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Paul Kester (November 2, 1870 – June 21, 1933) was an American playwright and novelist. He was the younger brother of journalist Vaughan Kester and a cousin of the literary editor and critic William Dean Howells. ==Life and career== Kester was born in 1870 some thirty miles north of Columbus at Delaware, Ohio,〔(Paul Kester Papers. NYPL ) accessed September 27, 2012〕 He was the younger of two sons raised by Franklin “Frank” Cooley and Harriet (née Watkins) Kester. His father was traveling salesman, and mother an art teacher who in 1882 helped found the Cleveland School of Art. Kester was educated by home tutors and at private schools where he excelled in the dramatic arts.〔〔Frank and Harriet Kester; Mount Vernon, OH. 1870 US Census; Ancestry.com〕〔(The Cleveland Institute of Art ) accessed September 27, 2012〕 His first success came in January, 1892 with ''Countess Roudine'' that opened first in Philadelphia at the Chestnut Street Theatre and a week later at the Union Square Theatre in New York City. ''Countess Roudine'' was a collaborative effort written with the actress Minnie Maddern Fiske.〔〔(Adams, William Davenport - A Dictionary of the Drama: a Guide to the Plays, Play-wrights; Volume 1; 1904; pg. 341 ) accessed September 26, 2012〕〔Paul Kester Dead, Writer of Dramas. The New York Times; June 21, 1933; pg. 17〕 In 1896 his adaptation of Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s ''Eugene Aram'' was produced by Walker Whiteside’s company and in 1902 with George Middleton adapted the George W. Cable Southern romance ''The Cavalier'' that was staged at the Criterion Theatre with Julia Marlowe. Actress Annie Russell produced and starred in his 1906 Quaker tale ''Friend Hannah'', written with the help of his brother, Vaughan.〔〔 Kester worked on nearly thirty plays over his career. His most successful Broadway effort was probably ''The Woman of Bronze'' that ran for 252 performances between September, 1920 and April, 1921 at Manhattan's Frazee Theatre. He also authored a number of books, with ''His Own Country'' (1917) most likely the more popular.〔〔 Described as shy and diffident,〔 Kester preferred country life to that of the city. In 1902, with his brother, he purchased and renovated Woodlawn Plantation in Northern Virginia.〔(Mount Vernon, Arlington, Woodlawn, Minnie Kendall Lowther, p.56 )〕 Five years later the two acquired nearby Gunston Hall.〔(Gunston Hall, Paul Kester, Old and Sold Antiques Digest )〕 where Vaughan Kester died in 1911. A few years later Kester and his mother relocated to Bellmont, an estate near Alexandria, Virginia.〔(Chronicle and Comment, The Bookman )〕 Kester spent his final years at Lake Mohegan, a small community near Peekskill, New York. He died there in 1933 at the age of 62, a victim of thrombosis. At the time his closest surviving family was the mezzo-soprano opera singer, Florence Wickham, a cousin.〔〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Paul Kester」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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