Armenian-American writer, author of popular plays and short stories. William Saroyan was born on August 31, 1908 in the Californian city of Fresno, in the family of an Armenian emigrant engaged in winemaking. After the death of his father in 1911, the child was transferred to an orphanage for some time. In 1921 he attended typing courses. At the age of fifteen, he left his studies and decided to start writing.