Cassill, R. V. (Ronald Verlin), 1919-2002

Author and critic Ron Verlin Cassill was born on May 17, 1919, in Cedar Falls, IA, son of Mary Elizabeth Glosser and Howard Earl Cassill. Following his graduation from Blakesburg High School, Cassill enrolled in the University of Iowa, taking his bachelor's degree magna cum laude in 1939. In 1949 he joined the University of Iowa's Writer's Workshop as an instructor of English. Cassill remained at Iowa until 1952. Following a dispute with University and English Department administration over the autonomy of the Writer's Workshop, Cassill resigned from the University. Cassill in 1966 withdrew his substantial manuscript archive from Special Collections at the University of Iowa, claiming that his move from the state was permanent and that he no longer considered himself an Iowan. In 1966 Cassill accepted the position of visiting lecturer in the department of English at Brown University, succeeding the novelist John Hawkes. He remained with Brown until his retirement in 1982. Cassill then became editor of Norton's Anthology of Short Fiction. In March of 2002 Cassill died at the age of 82 in Providence, Rhode Island.

From the description of Papers of Ronald Verlin Cassill, 1957-1963. (University of Iowa Libraries). WorldCat record id: 231431348