1. O. Henry (1862 - 1910) “It ain't the roads we take;
it's what's inside of us that makes us turn out the way we do.”

2. William Sydney Porter (September 11, 1862 – June 5, 1910), known by his pen name O. Henry, was an American writer. O. Henry's short stories are known for their wit, wordplay, warm characterization and clever twist endings.
William Sidney Porter was born on September 11, 1862, in Greensboro, North Carolina.

3. Austin, Texas, The USA

4. As a child, Porter was always reading
As a child, Porter was always reading. He read everything from classics to dime novels.
His favorite work was One Thousand and One Nights.

5. At 15, Porter became an apprentice pharmacist in his uncle's drugstore
At 15, Porter became an apprentice pharmacist in his uncle's drugstore. Young Porter liked to draw caricatures of customers and to regale them with stories and skits that he wrote himself.

6. The period from 1887 to 1891 was the happiest time in Porter's life
The period from 1887 to 1891 was the happiest time in Porter's life. He and 17-year-old Athol Estes started a family. With his wife's support, Porter began to write stories for national magazines.
To earn extra money, he also took a job as a bookkeeper, a bank teller.

7. Porter's most prolific writing period started in 1902, when he moved to New York City to be near his publishers. While there, he wrote 381 short stories.

8. O. Henry’s stories are famous for their surprise endings
O. Henry’s stories are famous for their surprise endings. They are playful, optimistic and well known for witty narration.
Most of O. Henry's stories are set in his own time, the early years of the 20th century. Many take place in New York City, and deal for the most part with ordinary people: clerks, policemen, waitresses, etc.

9. Among his most famous stories are:
“Cabbages and Kings”,
"The Gift of the Magi",
"A Retrieved Reformation",
"The Ransom of Red Chief“,
“Babes in The Jungle”

10. Writing style.
In his day, he was called the American answer to Guy de Maupassant.
Both authors wrote plot twist endings, but O. Henry stories were much more playful. O. Henry's humorous style and surprise endings help to explain why his short stories are still enjoyed these many years after his death.
His works have also been compared to the works of Mark Twain and Ambrose Bierce, both of whom clearly influenced O. Henry's stories. Although some of his works are considered quite good.

11. Pen name.
Porter gave various explanations for the origin of his pen name.
A newspaper once wrote and asked me what the O stands for. I replied, "O stands for Olivier, the French for Oliver." And several of my stories accordingly appeared in that paper under the name Olivier Henry.

12. In the introduction to The World of O
In the introduction to The World of O. Henry: “Roads of Destiny and Other Stories“, William Trevor writes that when Porter was in the Ohio State Penitentiary "there was a prison guard named Orrin Henry, whom William Sydney Porter immortalised as O. Henry".

13. Porter was a heavy drinker, and his health deteriorated markedly in 1908, which affected his writing. He died on June 5, 1910, of cirrhosis of the liver, complications of diabetes, and an enlarged heart. After funeral services in New York City, he was buried in the Riverside Cemetery in Asheville, North Carolina.
His last words are said to have been:
"Turn up the lights —I don't want to go home in the dark."

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