Cormac McCarthy's Success and Achievements in Timeline

By Popular Timelines Editorial Team · Updated: February 23, 2025

A closer look at the biggest achievements of Cormac McCarthy. Awards, milestones, and records that define success.

Cormac McCarthy was a celebrated American author known for his novels spanning Western, post-apocalyptic, and Southern Gothic genres. Characterized by graphic violence and a distinctive writing style featuring sparse punctuation and attribution, his works have secured his reputation as one of the greatest American novelists. He authored twelve novels, alongside plays, screenplays, and short stories.

Sections (5)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Success & Recognition Legacy & Impact

1959: Wins Ingram-Merrill Award and Drops Out

In 1959, McCarthy won the Ingram-Merrill Award for creative writing and dropped out of college, leaving for Chicago.

1960: Wins Ingram-Merrill Award

In 1960, McCarthy won the Ingram-Merrill Award for creative writing.

1966: Marriage to Anne DeLisle and Rockefeller Grant

In 1966, McCarthy married Anne DeLisle in England and received a Rockefeller Foundation grant.

1966: William Faulkner Foundation Award

In 1966, The Orchard Keeper won a William Faulkner Foundation Award for notable first novel.

1976: McCarthy quits drinking

According to Richard B. Woodward, McCarthy quit drinking in 1976 in El Paso, with one of his young girlfriends.

1981: Awarded MacArthur Fellowship

In 1981, McCarthy was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship, enabling him to research Blood Meridian.

1992: Success with All the Pretty Horses

In 1992, McCarthy achieved widespread success with All the Pretty Horses, receiving the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award.

1994: Bloom's "The Western Canon" published

In Harold Bloom's 1994 book, "The Western Canon", he listed McCarthy's "Child of God", "Suttree", and "Blood Meridian" among works of contemporary literature he predicted would endure.