urn:taro:utexas.hrc.00228 Robert Raynolds: A Preliminary Inventory of His Papers at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, 2003 Text converted by SPI Content Sciences Inc., 2003. Finding aid written in English. Robert Raynolds Papers 1925-1972 71 boxes, 1 oversize box, 1 oversize folder, 8 galley folders (30 linear feet) Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin Raynolds, Robert, 1902-1965 The collection includes Raynolds' published and unpublished novels, plays, short stories, poetry, and non-fiction writings, including handwritten and typescript drafts of Raynolds's ten published novels, as well as correspondence and publication material. In addition there are drafts of his produced and unproduced plays, two published volumes of essays, articles, books reviews, letters to the editor, additional essays, and lectures. Acquisition:

Purchase, Reg. no. 3947

 Access:

Open for research

 Processed by:

Sean Castilla and Liz Murray, 2003

 Scope and Contents

American author Robert Raynolds is best known for his novels, although his last book, published posthumously in 1965 by the University of Texas Press, is a memoir of his friendship with novelist Thomas Wolfe. Other literary forms in his papers include plays, short stories, poetry, book reviews, essays, and lectures.

The collection is organized in three series: I. Works; II. Correspondence, 1925-1972; and III. Career-Related and Personal.

The largest series, Works, contains published and unpublished novels, plays, short stories, poetry, and non-fiction writings. Subseries A. includes handwritten and typescript drafts of Raynolds's ten published novels, along with correspondence and publication material. His novel, Brothers in the West, received the 1931 Harper's Prize, and The Sinner of Saint Ambrose was selected for the Book of the Month Club in 1952. Settings for Raynolds's novels range from the American west and Mexico to the Roman Empire. Numerous unpublished novels, novel "starts," and his Thomas Wolfe memoir are also present.

Drafts of Raynolds's produced and unproduced plays are found in Subseries B, along with associated production material and correspondence. Numerous short stories are arranged by title in Subseries C and poetry in Subseries D. Two published volumes of essays, The Choice to Love and In Praise of Gratitude, are included in Subseries E, along with articles, books reviews, letters to the editor, additional essays, and lectures. The Works series concludes with general notes and research materials in Subseries F.

Th correspondence series consists primarily of letters from Raynolds's wife, Marguerite. Editors, agents, and publishers such as Harold Ober Associates, Harper & Row, Adrienne Morrison, Russell and Volkening, and William Morrow are also included. Additional correspondence has been cataloged individually and is described in the Ransom Center's card catalog.

Series III contains both personal and career-related material such as information about Raynolds, his community activities and memberships, political involvement, personal and financial papers, and lectureships at Columbia University.

