The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail is an American play co-authored by American playwrights Robert E. Lee and Jerome Lawrence. Robert Lee is not to be confused with the Confederate general of the same name. The main character of the play is Henry David Thoreau, a non-fictional essayist, abolitionist, and naturalist. The play, which was written in 1969, has elements dating from the 19th century. Even though this is true, many reviewers have mentioned that its themes are still very relevant to this time - especially hatred towards unneeded war.
Jerome Lawrence, born in 1915, was an American playwright and radio broadcaster. He partnered with Robert Lee to create the Armed Forces Radio, over which was broadcasted entertaining war stories and plays, including this one. Robert Edwin Lee, despite having the same name as the infamous Civil War general, was born in 1918 in Ohio, the same state as Lawrence. He helped broadcast with Lawrence on the Armed Forces Radio, which received its claim to fame during World War II. In 1955, the two writers started writing for live plays, beginning with the hit Inherit the Wind.
