WRITER · BORN 1875 · DIED 1932
Edgar Wallace
- Born
- 1 April 1875
- Died
- 10 February 1932
42 archived facts 2 topics 1 source Last reviewed Sep 2026
34 Interesting Facts About Edgar Wallace
- #001
At the height of his career, Edgar Wallace was one of the most popular writers in the United Kingdom, ranking second only to Charles Dickens.
- #002
Edgar Wallace died while working on a film project in Hollywood that would become King Kong (1933). He had been in the country for only three months before succumbing to double pneumonia in February 1932.
- #003
Among 20th-century writers, Edgar Wallace is the author whose novels have been adapted to film the greatest number of times.
- #004
Edgar Wallace was one of director Carol Reed's first mentors.
- #005
Nearly 30 years after his death, there was a sudden surge in the popularity of Edgar Wallace's works, driven by British and especially German feature films based on his stories. Numerous TV adaptations were also produced in the United Kingdom.
- #006
Edgar Wallace was a passionate gambler.
- #007
Although much of his estate consisted of debts, the ongoing popularity of his works through continuing royalties cleared the estate within two years of his death.
- #008
Edgar Wallace's only contribution to the finished King Kong (1933) was the idea of giving Kong human characteristics.
- #010
In Agatha Christie: A Life in Pictures (2004), his views on Agatha Christie's disappearance in 1926 are addressed.
- #011
More than 160 films have been made based on Edgar Wallace's works.
- #012
Edgar Wallace founded British Lion Film Corp. with S. W. Smith, who became general manager in 1928. Their first film was the silent picture The Squeaker (1930).
- #013
It was claimed that Edgar Wallace could dictate an entire novel in a single day.
- #014
Despite being an incredibly prolific writer, Edgar Wallace is a largely forgotten name in the United Kingdom.
- #015
Edgar Wallace was a war correspondent during the Boer War.
- #016
In 1927 Edgar Wallace was elected chairman of the board of British Lion Films. He was given shares worth £10,000, £1,000 for each work filmed by the company, 10% of the company's annual profit and an annual salary of £500. Despite acting in and directing many films made from his works, the deal was not very profitable for him.
- #017
Edgar Wallace was an illegitimate child.
- #018
Edgar Wallace began suffering from severe headaches, which led to a diagnosis of diabetes.
- #019
Edgar Wallace was a member of the Liberal Party.
- #020
Edgar Wallace was of Irish descent, and his parents were Irish Catholics.
- #023
At first, Edgar Wallace's writing career was focused mainly on reducing his substantial financial debts.
- #024
Edgar Wallace worked as a journalist at the London newspaper "The Daily Mail."
- #025
In 1929, Edgar Wallace was earning about £50,000 a year.
- #026
In 1923, Edgar Wallace became the first British radio sports reporter.
- #027
Edgar Wallace wrote the screenplay for the first sound film of Arthur Conan Doyle's "Hound of the Baskervilles."
- #028
Edgar Wallace's greatest successes as a playwright were the plays "The Green Pack" and "On the Spot."
- #030
By his teenage years, Edgar Wallace had worked in various jobs, including factory worker, newspaper seller, milk deliverer and shoe shop assistant.
- #032
Edgar Wallace was known for his generosity toward his friends.
- #035
Edgar Wallace directed two adaptations of his own novels: "Red Aces" and "The Squeaker," both from 1930.
- #036
Edgar Wallace's best-known books include "The Dark Eyes of London," "The Four Just Men," "The Frightened Lady" and "The Squeaker."
- #037
In 1921, Edgar Wallace signed an agreement with the publisher "Hodder and Stoughton," as a result of which he became an internationally recognized author.
- #039
In 1896, Wallace was sent to South Africa with the West Kent Regiment. Military life did not suit him, and he was eventually transferred to the Press Association.
- #040
While working as a journalist at the Daily Mail, he began writing detective stories.
- #041
Edgar Wallace initially earned money as a writer to pay off his debts.
- #042
When Wallace's colleague, screenwriter Ivor Novello, left Hollywood for good to return to England in 1932, he had to change trains in Chicago. For the rest of the journey he wanted to make sure his beloved dog was well looked after, and he saw a Black porter sitting beside a huge packing crate on the platform. Novello cheerfully said, "I hope there's no one inside." The porter replied: "Sure there is, it's a film writer who died suddenly of pneumonia in Hollywood." Novello turned over the label, which read EDGAR WALLACE.
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