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May 17, 2023 · Robert Harling, the author and creator of Steel Magnolias, lost his sister Susan Harling-Robinson, from diabetic complications. A friend had advised Harling to write down the story as a way to come to terms with everything that had happened.
- Jane Kenney
- The title was inspired by real life. Harling said the title, "Steel Magnolias," is the perfect description for the women it profiles: They're both delicate like a flower, but also hard as steel.
- Harling wrote the play in 10 days. Many writers take months or years to write a play. But Harling wrote "Steel Magnolias" in only 10 days. "Ten days later, that's all it took because I had lived the story."
- It was originally going to be a short story. Harling said when he began putting his sister's story down in writing, it began as a short story. "But I was missing the sound of the wonderful vernacular," he said.
- Harling at first thought his story was a drama. When the play was first in rehearsal, Harling says they thought it was strictly a drama, since they were performing a dark, emotional story.
The play is based on the family experience of the death of author Robert Harling's sister, Susan Harling-Robinson, in 1985 from diabetic complications after the birth of his namesake nephew and the failure of a family-member-donated kidney.
Mar 28, 2014 · Softly spoken and with a Southern accent that still hints at his Louisiana upbringing, Robert Harling wrote the play Steel Magnolias shortly after the death of his beloved sister Susan...
- 1 min
Susan Harling-Robinson was the inspiration for the play and movie "Steel Magnolias", written by her brother Robert Harling. Parents: Robert May & Margaret Jones Harling
Aug 9, 2022 · In 1985, Harling's sister, Susan, died from complications of type 1 diabetes, shortly after the birth of her first child. Because the play was based on his own life, Harling...
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Apr 5, 2024 · A Natchitoches resident, Robert Harling was a fledgling actor at the time of his sister Susan’s death. Susan was just 12 years old when she learned that she had severe diabetes. But she...
