ABOUT SAROYAN
Born in 1908, Saroyan was the fourth child of Armenian immigrants. He never denied his heritage
and his writings embraced his culture’s distinctive qualities as an inspiration to his writing. Saroyan’s
cultural celebration was most notably apparent in his 1940 story, My Name Is Aram. Published in
1943, Saroyan’s novel, The Human Comedy, was adapted for the silver screen, starring Mickey
Rooney. The film received five Oscar nominations, and won Saroyan the award for Best Writing
Original Screen Story. Along with his numerous short stories, novels, and screenplay, Saroyan was
a prolific playwright. His writing for the stage included: My Heart’s in the Highlands, The Time of
Your Life, Hello Out there!, The Cave Dwellers, and The Beautiful People. Saroyan was the first
American writer to win both the New York Drama Critic’s Circle Award and the Pulitzer Prize for his
play, The Time of Your Life (1939). Saroyan’s artistry extended into the visual arts and music as
well. The Fresno Art Museum exhibited his paintings for the first time during the 2002 William
Saroyan Festival, and based on an Armenian folk tune, Saroyan co-wrote “Come On-a My House,”
along with his cousin, Ross Bagdasarian. It was the song that catapulted the career of Rosemary
Clooney.
Saroyan died from cancer on May 18, 1981, in Fresno at the age of 72, about a mile from where
he was born. His lasting words to the press in face of the inevitable were, “Everybody has got to
die…but I have always believed an exception would be made in my case.” Half of his ashes were
buried in California, and the remaining was interned in Armenia.
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