Irvin S. Cobb was a literary man of all trades: short-story writer, novelist, journalist, war correspondent, playwright, essayist, raconteur, and actor. Born to Joshua Clark Cobb and Manie Saunders Cobb in Paducah, Kentucky, on 23 June 1876, he was a prolific and successful author whose more than three hundred short stories and sixty books made him one of the highest paid writers of his time. In 1925 magazines were paying up to four thousand dollars for each of his short stories. He was frequently represented in the annual O. Henry Memorial Award Prize Stories volumes. In 1929 his stories were reprinted in nine anthologies of short-story classics. Like his friend humorist Will Rogers, he was a famous public figure. His portly build, bushy eyebrows, multiple chins, and ever-present cigar made him a favorite subject for cartoonists.

Because of family financial troubles, Cobb was forced to leave school at sixteen. He worked briefly...