Handler, Daniel (1970- )

US writer. He is best known for his Gothic-style Series of Unfortunate Events children's books, written under the pseudonym Lemony Snicket. The first three in the series were adapted for the film Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events (2004), starring Jim Carrey. His adult novels, written under his own name, include The Basic Eight (2000), Watch Your Mouth (2002), and Adverbs (2005).

The series, the first of which was published in 1999, follows the adventures of a trio of intrepid orphans, the Baudelaires, whose parents have died in a fire. The evil Count Olaf connives to swindle the children of their family fortune.

Handler was born in San Francisco, California, and graduated from Wesleyan College in 1992. He originally created the pseudonym Lemony Snicket for using on mailing lists of right-wing organizations that he was researching for one of his novels. He kept the name and attached a mysterious identity to the writer, giving him a voice in the series and publishing his Unauthorized Autobiography (2002). He also wrote the screenplays for the films Rick (2003) and Kill the Poor (2003). He is also an accomplished accordionist, appearing on the Magnetic Fields album 69 Love Songs (1999).