The Spoilers [Library Binding]

Rex Beach (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1999

1905. Rex Beach was well on his way to becoming a lawyer when he was hit by Gold Rush Fever and left for the Klondike to strike it rich. His novel The Spoilers was quite successful at capturing the excitement of the Gold Rush, complete with claim-jumping, corruption, deception, villains, and heroes. It made the 1906 best sellers list and was made into a movie in 1914 featuring many of the popular actors and actresses of the day.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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About the Author

Rex Beach was born in Atwood, He attended Rollins College but he never graduated. Instead, he joined his brothers' law firm in Chicago and studied at the Chicago College of Law. In 1897, Beach answered the call of the gold rush, and departed for Alaska. For five years he traveled backwards and forwards between Alaska and Chicago, even enrolling in Kent College of Law; however, he ultimately decided against pursuing a legal career. While searching for work, Beach wrote a short story entitled ""The Mule Driver and the Garrulous Mute."" McClure's Magazine paid him $50 for it. Even after he found employment selling firebrick, lime and cement, Beach continued to write short stories. S. S. McClure eventually suggested that Beach should try to write novel. In 1904, a collection of Beach's short stories was published under the title Pardners, but it was not until 1906 that his first full-length novel appeared - The Spoilers. He quickly became a popular author, writing tales of adventure, set in the wilds of Alaska. He wrote of huge, untamed, wild lands filled with risk and danger. He championed the courage and bravery of those who lived and died on the Alaskan frontier. He sold his stories to magazines and periodicals, and people ate up his tales. His writing spanned 40 years, and in that time he published numerous articles, short stories, and more than 30 novels. Several of his works became bestsellers in the early 1900's. Many of his stories and novels were turned into popular box office hits, made and remade, spanning the eras of silent movies and into the days of the ""talkies"". He not only proved himself as an author, but also as an occasional actor, producer, play writer, and adventurer. On his return to Florida, Beach renewed his relationship with Rollins College and became friends with its president, Hamilton Holt. Beach served as president of the Rollins Alumni Association from 1927-1940. In 1927, Rollins College conferred upon Beach the honorary degree of Doctor of Literature and also the B.S. that he had failed to complete. He chose death as he lived his life - on his own terms; Rex Beach shot himself in 1949. Two years later, both his and his wife's ashes were interred on the Rollins College campus. The marble slab marking their final resting place can still be seen on the lawn near the Alumni House. Rex Beach continued to write up until his death in 1949 in Sebring, Florida. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Library Binding
• Publisher: Reprint Services Corp (January 1999)
• ISBN-10: 0781207355
• ISBN-13: 978-0781207355
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,190,319 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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