Author. He graduated from Cornell University in 1914 and joined the Army in 1916. Assigned to Battery D, 13th Field Artillery, 4th Infantry Division for World War I, Upson fought in the Aisne-Marne, St. Mihiel, and Argonne offensives and served in Germany during the post-war occupation. After his discharge he worked for Holt Manufacturing (now Caterpillar Tractor). In 1922 he began writing short stories, and in 1924 he became a full time author. In 1928 he settled in his wife's hometown of Middlebury, and from 1924 to 1967 he wrote more than 100 stories for the "Saturday Evening Post", many of which featured Alexander Botts, an "everyman" who worked as a tractor salesman for the Earthworm Tractor Company, a character modeled on Upson's real life experiences. Botts became a folk hero to a generation of Americans as the main character in the comic strip "Alexander the Great", the subject of the late 1930s film "Earthworm Tractors" starring Joe E. Brown, and the lead in radio adaptations on several networks. Upson also wrote plays, including "Middlebury on Parade", and he authored several books, including "Me and Henry and the Artillery", "The Piano Movers", and a well received tongue-in-cheek "self-help" work, "How to be Rich Like Me". He was a well known lecturer on college campuses, and taught creative writing at Middlebury College. He was also involved in political and civic causes, especially the effort to make family planning and birth control information available to women.
Author. He graduated from Cornell University in 1914 and joined the Army in 1916. Assigned to Battery D, 13th Field Artillery, 4th Infantry Division for World War I, Upson fought in the Aisne-Marne, St. Mihiel, and Argonne offensives and served in Germany during the post-war occupation. After his discharge he worked for Holt Manufacturing (now Caterpillar Tractor). In 1922 he began writing short stories, and in 1924 he became a full time author. In 1928 he settled in his wife's hometown of Middlebury, and from 1924 to 1967 he wrote more than 100 stories for the "Saturday Evening Post", many of which featured Alexander Botts, an "everyman" who worked as a tractor salesman for the Earthworm Tractor Company, a character modeled on Upson's real life experiences. Botts became a folk hero to a generation of Americans as the main character in the comic strip "Alexander the Great", the subject of the late 1930s film "Earthworm Tractors" starring Joe E. Brown, and the lead in radio adaptations on several networks. Upson also wrote plays, including "Middlebury on Parade", and he authored several books, including "Me and Henry and the Artillery", "The Piano Movers", and a well received tongue-in-cheek "self-help" work, "How to be Rich Like Me". He was a well known lecturer on college campuses, and taught creative writing at Middlebury College. He was also involved in political and civic causes, especially the effort to make family planning and birth control information available to women.
Bio by: Bill McKern
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