Marquis, << MAHR kwihs, >> Don (1878-1937), was an American humorist and journalist. He became best known for his fictional creations archy the cockroach and his companion, mehitabel the alley cat. They first appeared in Marquis’s daily newspaper column in 1916. archy typed accounts of his adventures with mehitabel on Marquis’s typewriter at night. Because archy could not depress the shift key, he typed only in small letters, giving Marquis’s columns a distinctive appearance. The cockroach mocked many subjects that irritated Marquis, including free verse, missionaries, organized labor, technology, and popular science writers. The cat ridiculed sober morality and pretentious social attitudes.
Marquis was born in Walnut, Illinois, on July 29, 1878. His full name was Donald Robert Perry Marquis. Marquis worked as a journalist in Atlanta, Georgia, from 1902 to 1909 and in New York City from 1909 to 1925. Marquis also wrote humorous verse, short stories, novels, and plays. He died on Dec. 29, 1937.
