Leonard William Merrick (formerly Miller) (1864- 1939), was a British dramatist, actor, and novelist. Choosing a career on the stage, he changed his name to Merrick, but the career was short lived and he turned to writing. He wrote twelve novels, several volumes of short stories, eight plays, and several contributions to motion pictures. His works include: Mr. Bazalgette's Agent (1888), Violet Moses (1891), Cynthia: A Daughter of the Philistines (1897), The Actor- Manager (1898), The Worldlings (1900), The Quaint Companions (1903), Conrad in Quest of His Youth: An Extravagance of Temperament (1903), The House of Lynch (1907), Lynch's Daughter (1908), The Man Who Understood Women and Other Stories (1908), The Passion of Peggy Harper (1911), This Stage of Fools (1913), When Love Flies Out O' the Window (1914) and A Chair on the Boulevard (1921).