GREY, Zane

(1872–1939)

   Zane Grey was one of the earliest writers of Western fiction to publish best sellers on a regular basis. Building on the tradition of formula Westerns established by Owen Wister, Grey wrote over 90 popular novels, mostly Westerns. For many, Zane Grey’s name was synonymous with pulp Westerns for much of the 20th century. Not surprisingly, many of his novels were made into films. Four versions of Riders of the Purple Sage, Grey’s most popular novel, have been made—in 1918, 1925, 1931, and 1996. Grey’s direct involvement with the film industry came in 1919 when he formed Zane Grey Productions, a short-lived company that was a forerunner of Paramount Pictures. Perhaps the most famous Zane Grey film, Fritz Lang’s 1941 Western Union, which was billed as “Zane Grey’s Western Union,” is actually based on an original studio screenplay. No book had been written, and Grey himself had died two years earlier. The studio adopted the Zane Grey name for marketing purposes. After the film’s release, a novelization of the film was also marketed as if written by Grey himself. About 55 films are based on Grey novels, the most recent in 1996.