Sherwood, Robert Emmet (1896-1955) was born in New Rochelle, New York, and educated at Harvard University. He was an editor (1919 - 28) for Vanity Fair and Life magazines before establishing himself as a playwright. His plays include WATERLOO BRIDGE (1929), REUNION IN VIENNA (1931), THE PETRIFIED FOREST (1935), IDIOT'S DELIGHT (1936; Pulitzer Prize, 1936), ABE LINCOLN IN ILLINOIS (1938; Pulitzer Prize, 1939), THERE SHALL BE NO NIGHT (1940; Pulitzer Prize, 1941) and the musical MISS LIBERTY (Music by Irving Berlin). During World War II, Sherwood served as overseas director of the Office of War Information and was a speech writer for President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The film The Best Years of Our Lives, for which he wrote the screenplay, won the Academy Award in 1946.
