Ferenc Molnár

Ferenc Molnár (US: /ˌfɛrɛnts ˈmoʊlnɑːr, -rənts -, - ˈmɔːl-/ FERR-ents MOHL-nar, -⁠ənts -⁠, -⁠ MAWL-, Hungarian: [ˈfɛrɛnt͡s ˈmolnaːr]; born Ferenc Neumann; January 12, 1878 – April 1, 1952), often anglicized as Franz Molnar, was a Hungarian-born author, stage director, dramatist, and poet, widely regarded as Hungary's most celebrated and controversial playwright. His primary aim through his writing was to entertain by transforming his personal experiences into literary works of art. He never connected to any one literary movement. However, he did utilize the precepts of naturalism, Neo-Romanticism, Expressionism, and Freudian psychoanalytic theories, but only as long as they suited his desires. "By fusing the realistic narrative and stage tradition of Hungary with Western influences into a cosmopolitan amalgam, Molnár emerged as a versatile artist whose style was uniquely his own."

As a novelist, Molnár can be remembered best for The Paul Street Boys, the story of two rival gangs of youths in Budapest. It has been translated into 42 languages and adapted for the stage and film. It has been considered a masterpiece by many. However, it was as a playwright that he made his most significant contribution and how he is best known internationally. "In his graceful, whimsical, sophisticated drawing-room comedies, he provided a felicitous synthesis of naturalism and fantasy, realism and romanticism, cynicism, and sentimentality, the profane and the sublime." Of his many plays, The Devil, Liliom, The Swan, The Guardsman, and The Play's the Thing endure as classics. His influences included luminaries such as Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw, and Gerhart Hauptmann. He immigrated to the United States to escape the persecution of Hungarian Jews during World War II and later adopted American citizenship. Molnár's plays continue to be relevant and performed world-wide. His national and international fame has inspired many Hungarian playwrights, including Elemér Boross, László Fodor, Lajos Bíró, László Bús-Fekete, Ernő Vajda, Attila Orbók, and Imre Földes, among others.