 Robert Raynolds Papers--Folder List I. Works A. Books Brothers in the West (1931) 1 1-4 Typescript drafts 1 5 Page proofs, incomplete Galleys [removed to galley files] 1 6 Correspondence 2 1 Publicity 2 2-3 Reviews 2 4-5 Scrapbooks, Harper's Prize 2 6 From Paragraph to Novel, drafts and published excerpts, talk for Writer's Club at Columbia regarding writing of novel 2 7 Play and opera adaptations by Raynolds and Helen Gholson Kittredge 3 1-2 Cuckoo Furioso, typescript drafts 3 3-4 Discovering Solitude, drafts Enchanted Wine 3 5 Notes 3 6 Handwritten draft 3 7 Typescript draft 4 1-2 Typescript drafts, revised 4 3-4 Drafts and fragments Far Flight of Love (1957) Note cards [removed to Box 67] 4 5 Outline 4 6-8 Handwritten drafts 4 9 Typescript draft 5 1 Typescript draft 5 2 Typescript draft fragment 5 3 Pageant Press, publisher's file 5 4-6 Correspondence, 1948-65 6 1 Mailing and review lists 6 2-3 Publicity and promotion 6 4 Reviews Articles by Raynolds about Far Flight of Love 6 5 A Challenge in Free Enterprise 6 6 My War for Love: A Scandal in Publishing 6 7 Toward a Grand Decency in Literature 6 8 The Uncorrupted Word Fortune (1935) 6 9 Notes 7 1-5 Handwritten drafts 8 1-5 Handwritten and typescript drafts 9 1-3 Typescript drafts 9 4-5 Draft fragments 9 6 Correspondence 9 7 Reviews Joy Unconfined 10 1 Notes and handwritten draft 10 2-3 Typescript drafts May Bretton (1944) 10 4 Notes [note cards removed to Box 67-68] Outline [removed to oversize folder] 10 5 Handwritten draft 11 1-2 Handwritten draft (cont'd) 11 3-5 Typescript draft 12 1-5 Typescript draft 13 1-3 Typescript draft Galleys [removed to galley files] 13 4 Correspondence 13 5 Reviews [scrapbook removed to oversize, Box 72] 14 1 Murder Without Remorse, typescript draft My Brother Julian 14 2 Notes [note cards removed to Box 68] 14 3 Preliminary sketch 14 4 Handwritten draft 14 5 Correspondence Night Boss 14 6 Notes 14 7-8 Handwritten draft 15 1-2 Typescript drafts 15 3 A Number of Men, typescript draft The Obscure Enemy (1945) 15 4-5 Notes [note cards removed to Box 69] 15 6 Research materials 15 7 Handwritten draft fragments 16 1 Handwritten draft 16 2-3 Typescript drafts 16 4 Preface draft and jacket copy Galleys [removed to galley files] 16 5 Correspondence 16 6 Reviews Once, on the Prairie 16 7 Handwritten draft 17 1 Typescript draft and correspondence 17 2 Typescript synopsis of play adaptation Paquita (1947) 17 3 Notes [note cards removed to Box 69] 17 4-6 Handwritten draft 18 1-3 Typescript draft 18 4-5 Typescript draft revisions 19 1-3 Typescript draft 19 4-5 Setting copy 20 1 Setting copy, cont'd Galleys [removed to galley files] 20 2 Correspondence 20 3 Publicity The Quality of Quiros (1955) 20 4-6 Notes 20 7-8 Handwritten draft 20 9 Typescript draft 21 1 Typescript draft, cont'd 21 2-5 Typescript drafts 22 1-2 Typescript draft 22 3 Draft revisions Galleys [removed to galley files] 22 4 Correspondence 22 5 Publicity and reviews [scrapbook removed to oversize, Box 72] Saunders Oak (1933) 22 6 Notes 22 7 Handwritten draft 23 1 Handwritten draft, cont'd 23 2 Typescript draft, first carbon 23 3 Setting copy 23 4 Page proofs, incomplete Galleys [removed to galley files] 23 5 Reviews 23 6 Life Catches Up, play adaptation The Sinner of Saint Ambrose (1952) 24 1-2 Notes and research material [note cards removed to Box 70] 24 3-9 Drafts and revisions 25 1-7 Drafts and revisions, cont'd 26 1-4 Drafts and revisions, cont'd 26 5 Setting copy 27 1-2 Setting copy, cont'd 27 3-4 Page proofs 27 