Jesse Ely Wills (1899–1977) was an American businessman in Nashville who was chairman of the National Life and Accident Insurance Company, a company founded by his father, William Ridley Wills in 1902.[1] Jesse Wills began working there when he was a student at Vanderbilt University. In 1925, the company created radio station WSM to help promote their business and built a studio on the fifth floor of their building. National Life Insurance and station WSM achieved international recognition in creating the "Grand Ole Opry " which was broadcast nationwide and became the longest-running radio broadcast in U.S. history.[2][3]
In 1922, while a student at Vanderbilt, Wills was a member of the "Fugitives", a literary movement.[4] The Fugitives wrote and published poetry, and included notable writers Robert Penn Warren, Allen Tate, John Crowe Ransom and Donald Davidson.[5] The group published the Fugitive Magazine between 1922 and 1925.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b "Jesse Ely Wills Memorial Rites to Be Monday". No. Vol. 71, No. 331. Tennessean. March 5, 1977. pp. 1–4. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
{{cite news}}:|issue=has extra text (help) - ^ Connelly, John Lawrence (August 22, 2018). "National Life and Accident Insurance Company". tennesseeencyclopedia.net. Tennessee Historical Society. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ^ "Music/Grand Ole Opry". The Radio Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on September 8, 2008. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
- ^ "Fugitives Add to Literary Honors Of Tennessee". Special Features Section. No. Vol. 15, No. 17. Nashville Tennessean. May 27, 1923. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
{{cite news}}:|issue=has extra text (help) - ^ Malvasi, Mark G. (October 8, 2017). "The Fugitives". tennesseeencyclopedia.net. Tennessee Historical Society. Retrieved August 4, 2020.