Arthur Miller is probably America's most famous living and most enduring playwright. From the production of his first play in the 1930s through the 1990s, Miller has continually sought to explore and demystify the foundations upon which American power was built. During the 1950s, in particular, Miller risked his artistic career in order to expose the lies and hysteria that underpinned the McCarthy era. As a symbol of artistic integrity and resistance, his plays contain universal themes that have transcended their American origins; few other American playwrights can claim to be so heavily and consistently produced throughout the world. Miller has written more than 50 plays, stories, and novels, and he still continues to fascinate because of his marriage in the 1950s to Marilyn Monroe.

Born October 17, 1915, in New York, Miller was raised in a middle-class Jewish household in Harlem supported by his father's coat...