5 Correspondence 27 6 Publicity 28 1-3 Reviews [scrapbook removed to oversize, Box 72] 28 4 Associated visual materials 28 5 Newspaper serialization Story Song (1962) 28 6 Notes 28 7-8 Songs, drafts 29 1 Handwritten draft 29 2-7 Typescript drafts 29 8 Correspondence 30 1 Version titled Shepherd Song and Evening Star 30 2 Wonderful Campfire Night, selected and adapted from Story Song 30 3 Publicity pieces by Raynolds Thomas Wolfe: Memoir of a Friendship (1965) 30 4 Notes [note cards removed to Box 71] 30 5-9 Drafts 31 1-4 Drafts, cont'd 31 5-7 Correspondence 31 8 Illustrations and permissions 31 9 Reviews 31 10 Newtown Library exhibition description and photographs Novel starts 32 1 A Double Life: Carol and Gordon 32 2 John Wallace: American 32 3 Marguerite 32 4 My Abominable Uncle 32 5 My Point of View 32 6 The Restoration of Love 32 7 The Story of Alice Driessler 32 8 Tom Storymaker 32 9 Research materials and notes B. Plays 32 10 Begin with Music, notes for a play Blessed Are the Debonair (Summer Song) 32 11-14 Handwritten draft 33 1-4 Typescript drafts, fragments, and revisions 33 5 Correspondence 33 6 Programs and reviews Boadicea 33 7 Notes and research material 33 8 Outline and handwritten first draft, Feb. 1938 34 1-10 Handwritten and typescript drafts 35 1-13 Typescript drafts, fragments, and revisions 36 1 Page proofs 36 2-3 Correspondence 36 4 Production notes, set design, song arrangement 36 5 Publicity and reviews 36 6 Radio adaptation Farewell, Villon 36 7 Notes 36 8-12 Handwritten and typescript drafts 37 1 Correspondence 37 2 Programs and reviews 37 3-5 Pretty Norma Heath, drafts Take All My Loves 37 6-7 Notes 37 8-9 Handwritten draft 38 1-8 Drafts, fragments, and revisions 39 1 Revision, Sept. 1937 39 2 Dramatists' Assembly, Stanford University, Etherege Award in Comedy, 1939 Thomas More 39 3 Notes 39 4-6 Typescript drafts 39 7 Correspondence The Ugly Runts 39 8 Notes 40 1-2 Notes, cont'd 40 3-5 Handwritten drafts 40 6-11 Typescript drafts 41 1-2 Draft fragments and revisions 41 3 Correspondence 41 4 On Producing 'The Ugly Runts' 41 5 Reviews 41 6 Play starts, preliminary notes C. Short Stories 41 7 Abide in My Heart at Peace 41 8 Adobe Blond 41 9 Aliens 42 1 Angels Are Where You Find Them 42 2 Annunciation with Violets 42 3 Appleblossom Murder 42 4 The Barking of a Dog 42 5 Bells, Wheels and Whistles 42 6 Between Laughter and Tears 42 7 Black and White 42 8 The Bottle from Home 42 9 The Breaking Strain 42 10 Bridle Your Fury with Love 42 11 The Business Tree 42 12 But Now He Sleeps Forever 42 13 Childless Thought 42 14 A Child's Story 42 15 The Closing Episode 42 16 The Comedian 42 17 Country Fables 43 1 Cove Girl 43 2 A Dance at the Indian Woman's 43 3 The Deep Dream 43 4 Detour to Heaven 43 5 Dream Kick 43 6 Esteban 43 7 Eternal Now in Comfort 43 8 Forget It 43 9 Girl of Earth 43 10 Girl Who Went to Market 43 11 Going Down 43 12 Herman's Children 43 13 His Heart Could Have No Fortune 43 14 Horn by Night 43 15 I'd Rather Fight 43 16 In a Little Spanish Town 43 17 In a Quiet Valley 44 1 In Flight, in Hiding 44 2 In Praise of Sane Readers 44 3 In Sight of Long's Peak 44 4 An Interesting Error 44 5 Jane Dammit and the First Selectman 44 6 Johnnie's Windowlamp 44 7 The Lost Print 44 8 Mariana and the Rat 44 9 A Meeting in Omaha 44 10 Men Who Dig Coal 44 11 Mr. Dobbie 44 12 Money for Years 44 13 Montana Mischief 44 14 The Near-Dead Man 44 15 Night Story 44 16 Nocturnal Errand 44 17 Outrage My Soul 45 1 Past Middle Age 45 2 Pie and Strychnine (Buckshot) 45 3 Policeman's Daughter 45 4 Portrait of a Miner 45 5 The Price of the Picture 45 6 A Primitive Emotion 45 7 The Prodigal Father 45 8 Proletariat 45 9 Puritan Wench 45 10 The Quick and the Dead 45 11 Red Jones, the Boatswain 45 12 Remember the Blizzard? 