César Octavio Müller Leiva (13 August 1907 – 24 July 1996),, mostly known under the pseudonym Oreste Plath, was a Chilean writer and folklorist. In 1942, he began studying folklore, making trips to neighboring countries like Bolivia, Brazil and Argentina. In 1982, he was elected to the Academia Chilena de la Lengua.
Jorge Urrutia Blondel (September 17, 1905 – July 5, 1981), was a Chilean composer, educator and writer, born in 1905. He has composed ballet music, symphonic poems, and works for piano and for voice. He is regarded as a Chilean nationalist in his music, but nevertheless the influence of Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel can be detected in his orchestration and harmony. He co-authored, with S. Claro, Historia de la musica en Chile (History of Music in Chile), published in 1971.
Jenaro Prieto (1889–1946) was Chilean journalist, writer and politician. He served as a member of the National Congress of Chile for the Conservative Party during the 1930s.
Amongst his best known works as a writer is the novel The Partner (1928) which has been turned into several films.
Carlos Droguett (14 October 1912 – 30 July 1996) was a Chilean writer. In 1970 he won the Chilean National Prize for Literature and the Premio Alfaguara de Novela.
Hernán Díaz Arrieta (1891–1984), widely known by his pen name, Alone, was a Chilean writer, film critic and memoirist. He won the Chilean National Prize for Literature in 1959.
Díaz Arrieta was born on May 11, 1891, in the town of Buin on the outskirts of Santiago, Chile. He spent a year in the Seminary of Santiago, a year at the Instituto Comercial de Santiago, and finally attended dental school for a brief time. He then began a 25-year career in the Ministry of Justice eventually becoming the head of the Civil Registry. Despite receiving little formal training, he began his literary career at an early age. In 1913, he published two stories in the journal Pluma y Lapiz under the pseudonym Alone. He published his only novel in 1915 before devoting his attention to literary criticism. In a career spanning more than sixty years, Alone wrote for a wide array of newspapers and periodicals, penning, most notably, the column Crónica Literaria, which first appeared in La Nación and later in El Mercurio. He became well known for his fluid and distinct style, and is considered to be the greatest Chilean prose writer of the mid-20th century. Several writers profited from his active promotion of their work, especially María Luisa Bombal and the poet Gabriela Mistral. Despite his vehement opposition to Communism, he nevertheless was an outspoken admirer of the poet and Pablo Neruda who was a prominent member of the Communist Party of Chile. He was a staunch catholic and supporter of the right-wing political movement that culminated in the 1973 overthrow of the leftist President of Chile, Salvador Allende.
Alone lived his whole life in the same residence, a house he obtained with a mortgage at the beginning of his career in the Civil Service. Nearly blind and unable to speak, Alone died on January 24, 1984, at the age of 92.
Notable Works
Historia Personal de la Literatura Chilena (1954)
Aprender a escribir (1956)
Leer y escribir (1962)
Preterito, Imperfecto (1976)
Sady Zañartu (May 6, 1893 – March 5, 1983) was a Chilean writer who created foundational works in the genres of Criollismo, historical anecdote, and patriotic valorization of the nation. He won the Chilean National Prize for Literature in 1974.
Pedro Prado Calvo (8 October 1886 – 31 January 1952) was a Chilean writer and architect. He won the Chilean National Prize for Literature in 1949.
Fernando Santiván (1886–1973) was a Chilean writer renowned for winning the Chilean National Prize for Literature in 1952. His real name was Fernando Santibañez Puga.
He was the son of a Spaniard father and Chilean mother. At the age of 8 he was sent to the port city of Valparaiso, where he attended several schools. Later, he attended the prestigious "Instituto Nacional" and the School of Arts & Crafts, from which he was expelled for political reasons.
For a short time, he entered the Pedagogic Institute of the Universidad de Chile, studying maths and Spanish at the same time.
Santivan wanted to work to have his own independence, which led him to take jobs unusual for a future writer; shoemaker, tailor, coal seller, boxer, propagandist, etc.
In 1912 he directed the weekly "Pluma y Lápiz" (Pen & Pencil). In 1914, he acted as secretary in organizing the Chilean Writers Society, the Floral Games that has as a winner the poet Gabriela Mistral, with her Sonnets of Death.
He worked at several magazines and newspapers, directed some, and founded others like the successful magazine Artes y Letras.
By 1952, he received the Literature National Prize.
Santivan had a stroke in the city of Valdivia, where he died in 1973.
Angel Cruchaga Santa María (March 23, 1893 – September 5, 1964) was a Chilean writer. He won the Chilean National Prize for Literature in 1948.