بیوگرافی
Charles Willeford was an exceptionally skilled, versatile, and prolific writer, producing works ranging from poetry to crime fiction to literary criticism over a long and varied career. His crime novels are notable for their tight narrative style and notable lack of sentimentality. Born Charles Ray Willeford III on January 2, 1919, in Little Rock, Arkansas, he lost both parents to tuberculosis in childhood and was raised by his grandmother or at boarding schools. In his early teens, Charles became a hobo. At sixteen, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and was stationed in the Philippines. During World War II, he served as a tank commander with the 10th Armored Division in Europe, earning several military honors including the Silver Star, Bronze Star, two Purple Hearts, and the Luxembourg Croix de Guerre. He retired from the army as a Master Sergeant.
Willeford’s debut novel, "High Priest of California," was published in 1953. This strong start was followed by equally impressive works such as "Pick-Up" (which won a Beacon Fiction Award), "Wild Wives," "The Woman Chaser," "Cockfighter" (recipient of the Mark Twain Award), and "The Burnt Orange Heresy." His greatest commercial and critical acclaim came from four remarkable novels featuring hapless Florida homicide detective Hoke Moseley: "Miami Blues," "New Hope for the Dead," "Sideswipe," and "The Way We Die Now." Beyond novels, Willeford authored the short story collection "The Machine in Ward Eleven," poetry volumes "The Outcast Poets" and "Proletarian Laughter," and the nonfiction work "Something About a Soldier."
Willeford attended Palm Beach Junior College and the University of Miami. He taught humanities at the University of Miami and served as an associate professor teaching philosophy and English at Miami Dade Junior College. Married three times, he also worked as an associate editor for "Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine." Three of his novels were adapted into films: Monte Hellman’s "Cockfighter," in which Willeford wrote the screenplay and appeared as the referee in the climactic cockfighting scene; George Armitage’s critically acclaimed "Miami Blues;" and Robinson Devor’s unique take with "The Woman Chaser." Willeford also had a brief role as a bartender in the redneck car chase film "Thunder and Lightning." He died of a heart attack at age 69 on March 27, 1988.
