Ah, Wilderness! is a play by Eugene O'Neill, and has the distinction of being the only true comedy he would ever write. In contrast to O'Neill's other, often tragic works, the overall tone of Ah, Wilderness! is rather sentimental and nostalgic.

The play takes place around the Fourth of July, 1906, and focuses on the Miller family of Connecticut. The main plot deals with the middle son, 17-year-old Richard, and his coming of age.

The title derives from Quatrain XI of Edward Fitzgerald's translation of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, which is one of Richard's favorite poems.

Ah, Wilderness was made into a 1935 movie directed by Clarence Brown, starring Wallace Beery, Lionel Barrymore, Eric Linden, and Cecilia Parker, with a young Mickey Rooney in the central role.

External links

• E-text of the play, in HTML-format.

1933 plays | 1935 films | Eugene O'Neill plays