Winchell Smith

Born on April 5, 1871, Winchell Smith was an American playwright, producer, and theater manager whose work found a wide audience in the first decades of the twentieth century. He is best remembered for successful stage comedies and dramas including Brewster's Millions and Lightnin', both of which became especially well known.

Smith built his reputation by writing plays that connected easily with audiences, and his success on stage helped carry his stories into early cinema as well. That crossover from theater to film made him part of a generation of writers whose work helped link Broadway entertainment with the growing movie industry.

He died on June 10, 1933. Though he is less widely remembered today than some of his contemporaries, his plays were major popular successes in their time and remain part of the story of American commercial theater.