Among O. Henry's most famous stories, Cabbages and Kings was his first collection of stories, followed by The Four Million. The Gift of the Magi is about a young couple who are short of money but desperately want to buy each other Christmas gifts. The Cop and the Anthem is about a New York City hobo named Soapy, who sets out to get arrested so that he can be a guest of the city jail instead of sleeping out in the cold winter. A Retrieved Reformation, which tells the tale of safecracker Jimmy Valentine, recently freed from prison. The Duplicity of Hargraves, a short story about a nearly destitute father and daughter's trip to Washington, D.C. Table of O. Henry ' On Himself, Life, And Other Things Biography of O. Henry Collection of A Contribution Chanson De Bohême Drop a Tear in This Slot Hard to Forget Nothing to Say Tamales The Lullaby Boy The Murderer The Old Farm The Pewee Two Portraits Vanity Collections of Short Cabbages and Kings Heart of the West My Tussle with the Devil by O. Henry's Ghost O Henryana Options Roads of Destiny Rolling Stones Sixes and Sevens Strictly Business The Four Million The Gentle Grafter The Trimmed Lamp The Two Women The Voice of the City Waifs and Strays Whirligigs Collection of Letters William Sydney Porter (1862–1910), known by his pen name O. Henry, was an American writer. O. Henry's short stories are known for their wit, wordplay, warm characterization, and surprise endings.
Author
Such volumes as Cabbages and Kings (1904) and The Four Million (1906) collect short stories, noted for their often surprising endings, of American writer William Sydney Porter, who used the pen name O. Henry. His biography shows where he found inspiration for his characters. His era produced their voices and his language. Mother of three-year-old Porter died from tuberculosis. He left school at fifteen years of age and worked for five years in drugstore of his uncle and then for two years at a Texas sheep ranch. In 1884, he went to Austin, where he worked in a real estate office and a church choir and spent four years as a draftsman in the general land office. His wife and firstborn died, but daughter Margaret survived him. He failed to establish a small humorous weekly and afterward worked in poorly-run bank. When its accounts balanced not, people blamed and fired him. In Houston, he worked for a few years until, ordered to stand trial for embezzlement, he fled to New Orleans and thence Honduras. Two years later, he returned on account of illness of his wife. Apprehended, Porter served a few months more than three years in a penitentiary in Columbus, Ohio. During his incarceration, he composed ten short stories, including A Blackjack Bargainer , The Enchanted Kiss , and The Duplicity of Hargraves . In 1899, McClure's published Whistling Dick's Christmas Story and Georgia's Ruling . In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he sent manuscripts to New York editors. In the spring of 1902, Ainslee's Magazine offered him a regular income if he moved to New York. In less than eight years, he became a bestselling author of collections of short stories. Cabbages and Kings came first in 1904 The Four Million, and The Trimmed Lamp and Heart of the West followed in 1907, and The Voice of the City in 1908, Roads of Destiny and Options in 1909, Strictly Business and Whirligigs in 1910 followed. Posthumously published collections include The Gentle Grafter about the swindler, Jeff Peters; Rolling Stones , Waifs and Strays , and in 1936, unsigned stories, followed. People rewarded other persons financially more. A Retrieved Reformation about the safe-cracker Jimmy Valentine got $250; six years later, $500 for dramatic rights, which gave over $100,000 royalties for playwright Paul Armstrong. Many stories have been made into films.
