Thorne Smith

James Thorne Smith Jr., writing as Thorne Smith, was an American author celebrated for his humorous supernatural fantasy fiction. His most recognized works are the Topper novels, which blended comedy with themes of sexuality, alcohol consumption, and spectral encounters. These books achieved significant popularity, selling millions of copies in the 1930s and remaining popular in paperback editions decades later.

Born in Annapolis, Maryland, Smith attended various preparatory schools and Dartmouth College before leaving in 1912. The period between college and his Navy enlistment in 1917 is sparsely documented, though he worked in advertising. During his time in the Navy during World War I, he edited a naval newspaper. After the war, he moved to Greenwich Village, where he met his wife, Celia Sullivan, and was associated with literary figures of the era. He was also an early resident of Free Acres, a New Jersey experimental community. Smith died of a heart attack in 1934 at the age of 42 while on vacation in Florida.

Thorne Smith's fiction is characterized by its blend of humor, the supernatural, and often risqué themes. His most famous creations, the Topper novels, centered on a respectable banker who becomes entangled with ghosts, leading to comic misadventures. These stories, along with others, frequently explored elements of sex and drinking, presented with a lighthearted, often satirical approach. Smith himself described his work as lacking a definitive point, mirroring life's own apparent purposelessness and a touch of madness. Critics have noted his unique style, comparing his ability to disrupt conventions and unleash repressed individuals through fantastical elements to a blend of various literary figures, all while maintaining a distinctive high-spirited elan and irresponsibility.

While Thorne Smith's writing is primarily comedic fantasy, it consistently delves into supernatural phenomena and unconventional realities. His novels frequently feature ghosts, transformations, and the interaction between the mundane and the magical. Works like 'Topper' introduce spectral characters into the lives of ordinary people, creating humorous chaos. Other novels explore more direct supernatural mechanics, such as devices that turn people to stone or allow body-swapping, as seen in 'The Night Life of the Gods' and 'Turnabout'. The premise of 'Skin and Bones' involves a photographer and his dog randomly switching between physical and skeletal forms. These elements, while often played for laughs, explore the disruption of societal norms and the unleashing of repressed desires through fantastical means, touching upon themes of altered perception and reality.

Smith's life, though not extensively documented in terms of personal papers, involved periods in New York City and New Jersey. He was briefly associated with Dorothy Parker in a New York boarding house, and his time in Greenwich Village placed him among a circle of notable writers and intellectuals. He was married to Celia Sullivan and had two daughters. Smith was an early member of Free Acres, a social experimental community in New Jersey, reflecting an interest in alternative living arrangements. Despite his success, he reportedly preferred his rural New Jersey estate and the French coast to city life. His death in 1934 at the young age of 42 occurred while he was on vacation in Florida.

“We used to sit around in the evening and talk. There was no money but Jesus we had fun.”

“Smith would spend time in Parker’s room, drinking coffee, helping her revise her poetry and making love.”

“Like life itself my stories have no point and get absolutely nowhere. And like life they are a little mad and purposeless.”

“They resemble those people who watch with placid concentration a steam shovel digging a large hole in the ground. They are almost as purposeless as a dignified commuter an impotent fist after a train he has just missed. They are like the man who dashes madly through traffic only to linger aimlessly on the opposite corner watching a fountain pen being demonstrated in a shop window.”

“Quite casually I wander into my plot, poke around with my characters for a while, then amble off, leaving no moral proved, and no reader improved.”