Norman Corwin, writer in residence, dies at 101

Norman Corwin, the “poet laureate of radio” and writer in residence at the Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism, died Tuesday. He was 101.

Corwin died of natural causes at 5 p.m., according to Annenberg.

“I’ve been at USC for 37 years; the entire experience has been my favorite memory,” Corwin told the Daily Trojan in 2010, at his 100th birthday celebration. “Teaching is my favorite achievement.”

Corwin had been an Annenberg faculty member since 1979, during his tenure he authored several books and wrote a monthly column about media.

Corwin began working as a print journalist when he was 17 years old but moved into radio after 10 years.

He wrote, directed and produced original radio plays for CBS in the late ’30s and ’40s, the golden age of radio. His programs aired uninterrupted by sponsors.

Corwin is noted for writing “On a Note of Triumph,” which marked the end of World War II and was the most listened-to radio drama in U.S. history, and “We Hold These Truths,” which he wrote after President Franklin Roosevelt asked him to write a program celebrating the Bill of Rights.

Corwin’s screenplay biography of artist Vincent van Gogh, Lust for Life, earned him an Academy Award nomination in 1956. He earned an Emmy, two Peabody medals and a Golden Globe award for his writing.

He also wrote and directed plays, television dramas and motion pictures. He chaired two award committees for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.

Corwin is survived by his two children.