Evening star., 1940-08-04
Native Son
To Become
A Drama
Paul Green and
Richard Wright
COllaborate
BY Hoke Norris.
Associated Press Stan Writer,

CHAPEL HILL. N. c.
In rough cabin that once was
the home of slaves, Paul Green and
Richard Wright are dramatizing
Wright's novel, Native Son." a story
of Negroes.
The young Negro author e{ the
years sensational novel came to
Chapel Hill for the collaboration at
Green's suggestion
Wright brings to the dramati-
zation the knowledge of one who has
seen at first hand the operation Of
forces which lead to such brutal
crimes as he describes in his novel.
Green contributes the dramatic
artistry of trained playwright, the
artistry which in 1927 won him the
Pulitzer Prize for In Abraham's
Bosom
Naturally, the story of Bigger
Thomas, Wright's hero, is present.
ing problems. which tine writer's hope
to surmount in time for Orson
Welles and John Housman to pro-
duce the play in New York next
season.
Not Easily Adapted.
Working in the cabin near Green's
home, 2 miles from here, the two
have completed the first rough draft
Of the drama-"very rough" Green
said-but still haven't determined
how to end it.
In the novel, Bigger Thomas,
awaiting execution for the murder
OF young white woman, realizes, If
hazily and dimly, the true purport
OF his act. He sees also the full scope
OF the forces which have driven him
to commit the crime 1t is a power
full psychological passage, but not
easily adapted to the stage. It may
be presented in monologue.
Also, Green and Wright are con-
sidering the use of music to heighten
the dramatic effect. However, Green
said only one scene could be easily
given musical background and the
need for music was mostly technical.
to fill the actionless blanks between
scenes.
When you have a great number
OF scenes" (as Native Son" is likely
to have), Green SAID. you need
something like music to carry the
audience from one scene to an.
other"
Native Son" will be Green's fourth
New York appearance. His first three
plays-"1n Abraham's Bosom" THE
House OF Connolly in 1881 and
Johnny johnson" in 1937-Were
written by him alone.
Still q Farm Boy.
HIS novel, Laughing Pioneer
published in 1882, has been drama.
tized and may be produced on
Broadway; and he said he had in
mind an original drama which he
hopes would also be presented soon.
90, conceiVably, these and Native
Son may run simultaneously.
Despite his success in Broadway.
IN hollywood and in his native State.
Paul Green is still in many ways the
unaffected farm boy he was when
ne first entered the University of
North Carolina, where he now
teaches in the drama department
he still talks in the drawl of the sec
tlon from which he came-Harnett
County, in Central North Carolina.
on whose sandy loan he farmed.
And he still likes to farm.
We did that, at home" he said
and I'm glad to get back to it. II
always did kind of irk me to have to
buy things from grocery store"
A Mutual Dislike.
Green is 46. He was graduated at
the University of North Carolina IN
l92l-after a period OF war service
and did graduate work there and At
Cornell. He taught philosophy at
the university for a while, but went
to the drama department when he
found that the teaching of many
different PHILOSOPHERS might be rob-
bing him Of one of his own,
He has spent some time in Holly.
wood, writing for the movies, but he
and Hollywood are On mutual bad
terms. He has had some unkind
words to say about motion picture
making as practiced. though he
thinks the medium Is marvellous"
and is the frst great outlet for art
developed in the machine age.