WHARTON, WILLIAM

born , Philadelphia, Pa. pseudonymous American novelist best known for his innovative first novel, Birdy (1979; filmed 1984), a critical and popular success. Wharton wrote under that pseudonym to protect his privacy. Trained as a painter at the University of California, Los Angeles, he worked as an artist for almost 25 years before Birdy's publication. During that time he and his family settled permanently in France. Autobiographical elements and fantastic characters blend in Wharton's novels. Birdy tells of a man with a lifelong obsession with birds. Hospitalized as a result of his service in World War II, Birdy seems to want only to become a bird. Al, another scarred veteran and childhood friend, tries to help him. Wharton's second novel, Dad (1981), is about a middle-aged painter living in France who returns to the United States to care for his ailing parents. Wharton's later novels include the World War II story A Midnight Clear (1982; filmed 1992); Scumbler (1984), about an American artist in Paris; Pride (1985), a story of the Depression; Tidings (1987); Last Loves (1991); Wrongful Deaths (1994); and Houseboat on the Seine (1996). Wharton also illustrated his novel Franky Furbo (1989).