William S. Burroughs

William Seward Burroughs II (February 5, 1914 – August 2, 1997) was an American writer and visual artist. Known for his role as a primary figure of the Beat Generation, he is considered a major postmodern author who greatly influenced popular culture and literature. Burroughs wrote numerous novels, novellas, collections of short stories, and essays, and his interviews and correspondences have also been published. He adopted the pen name William Lee at the beginning of his career. Aside from his literary accomplishments, Burroughs collaborated with various performers and musicians, made appearances in films, and created thousands of visual artworks. Born into a wealthy family in St. Louis, Missouri, he attended Harvard University and studied English and anthropology.