Herbert Quick

John Herbert Quick (October 23, 1861 – May 10, 1925) was an American writer and politician. Born October 23, 1861, near Steamboat Rock, Grundy County, Iowa, to Martin and Margaret Coleman Quick, he was afflicted with polio as a child. He married Ella Corey in 1890.Quick established a law firm in Sioux City, where he practiced for 19 years. He also became a businessman and later served as the 27th Mayor of Sioux City, Iowa from 1898 to 1900. An historical marker, Herbert Quick Ravine, can be found in Sioux City. The plaque reads "Named in Memory of Herbert Quick. Statesman, Writer, Mayor of Sioux City. He Knew and Loved the Prairie's of Iowa, 1861-1925."His best known works are the Midland Triology of Vandemark's Folly (1922), The Hawkeye (1923), and The Invisible Woman (1924). The fictional stories describe the life of an Iowa pioneer.An early environmentalist, his best known non-fiction work was On Board the Good Ship Earth (1913). He also wrote an autobiography, One Man's Life (1925).Quick's 1906 comic novel, Double Trouble, or, Every Hero His Own Villain was the basis for a 1915 silent film produced by D.W. Griffith, directed by Christy Cabanne, and starring Douglas Fairbanks in one of his earliest film roles.Quick died on May 10, 1925, in Columbia, Missouri.