Thomas Lanier Williams III (Later known as Tennessee Williams) was born March 26, 1911, in Columbus, Mississippi. 

He was Cornelius and Edwina Williams’s second child out of three. He spent his early years in Mississippi, but everything changed when the family moved to St. Louis, Missouri. 

His parents' unhappy marriage created a tense and dysfunctional home.  Raised primarily by his mother, Tennessee had a difficult relationship with his father, who was an alcoholic and often absent.

Tennessee first attended the University of Missouri but, he had to drop out. He later enrolled at Washington University in St. Louis but did not complete his degree. Eventually, he graduated from the University of Iowa in 1938 with a degree in English.

Tennessee struggled with depression, alcoholism, and drug addiction. He was openly gay in a time when it was socially challenging. Many of his works explored themes of sexual identity, repression, and desire. He had a long-term relationship with Frank Merlo, who provided him with emotional stability.