Wallace Irwin

Wallace Irwin
Wallace Irwin (1875–1959) was an American humorist, poet, and novelist known for his satirical and comedic writing. He gained popularity with "The Love Sonnets of a Hoodlum" (1901), a parody of classical sonnets written in the slang of San Francisco's underworld. Irwin also wrote adventure novels such as "Seed of the Sun" (1921) and "The Teddysee" (1907), a humorous retelling of "The Odyssey" from the perspective of Teddy Roosevelt's childhood. His diverse works, ranging from light verse to fiction, made him a significant figure in early 20th-century American humor.

Author's Books:


Science may conquer the stars, but it does nothing by jumps. As a Scientist, as well as a philosopher, I am accustomed to reaching the Transcendental by winding paths. It is characteristic of me that I should have consented to preface this remarkable Sonnet Cycle only after supreme deliberation, and that I should at last have determined to speak in behalf of the Car Conductor for the following reasons:... more...

Since the publication of Edward Fitzgerald's classic translation of the Rubaiyat in 1851 - or rather since its general popularity several years later - poets minor and major have been rendering the sincerest form of flattery to the genius of the Irishman who brought Persia into the best regulated families. Unfortunately there was only one Omar and there were scores of imitators who, in order to... more...