author
Lillian Chester
1887–1961
A versatile early 20th-century writer who moved between popular fiction and silent-film work, she built a career in both publishing and the movies. Her books and screen credits show a lively partnership with her husband, George Randolph Chester, as well as a creative path of her own.
1 Audiobook
The Ball of Fire
by George Randolph Chester, Lillian Chester
About the author
Born in Cincinnati in 1887, Lillian Josephine Chester was an American writer and filmmaker who also published under forms of her name such as Lillian Randolph Chester and Mrs. George Randolph Chester. She began publishing books in the 1910s and became known for work that crossed from print into the fast-growing world of silent film.
Much of her career was tied to collaboration with her husband, writer George Randolph Chester. Together they worked on fiction and film projects including The Ball of Fire and The Son of Wallingford, and she is also credited in screenwriting, editing, and directing work from the silent era. Modern film-history sources note that her exact share in some collaborations was long underrecognized, even though she was clearly a prolific creative partner.
She died in 1961 in Florida. Today, she is remembered as one of those early screen-era authors whose career connected magazines, books, and motion pictures at a time when storytelling was rapidly changing.