He later wrote "Reflections of a War Correspondent", describing his experiences. In 1901, Molnár published his first full-length novel "Az éhes város" (The Hungry City). This novel made Molnár's name familiar throughout Hungary. It was "a relentless exposé of the evil effect of money, viewed by a young, idealistic newspaperman." The year following the release of "Az éhes város," Molnár began writing for the theatre. It was in this medium that he became known internationally. His early works as a playwright were influenced by his journalistic work. Molnár's first play, "A doctor úr" (The Lawyer), and the play that followed, "Józsi", are both comedies that were essentially a dramatization of newspaper sketches about a spoiled rich child and published as a collection of short dialogues. His personal life inspired a lot of his writing. After his separation from his first wife (Margit Vészi), he became involved with the famous Hungarian actress Irén Szécsi, who was married to a wealthy manufacturer at the time. Some of his more critically successful works were influenced by this affair. In 1907, Molnár wrote "Az ördög" (The Devil) for Irén, in which he challenged her to leave her husband. It brought Molnár international fame and was performed all over Europe and In New York. "The Devil" later was adapted into a film by the Hungarian-born American director Michael Curtiz and three years later into an English language version directed by James Young. Also in 1907, Molnár wrote three books including his juvenile novel "A Pál-utcai Fiúk" (The Paul Street Boys). "His fame reached its height with the successful performances of "Liliom" abroad, though the play initially had been a failure in Budapest." It became his best-known play and later was adapted into the musical "Carousel" by the songwriting team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Molnár sought to regain favor with his wife Lili by portraying her in the role of Juli, and then through his plays "The Guardsman" and "The Wolf", preceded to explain the complexities of his affair with Irén. "The Guardsman" was published in 1910 and served as the basis of the 1931 film of the same name, starring American power couple Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne.