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American author, Huston C. (Carl) Curtiss, was born 9 March 1922 in Elkins, West Virginia; he died at the age of 85 on 1 August 2007 in Los Angeles, California. Mr. Curtiss enjoyed an illustrious career as a professional writer (under the pseudonym, "Ben Canfield") from the late 1950's until his death in 2007. Mr. Curtiss received new notoriety late in his life (age 81) when his autobiographical novel, "Sins of the Seventh Sister: A Novel Based upon a True Story of the Gothic South," was published (Harmony Books/Crown Division/Random House) in 2003, and received many favorable reviews along the way.
With over four hundred magazine story credits--Ladies Home Journal, Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, Redbook, etc., Mr. Curtiss was brought to California in the early 1950's by David Niven of Four Star Productions (Dick Powell, David Niven, Ida Lupino, and Charles Boyer) to do adaptions of his magazine stories for, primarily, women protagonists. A prolific writer, his credits include practically every top television anthology on the air in the late 1950's.
Mr. Curtiss began using the pseudonym, Ben Canfield, in his desire to avoid 'blacklisting'--one result of the persecution of the McCarthyism anti-communist witch hunts of the late 40's to late 50's. The surname, "Canfield," was adopted in paying homage to his Aunt, Sarah (Fancler) Canfield, and is coincidentally (or not) also the name as the town, Canfield, (Randolph County) WV, which is just under two miles East of his birth place in Elkins, WV.
Following the 1950's, opportunities presented themselves to Mr. Curtiss for feature film work in the U.S., Mexico, Italy, the U.K., and Romania. Eventually he returned to California and concentrated his writing efforts on plays. His plays toured Europe featuring Valentina Cortessa, Dirk Bogarde, and Lilly Palmer. His play, "Carlotta," a major work produced in London, was also in preparation for the U.S., starring Loretta Young and Orson Welles until the untimely death of Mr. Welles in 1985.
In 1991, Mr. Curtiss formed a feature film production company called, "Ambassador International," with his friends and associates, Martha Scott (Actress), Nicholas Carras (Composer), and Charles Sladen (film production accountant/auditor).
Note: A copy of his screenplay, "Three Houses on Craven's Run," (written under the name, Ben Canfield) is included in the estate of Gloria Swanson. To see this listing, try a Search using the following terms: Gloria Swanson: An Inventory of Her Papers at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, University of Texas at Austin. (This area, 'Craven's Run,' is also mentioned in his novel, "Sins of the Seventh Sister.")
“Huston Curtiss was a very interesting man and a great writer. He always intrigued me and his book, “Sins of the Seventh Sister,” remains one of my favorite books I have published.” – Shaye Areheart, Editor of "Sins of the Seventh Sister," and Publisher of Harmony Books.
"Huston Curtiss was a highly engaging conversationalist and a very talented writer. Even more than that, to me, he was "Carl" and a very dear friend. When I met him in 1982, I was an aspiring young actor, just-off-the-bus in Hollywood. During that summer, we shared many hours of lively conversation. I read his screenplays and offered my highest praise because he earned it. Carl often recounted to me tales from his childhood (some of which are included in his book, "Sins of the Seventh Sister") and advised and mentored me on the ins and outs of Hollywood and my acting career. I'll treasure the memories and his friendship always and ponder on how he may be now amusing himself in the afterlife." -- J. Russell Slack, Actor
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Huston C. Curtiss
American author, Huston C. (Carl) Curtiss, was born 9 March 1922 in Elkins, West Virginia; he died at the age of 85 on 1 August 2007 in Los Angeles, California. Mr. Curtiss enjoyed an illustrious career as a professional writer (under the pseudonym, "Ben Canfield") from the late 1950's until his death in 2007. Mr. Curtiss received new notoriety late in his life (age 81) when his autobiographical novel, "Sins of the Seventh Sister: A Novel Based upon a True Story of the Gothic South," was published (Harmony Books/Crown Division/Random House) in 2003, and received many favorable reviews along the way.
With over four hundred magazine story credits--Ladies Home Journal, Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, Redbook, etc., Mr. Curtiss was brought to California in the early 1950's by David Niven of Four Star Productions (Dick Powell, David Niven, Ida Lupino, and Charles Boyer) to do adaptions of his magazine stories for, primarily, women protagonists. A prolific writer, his credits include practically every top television anthology on the air in the late 1950's.
Mr. Curtiss began using the pseudonym, Ben Canfield, in his desire to avoid 'blacklisting'--one result of the persecution of the McCarthyism anti-communist witch hunts of the late 40's to late 50's. The surname, "Canfield," was adopted in paying homage to his Aunt, Sarah (Fancler) Canfield, and is coincidentally (or not) also the name as the town, Canfield, (Randolph County) WV, which is just under two miles East of his birth place in Elkins, WV.
Following the 1950's, opportunities presented themselves to Mr. Curtiss for feature film work in the U.S., Mexico, Italy, the U.K., and Romania. Eventually he returned to California and concentrated his writing efforts on plays. His plays toured Europe featuring Valentina Cortessa, Dirk Bogarde, and Lilly Palmer. His play, "Carlotta," a major work produced in London, was also in preparation for the U.S., starring Loretta Young and Orson Welles until the untimely death of Mr. Welles in 1985.
In 1991, Mr. Curtiss formed a feature film production company called, "Ambassador International," with his friends and associates, Martha Scott (Actress), Nicholas Carras (Composer), and Charles Sladen (film production accountant/auditor).
Note: A copy of his screenplay, "Three Houses on Craven's Run," (written under the name, Ben Canfield) is included in the estate of Gloria Swanson. To see this listing, try a Search using the following terms: Gloria Swanson: An Inventory of Her Papers at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, University of Texas at Austin. (This area, 'Craven's Run,' is also mentioned in his novel, "Sins of the Seventh Sister.")
“Huston Curtiss was a very interesting man and a great writer. He always intrigued me and his book, “Sins of the Seventh Sister,” remains one of my favorite books I have published.” – Shaye Areheart, Editor of "Sins of the Seventh Sister," and Publisher of Harmony Books.
"Huston Curtiss was a highly engaging conversationalist and a very talented writer. Even more than that, to me, he was "Carl" and a very dear friend. When I met him in 1982, I was an aspiring young actor, just-off-the-bus in Hollywood. During that summer, we shared many hours of lively conversation. I read his screenplays and offered my highest praise because he earned it. Carl often recounted to me tales from his childhood (some of which are included in his book, "Sins of the Seventh Sister") and advised and mentored me on the ins and outs of Hollywood and my acting career. I'll treasure the memories and his friendship always and ponder on how he may be now amusing himself in the afterlife." -- J. Russell Slack, Actor