45 13 Rudolf Bindle 45 14 Running in the Rain 45 15 Save a Man's Life (Salvatore Gaboardi) 45 16 The Soldier Was a Child 45 17 Sombrero 45 18 The Spanish Chair 45 19 The Splendid Galleon 46 1 They Saw a Star 46 2 The Thirteen 46 3 This Little Girl Went to Market 46 4 Three Women 46 5 U-Boat Bellyache 46 6 Where There Is No Vision 46 7 Winter Fire 46 8 The Witchcraft Root 46 9 Without Benefit of Freud 46 10 The Wreath on the Floor 46 11 Wyoming pastoral story with screenplay notes 46 12-16 Early stories, notes, and unfinished drafts D. Poetry 47 1 Correspondence, indexes, notes 47 2-5 General poems 47 6 In Memory of a Common Man 47 7 Music Out of Earth 47 8-9 Poems, 1925-1942 48 1 War Song of the United Nations 48 2 War Town 48 3 Zilzain E. Other Writings 48 4-5 Articles, book reviews, letters to the editor, etc. Essays The Choice to Love (1959) 48 6-7 Notes [note cards removed to Box 70] 48 8-11 Typescript drafts 49 1-2 Typescript drafts, cont'd 49 3-7 Draft fragments 49 8-9 Setting copy 50 1-2 Correspondence 50 3 Publicity In Praise of Gratitude (1961) 50 4 Notes [note cards removed to Box 71] 50 5 Handwritten draft 50 6 Typescript draft 51 1-5 Typescript drafts 52 1-7 Draft fragments 52 Galleys [removed to galley files] 52 8-10 Correspondence 53 1 Publicity 53 2 Reviews 53 3 Reader's Digest version 53 4 Published versions The Song of a Companion of God 53 5-6 Notes 53 7-10 Typescript drafts 54 1-16 Typescript drafts and fragments 55 1-3 Typescript drafts and fragments, cont'd 55 4 Correspondence 55 5 Christian Higher Education Fund 55 6-7 Various essays 56 1 Various essays, cont'd Lectures 56 2-3 Columbia speech 56 4-5 Various subjects F. Notes and Research Materials 57 1-6 Notes, various subjects 58 1-6 Notes, various subjects, cont'd 58 7-8 Research material, clippings 59 1-2 Research material, clippings, cont'd II. Correspondence, 1925-1972 59 3 Clay, George 59 4 Contracts and copyrights 59 5 Harold Ober Associates, 1948-64 59 6 Harper & Row, 1958-65 59 7 Haydn, Hiram, 1951-64 60 1 Morrison, Adrienne (Pinker and Morrison, Inc.) 60 2 Publishers and editors Raynolds, Marguerite Gerdau, primarily to David and Robert Raynolds 60 3-5 1926 60 6-7 1928-1937 60 8 1938-1939 60 9-10 1940-1943 61 1-2 1944-1958 61 3 1962-1972 61 4 Undated 61 5 The Reader's Digest, 1957-65 61 6 Russell and Volkening, Inc., 1941-65 61 7 William Morrow & Co. Inc., 1931-63 61 8 Various correspondents, 1925-72 III. Career-Related and Personal 61 9 Articles about Raynolds 61 10 Autobiographical material 61 11 Chrichton, Kyle, estate papers C. H. Booth Library 61 12-13 1957-59 62 1 1960-62 62 2 1963-64 62 3 1965 62 4 Club and professional memberships 62 5-6 Columbia University, lectureships, 1949-55 62 7 The Dramatists' Guild 62 8 Family papers Financial 63 1 Business correspondence 63 2-3 Royalties 63 4-5 Tax returns 63 6 Fulton, Robert (Skyhook project) 63 7 Medical records and correspondence 64 1 Obituaries 64 2 Passports and miscellaneous items 64 3 Photographs, publicity 64 4-6 Post card collection 64 7 Project in Support of Peace 64 8 Reading course, 1960 Trips 65 1 Mexico 65 2 Spain 65 3-4 Miscellaneous 65 5 Will 65 6-7 Willkie campaign 66 1-4 Willkie campaign, cont'd 67-71 Note card files 72 Oversize scrapbooks