Tirso de Molina, << TEER soh day moh LEE nah, >> was the pen name of Gabriel Tellez (1584-1648), a Spanish playwright. His masterpiece, The Trickster of Seville (1630), firmly established the legend of Don Juan in literature (see Don Juan ).
Tirso probably wrote nearly 400 plays, of which 86 survive. They include historical and religious dramas, light comedies about palace society, and romantic tragedies. Tirso had a good understanding of psychology and showed greater skill in creating characters than any other Spanish playwright of his time. He also wrote light-hearted tales, The Gardens of Toledo (1624); and the more serious Pleasure with Profit (1635), a collection of stories, short plays, and verse. Tirso was born in Madrid early in 1584. He was a friar and an important official in the Order of Mercy. Tirso died on March 12, 1648.
