Ev Miller, a lifelong resident of North Dakota, was born near Bismarck on January 19, 1935. He attended schools in Bismarck and graduated from Bismarck High School in 1953. Miller attended Bismarck Junior College, a school which named him the outstanding alumnus in 1983. He gained his bachelor of arts degree from Jamestown College, a liberal arts college in North Dakota. In 1989, Jamestown College elected Miller to the Alumni Hall of Fame. After graduation, Miller returned to BHS to teach English. During his stay in Bismarck, he not only taught English, but he also coached in three sports and was English department chairman for 10 years. He did graduate work at the University of North Dakota, at North Dakota State University and at Concordia College. He conducted classes on death and dying to various groups in the area and often spoke to civic groups and high-school classes about his writing career. Miller, who was widowed after 28 years of marriage, married the former Bev Halmrast O'Brien. Miller has three children—Julie, Tom and Tracey; Bev has four—Sandi, Tami, Jill and Heidi. Ev Miller began his writing career in 1975. His first play, A Dusty Echo, won the North Dakota Bicentennial Playwriting Contest in 1976 in competition with 100 entries from 23 states. Since then, he has published more than 30 plays with 13 American publishing companies and has had several others produced. The Incredible Years was named best play of the year by an American publishing firm and The Auction won the Grand Forks contest in 1981. The Redeemer of the Beard was named the best play of the year in 1983 by Contemporary Drama Service and I'm a Stranger Here Myself (Dramatic Publishing) was a finalist in the Las Vegas national contest that same year. His other published works with Dramatic Publishing: That Alien Touch (1983), The Girl Who Was Asked to Turn Blue (1986), Sticks 'n Stones (1986) and The Wonderful Western Hat (1989). Also in 1983, Jennifer's First Christmas won the Dubuque, Iowa, one-act playwriting contest and Close the Door So It Can't Get in Your Room was a finalist in the Las Vegas contest. The Lecher and the Rose was a finalist in the Festival of Firsts in Carmel, Calif. That same year, World Without End was a semi-finalist in the Northern Michigan contest. In 1989, Up Rose a Burning Man was one of four winners in the Ozark Playwriting Contest, and in 1990 The Storm Outside won the Jewel Box National contest as did Up Rose a Burning Man in 1991. The Jewel Box Theatre is in Oklahoma City, Okla. In the fall of 1982, Miller's Little Casino was produced by the employees of the Bismarck Public Schools as a benefit for United Way. In the fall of 1984, The Auction was done as a similar benefit and together the two plays raised over $17,000. In 1986, Dickerson for Senate! premiered in Bismarck followed by The Visitor in 1988. In the summer of 1989, his commissioned Laura's Song premiered at the Lamoure Musical Theatre and in the summer of 1991, Miller finished another commissioned work for the city of Kulm's 100th birthday titled God Does Speak English. Many of Miller's plays have to do with North Dakota and its colorful history and people. Among these are A Dusty Echo, A Man for the People, The Audition, Little Casino, Crying From the Earth and Laura's Song. In addition, two of Miller's plays have been done as radio plays: A Nice Day in the Park and Christmas Cameo; the latter was also syndicated over the National Public Radio Network. Miller's adaptation of Hawthorne's Dr. Heidegger's Experiment was chosen by Holt, Rinehart and Winston to be included in a high-school anthology. In 1986, Miller was selected as a member of the North Dakota Humanities Speakers Bureau. In the fall of 1993, Miller was named the Outstanding Creative Artist for the State of North Dakota by the North Dakota Speech and Theatre Association. Miller retired from teaching in 1993.
