S. J. Perelman, 1904-1979, was born in Brooklyn, NY, but moved to Smith Hill in Providence at an early age. Perelman attended Classical High School and matriculated at Brown University, but did not graduate. However, he did receive an honorary Doctorate in 1965 from this “Institution on the Hill.”

Perelman wrote several screen stories for the Marx Brothers, most notably Monkey Business and Horsefeathers. He also collaborated for years with cartoonist Al Hirshfeld of The New Yorker magazine. His humor and parody essays influenced future generations of writers.