The Lost Weekend (novel)

1944 novel by Charles R. Jackson

The Lost Weekend is Charles R. Jackson's first novel, published by Farrar & Rinehart in 1944. The story of a talented but alcoholic writer was praised for its powerful realism, closely reflecting the author’s own experience of alcoholism, from which he was temporarily cured. It served as the basis for the classic 1945 Oscar winning film adaptation.

The book was a best seller and received rave reviews. Philip Wylie wrote in the New York Times Book Review that "Charles Jackson has made the most compelling gift to the literature of addiction since De Quincey. His character is a masterpiece of psychological precision." Sinclair Lewis called it "the only unflinching story of an alcoholic that I have ever read". Anthony Slide, a modern editor, notes the work is obviously semi autobiographical

The book has also been noted for having homosexual overtones with a strong implication that Don Birnam, just like Charles Jackson, is bisexual.

The book was adapted into a 1945 film directed by Billy Wilder featuring Ray Milland as Don Birnam. The film was critically acclaimed, winning the Oscar for Best Picture and the Cannes Grand Prix. Ray Milland's portrayal of Birnam won him Best Actor, and is still considered one of the greatest winning performances ever. Although the movie adaptation hews closely to the novel, the film's ending is more optimistic, and the homosexual incident in college that Birnam is described in the novel as being tormented by is omitted from the film.