Robert Benchley - (1893 - 1945)

After attending Harvard, where he was president of the Lampoon for two terms, Benchley moved to the New York Tribune and then became managing editor of Vanity Fair, a post he quit in protest when his friend Dorothy Parker was fired. He became the drama reviewer for the old (pre-Luce) Life, but his skill as a writer of revue skits soon brought him to Hollywood, where he made 45 wildly popular shorts and 12 feature films. He resumed reviewing -- for the New Yorker - in 1929. Though he enjoyed writing and created superb humor pieces - many of which are still in print today - Search Books: Robert Benchley-he eventually gave up writing to concentrate on film and radio work.

On a summer vacation trip Benchley arrived in Venice and immediately wired a friend: STREETS FLOODED. PLEASE ADVISE.