FORBES, JAMES

(1871-1938)

   James Grant Forbes was born in Salem, Ontario, Canada. He began as a drama critic for the Pittsburgh Dispatch, then joined the New York Herald. He held various positions in theatre management and as a press agent, while successfully launching his playwriting career with The Chorus Lady (1904), followed by The Traveling Salesman (1908), The Commuter (1910), and others. During World War I, he organized the Over There Theatre League to entertain soldiers in the trenches in France. The aftermath of the war brought his most important play, The Famous Mrs. Fair (1919). Forbes was a founder of the Dramatists' Guild (DG) and an honorary vice president of the Authors' League of America (ALA). In 1922, he was elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters.