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Rebecca Godfrey

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Rebecca Godfrey
Born2 December 1967 (1967-12-02)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Died3 October 2022 (2022-10-04) (aged 54)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Toronto
Sarah Lawrence College
OccupationWriter
SpouseHerbert Wilson
Children1
Parent(s)Dave Godfrey
Ellen Godfrey

Rebecca Margot Godfrey (December 2, 1967 – October 3, 2022) was a Canadian novelist and non-fiction writer.

Early life

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Godfrey was born in Toronto, Ontario, to writers Dave Godfrey[1] and Ellen Godfrey. As a child she relocated with her family to Victoria, British Columbia. Godfrey attended the University of Toronto and Sarah Lawrence College, from which she received an MFA in creative writing.[2]

Career

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Godfrey worked in Toronto and New York as a journalist and editor before she began writing books. Her first novel, The Torn Skirt (2001) was shortlisted for the 2002 Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize.[3] Described as a feminine alternative to the works of David Foster Wallace,[4][5] it received a favorable review in the New York Times.[6]

Godfrey's second book, Under the Bridge (2005), an investigation into the beating death of Reena Virk, received British Columbia's National Award for Canadian Non-Fiction in 2006.[7] It was optioned for film adaptation by Reese Witherspoon's Type A Productions.[8][9][10] In 2017 Godfrey wrote a follow-up to her book with an update on the legal fate of the two convicted killers and the lives of the girls involved in the crime for Vice magazine. The book was also included in Rolling Stone's 2017 list of 11 True Crime Books for Music Lovers[11] and Men's Journal's list of the 10 Best True Crime Books. On June 25, 2019, Gallery Books published a new edition of Under the Bridge with an introduction by Godfrey's friend Mary Gaitskill.[12]

Godfrey subsequently continued to write portraits of unconventional, influential women, most recently interviewing Robyn Doolittle on her 2014 exposé of Toronto mayor Rob Ford's tumultuous political career[13] and interviewing German actress Barbara Sukowa on the legacy of Hannah Arendt.[14]

In August 2016 Godfrey curated an acclaimed gallery show at the Instar Lodge in Germantown, New York, titled Girls in Trees.[15] The show featured works by over 33 artists and writers, including the photographer Brigitte Lacombe, the poet Sharon Olds, the novelists Mary Gaitskill and Samantha Hunt, poet Nick Flynn, painter Lisa Sanditz, and sculptors Julianne Swartz and Diann Bauer. The accompanying publication includes photographs, text, and other artistic materials offering a variety of perspectives on the theme of girlhood and nature.[16]

In 2016, Godfrey was awarded a Fellowship from the MacDowell Colony, where she worked on her third book, a novel then titled The Dilettante.[17][18] The novel explores the early life of Peggy Guggenheim, her first gallery, and a brief, unlikely affair with Samuel Beckett. Godfrey had previously worked on the novel during a period as a visiting artist at the American Academy in Rome.[19]

Godfrey was an adjunct assistant professor of creative writing at Columbia University, where she taught fiction workshops and a seminar on Anti-Heroines in literature.[20] Former students who have published works influenced by the themes of the seminar include Mandy Berman and Naima Coster.[19]

A week before her death, Hulu announced it had ordered an eight-episode true-crime limited series, Under the Bridge, based on Godfrey's book of the same name. Credited as one of the executive producers, Godfrey collaborated with Quinn Shepard for two and a half years to adapt the book for the screen. Production began in December 2022.[10][9] Under the Bridge, starring Riley Keough, Lily Gladstone, and Izzy G, premiered on Hulu on April 17, 2024.[21]

Her final novel, Peggy, was published posthumously by Random House in August 2024. It was completed from Godfrey's notes after her death by her friend and colleague Leslie Jamison.[22][23]

Death

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Godfrey died from complications of lung cancer in New York City on October 3, 2022, at the age of 54. She is survived by her husband Herbert Wilson, their daughter Ada, Godfrey's mother, and Godfrey's brother Samuel.[9]

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Bibliography

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  • — (2001). The Torn Skirt. Toronto: HarperFlamingo. ISBN 978-0-00-225519-6. OCLC 46991039.
  • — (2005). Under the Bridge: The True Story of the Murder of Reena Virk. Toronto: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 978-0-00-200067-3. OCLC 58830378.
  • — (2024). Peggy: A Novel. Random House. ISBN 978-0-38-553828-2.

References

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  1. ^ Adams, James (July 3, 2015). "Late writer Dave Godfrey created three publishing houses". The Globe and Mail.
  2. ^ Lucas, Madelaine (June 11, 2024). "An Interview with Rebecca Godfrey". Believer Magazine. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
  3. ^ "2002 Winners & Finalists". Archived from the original on 2019-04-08.
  4. ^ Coyle, Dierdre (April 17, 2017). "Men Recommend David Foster Wallace to Me". Electric Literature.
  5. ^ "Men Recommend David Foster Wallace to Me". 17 April 2017.
  6. ^ Krouse, Erika (Nov 3, 2002). "Rude Awakenings". The New York Times.
  7. ^ "BC Achievement Foundation". Archived from the original on 2017-07-09.
  8. ^ Zeitchik, Steven (May 3, 2007). "Witherspoon developing 'Bridge'".
  9. ^ a b c Green, Penelope (November 4, 2022). "Rebecca Godfrey, 54, Dies; Author Found Humanity in Teenage Violence". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 4, 2022. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  10. ^ a b Evans, Greg (2022-11-04). "Rebecca Godfrey Dies: True-Crime Author Whose 'Under The Bridge' Is In Development At Hulu Was 54". Deadline. Retrieved 2022-11-05.
  11. ^ Carroll, Tobias (April 8, 2019). "11 True Crime Books For Music Lovers". Rolling Stone.
  12. ^ Lacombe, Brigitte (June 25, 2019). "Under the Bridge". Simon & Schuster. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
  13. ^ Godfrey, Rebecca (Feb 4, 2014). "Crack Reporter: The Scoop on Rob Ford From Robyn Doolittle". Flare. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019.
  14. ^ Godfrey, Rebecca (June 15, 2013). "The New Yorkers Barbara Sukowa On the Legacy of Fellow Empire State German, Hannah Arendt".
  15. ^ "Girls In Trees (In Art, In Literature) Writers and Photographers Explore the Collision of Nature and Girlhood". December 21, 2016.
  16. ^ "An Interview with Rebecca Godfrey on her Multidisciplinary Show Girls in Trees". Columbia University School of the Arts. November 17, 2016. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019.
  17. ^ "Lauren Groff Among Latest MacDowell Fellows". Publishers Weekly. Oct 26, 2016.
  18. ^ "Rebecca Godfrey - MacDowell Fellow in Literature". MacDowell. Retrieved 2022-11-05.
  19. ^ a b Gaitskill, Mary (November 21, 2022). "Remembering Rebecca". The Paris Review. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
  20. ^ "Columbia School of the Arts Fall 2018 Course Book" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-12-21.
  21. ^ Rice, Lynette (February 9, 2024). "Hulu Reveals Premiere Dates For 'Under The Bridge,' 'The Contestant' & 'Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  22. ^ Jamison, Leslie (November 20, 2023). "A Friend Died, Her Novel Unfinished. Could I Realize Her Vision?". The New Yorker. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
  23. ^ "Peggy by Rebecca Godfrey: 9780385538282". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
  24. ^ "BULL TONGUE by Byron Coley & Thurston Moore from Arthur No. 21 (Mar. 2006)". Arthur. March 2006.
  25. ^ "Review: The Torn Skirt by Rebecca Godfrey". The Bailer. March 15, 2004. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019.
  26. ^ Calhoun, Chrissy (October 5, 2009). "Spotted: Dan de Fleurette". The Calhoun Tribune. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019.
  27. ^ Dinklage, Peter (March 16, 2006). "Pushy Questions For ... Peter Dinklage, actor, whose latest film, "Find Me Guilty," opens today in L.A." Variety.
  28. ^ "Daughters of Daughters of Eve: An Interview with Megan Abbott". Mulholland Books. 30 July 2012.
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