Walter Kerr Biography

Walter Kerr

The Pulitzer Prize-winner got his start as a critic in 1949 when he joined Commonweal, a Roman Catholic weekly. From there he joined the New York Herald Tribune, where his wit and elegant prose earned him a reputation as one of theater's most respected voices. He joined the New York Times in 1966 and wrote theater reviews there for 17 years. He wrote the Broadway musicals Sing Out, Sweet Land, collaborated with his wife Jean on Song of Bernadette, and directed the play King of Hearts, which his wife coauthored with Eleanor Brooke. In 1990, Broadway's refurbished Ritz Theater was renamed the Walter Kerr Theater.