  pearl zane grey (january 31, 1872 â october 23, 1939) was an american author best known for his popular adventure novels and stories that were a basis for the western genre in literature and the arts; he idealized the american frontier. riders of the purple sage (1912) was his best-selling book. in addition to the commercial success of his printed works, they had second lives and continuing influence when adapted as films and television productions. as of 2012, 112 films, two television episodes, and a television series, dick powell's zane grey theater, had been made that were based loosely on grey's novels and short stories.hulse 2007, pp. viiâx. ==biography== ===early life=== pearl zane grey was born january 31, 1872, in zanesville, ohio. his birth name may have originated from newspaper descriptions of queen victoria's mourning clothes as "pearl gray".may 1997, p. 5. he was the fourth of five children born to alice "allie" josephine zane, whose english quaker immigrant ancestor robert zane came to the north american colonies in 1673, and her husband, lewis m. gray, a dentist.may 1997, p. 3. his family changed the spelling of their last name to "grey" after his birth. later grey dropped pearl and used zane as his first name. he grew up in zanesville, a city founded by his maternal great-grandfather ebenezer zane, an american revolutionary war patriot; from an early age, the boy was intrigued by history. grey developed interests in fishing, baseball, and writing, all of which contributed to his writing success.gruber 1969, pp. 6â7. his first three novels recounted the heroism of ancestors who fought in the american revolutionary war.pauly 2005, p. 13. as a child, grey frequently engaged in violent brawls, despite (or because of) his father's punishing him with severe beatings. though irascible and antisocial like his father, grey was supported by a loving mother and found a father substitute. muddy miser was an old man who approved of grey's love of fishing and writing, and who talked about the advantages of an unconventional life. despite warnings by grey's father to steer clear of miser, the boy spent much time during five formative years in the company of the old man.may 1997, p. 2. grey was an avid reader of adventure stories (robinson crusoe and leatherstocking tales) and dime novels (featuring [[buffalo bil
1872_births 1939_deaths 20th-century_American_novelists American_dentists American_film_producers American_film_studio_executives American_fishers American_male_novelists American_people_of_English_descent Angling_writers Penn_Quakers_baseball_players People_from_Zanesville,_Ohio University_of_Pennsylvania_alumni Western_(genre)_writers Writers_from_Ohio