Larry McMurtry.

Raised on a cattle ranch near Archer City, Texas, Larry McMurtry was born on June 3, 1936, to Hazel Ruth McIver and William Jefferson McMurtry. He attended Archer City High School and later graduated from what is now the University of North Texas. McMurtry earned a master’s degree in English from Rice University and taught there as a lecturer from 1963 to 1969.

McMurtry gained widespread recognition with the 1971 film The Last Picture Show, based on his novel. His 1985 novel Lonesome Dove won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1986 and was adapted into a popular television miniseries in 1989. He co-wrote the screenplay for Brokeback Mountain 2005, which earned him the Academy Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA for Best Adapted Screenplay. McMurtry also wrote the novel and screenplay for the miniseries Streets of Laredo 1995. He also taught English at Rice University and later creative writing.

McMurtry was married twice: first to Josephine Ballard from July 15, 1959, until their divorce in 1966, and later to Faye Kesey from April 29, 2011, until his death. He had one son, James McMurtry, an actor and singer-songwriter who has released six CDs. He owned an antiquarian bookstore called Booked Up in Archer City, which grew to four buildings housing over 300,000 used and rare books. He lived most of his life in his hometown and used the same postal box for nearly 70 years. He died of congestive heart failure at his home in Archer City on March 25, 2021.

McMurtry’s work reshaped the Western genre in literature and film. His novel Lonesome Dove won the Pulitzer Prize and inspired countless readers, while his screenplay for Brokeback Mountain broke new ground in mainstream cinema. He received numerous honors, including the National Humanities Medal in 2010 and the Carl Sandburg Literary Award. His son James McMurtry continues his creative legacy. McMurtry is most remembered for his Pulitzer-winning novel and his Oscar-winning screenplay.