and Silver Seas and Other Illuminations. San Bernardino: Borgo Press.

External links

• Leonard Wibberley (official author website)
• The Wibberley Stories compilation of radio readings of short pieces in 1983