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Thomas Wolfe's Life Reviewed By BrotherBy LOLITA HYLTON Enterprise Staff Writer‘‘We were both tall, straight, had big feet, and stuttered, and that is as far as the comparison goes.” So spoke Fred Wolfe, brother of the author, Thomas Wolfe, to members and visitors of the Midweek Study Club at t h e meeting held yesterday after-now at the home of Mrs. Wendell M PattonCake, coffee and candy eggs nestled in colorful Easter grass were served, after which Mrs. Allen B Welbom read a poem “Easter Hats.” Mrs. Patton th**n introduced Mr. Wolfe who kept his audi ence spell-bound for the rest of the afternoon.Though he is the only remaining member of the family, his humor and personal experiences brought them to life.He stated that there wire five boys and three girls withThomas the youngest and henext He made one reah/e the depth of feeling and sensitivity that his brother had, evenas a child, and spoke of Thomas as having “that spark of genius' and of himself being“the unpredictable clown He said that he was most definitely Luke in “Look Homeward Angel and, unlike others portrayed in the book, he did not resent the fact and was quite delighted for thepublicity it gave him.He explained that Thomas had written the book as * a saga of his youth gathered from the weather of his life and that “Of Time and the River'’ follows his maturing into manhood.Mr Wolfe feels that his brother came by his writing ability from his father who was an avid reader and saved every penny he earned to buybooks.Thomas entered UNC in 1916 and was kidded considerably about his height which was unusual for a hoy of his age He finally stopped growing when he reached 6’5”.When he overcame his sensitivity to the remarks he excelled scholastically and became editor of The Tarheel.He began his writing career with plays which he would also take part in At Harvard he wrote plays furiously and tried to peddle them at the Theater Guild of New York, but they were entirely too long with too many actors and too many scenes, Mr. Wolfe explained.Realizing this was not his forte, Thomas gave up playwriting and took a job as instructor of English at Washington Square College, he stated.But that compelling force to write held him in its grip and after several trips to Europe, where he felt he could get a better perspective of his own country, he wrote “O'Lost”and went from one publisherto another with no luck Finally a friend who believed in him persuaded a publisher to read it and the manuscript was passed from one to another until someone really sat down and read it and was very impressed with what he read.This book after much revising and condensing become “Look Homeward Angel, Mr, Wolfe pointed out.He also believes that if Thomas had not been so young and naive and had he not written the name of the town but put his characters in another setting, there probably would not have been the hurts and anger that developed. However In time people changed in their feelings, including his own family.“If he had lived. Tom would have written the saga of America, he went on to say.Fred Wolfe and his wifelive in Spartanburg, S C., butat one time were residents ofHigh Point. He doesn’t claim to be a lecturer, but “just a man who wants people to know the true qualities of his brother, and those be conveys with warmth and feelingHe says, with tongue in cheek, that he is a “10 yeargraduate of Georgia Tech.In concluding his enlightening talk on Thomas Wolfe, hequoted the following, which is carved on the Jefferson Barracks at St. Louis, and is taken from the book “You Can’t Go Home Again.“So then to every man his chance to every’ man, regardless of his birth, his shining, golden opportunity — to every man the right to live, to work,to be himself, and to become whatever thing his manhood and his vision can combine to make him — this, seeker, is the promise of America.
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High Point Enterprise
High Point, North Carolina, US
Thu, Apr 08, 1965
Page 13
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NC, USA 18 Sep 2021
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