Kenneth Thorpe Rowe

Kenneth Thorpe Rowe
Kenneth T. Rowe during a visit to Finland in 1960.
Kenneth T. Rowe during a visit to Finland in 1960.
Born(1900-09-19)September 19, 1900
DiedOctober 27, 1988(1988-10-27) (aged 88)

Kenneth Thorpe Rowe (September 19, 1900 – October 27, 1988)[1] was an influential professor of drama and playwriting. For decades, Rowe taught playwriting, Shakespeare and modern drama at the University of Michigan. There he had an enormous impact on students, from Arthur Miller (All My Sons, Death of a Salesman) to Lawrence Kasdan (Star Wars). His book Write That Play became a widely used college textbook for the teaching of playwriting.[2]

Rowe earned his undergraduate and master's degrees at Rice University and taught at Rice and the University of Oregon before coming to Michigan in 1928. He was a guest lecturer at many schools, including the University of Washington, the New School Dramatic Workshop, Columbia University, and Yale.[3] During World War II he served as chairman of War Activities for the American Educational Theater Association and as consultant to numerous government agencies, including the Departments of Treasury and War.[4] According to the Bentley Library at Michigan, which holds Rowe's papers from that era, his government consulting focused on "the use of drama as a propaganda tool to raise morale and to define America's goals" during the war.[5]

  1. ^ "Kenneth Rowe in Social Security Death Index". Fold3. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  2. ^ Rowe, Kenneth (1939). Write That Play. New York: Funk and Wagnalls. p. dust jacket.
  3. ^ Rowe, Kenneth (1939). Write That Play. New York: Funk and Wagnalls. p. dust jacket.
  4. ^ Faculty History Project, University of Michigan. "Memoir: Kenneth Thorpe Rowe".
  5. ^ Bentley Historical Library, Univ of Michigan. "Kenneth Rowe Papers: 1940-1953". Umich.edu. Retrieved February 12, 2020.