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Michael ArlenEnglish novelist, playwright and screenwriter of Armenian origin
Date of Birth: 16.11.1895
Country:  Great Britain |
Content:
Biography of Michael Arlen
Michael Arlen, whose real name was Tigran Kouyoumdjian, was an English novelist, playwright, and screenwriter of Armenian descent. He was known for his impeccable style and elegant manners, often seen driving around London in his fashionable yellow Rolls Royce and attending glamorous events. However, he was aware that he was regarded with suspicion as a foreigner, mixed with envy.
Early Life
Michael Arlen was born on November 16, 1895, in the city of Rousse, Bulgaria, to an Armenian merchant family. In 1892, the family moved to Plovdiv after the Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire. In their new home, his father Sarkis opened a successful import business. Tigran had three older brothers and an older sister.
In 1901, Sarkis realized that Bulgaria might be drawn into a war and relocated the family to the coastal town of Southport in Lancashire, England. Tigran excelled at Malvern College and spent some time in Switzerland before enrolling in the medical faculty at the University of Edinburgh. He chose not to attend Oxford as his family desired, considering it a "foolish mistake." Later, he realized his error, dropped out of medical school in 1913, and headed to London, hoping to pursue a literary career and "live by his pen."
Writing Career
Arlen's writing career took off in 1916 when his works were published in the periodical "Ararat: A Searchlight on Armenia." Soon after, he began contributing to the weekly magazine "The New Age," writing essays, book reviews, personal essays, short stories, and even one small play script.
After the success of his work "The London Venture" in 1920, Arlen started infusing his writings with elements of horror, fantasy, and psychological thriller. His period of fame and wealth came with the publication of his novel "The Green Hat" in 1924. The novel was successfully adapted for the Broadway stage and turned into a silent Hollywood film starring Greta Garbo and John Gilbert.
Being in the spotlight, Arlen frequently visited the United States during this period and worked on plays and films, including the adaptation of his short story "These Charming People." However, despite his desire to stay in the limelight and produce something that would rival the success of "The Green Hat," none of his subsequent books received the same level of acclaim.
Later Life and Legacy
In 1928, Arlen married Countess Atalanta Mercati in Cannes, France, and relocated there. The couple had two children, a son named Michael John Arlen, born in 1930, and a daughter named Venice Arlen, born in 1933. With the outbreak of World War II in 1939, Arlen returned to England, while his wife worked for the Red Cross. In the same year, he wrote his final novel, "The Flying Dutchman," a politically charged book that strongly criticized Germany and its position in the war.
In 1940, Arlen became the head of public relations for the Civil Defense Committee in the East Midlands region. A year later, his loyalty to British interests was called into question by the House of Commons, leading him to resign and relocate to America. He settled in New York in 1946, where he struggled to overcome a creative crisis for the next ten years. Arlen passed away from cancer on June 23, 1956.
Writer Sidney Horler referred to Arlen as the "only Armenian who never tried to sell him a carpet." Arlen himself jokingly referred to himself as a "gentleman through and through."
