Abbie Hoffman papers, Berg Collection of English and American Literature, The New York Public Library
Abbot Howard "Abbie" Hoffman (November 30, 1936 – April 12, 1989) was a political and social activist who came into prominence in the 1960s when he co-founded the Youth International Party ("Yippies") and was a member of the “Chicago Eight,” the group that was tried for conspiracy and inciting to riot during the 1968 Democratic National Convention. The collection includes typed and photocopied drafts for the publications Soon to Be a Major Motion Picture (Putnam, 1980) and Square Dancing In the Ice Age (South End Press, 1982) (some under the working title “Free: a Radical American Romance”), with manuscript notes by Hoffman and his editors; published articles considered for books, correspondence with editors and publishing companies, and manuscript notes for speeches (1970s-early 1980s).
Abbot Howard "Abbie" Hoffman (November 30, 1936 – April 12, 1989) was a political and social activist who came into prominence in the 1960s when he co-founded the Youth International Party ("Yippies") and was a member of the “Chicago Eight,” the group that was tried for conspiracy and inciting to riot during the 1968 Democratic National Convention. The verdicts were overturned, but Hoffman was arrested in August of 1973 on charges for intent to sell and distribute cocaine. In the spring of 1974, he skipped bail, underwent plastic surgery to alter his appearance, and hid from authorities until turning himself in and serving four months in 1980. Six years later, he was arrested with Amy Carter (daughter of former President Jimmy Carter) for trespassing and protesting on the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus. They were acquitted of all charges, but Hoffman was found dead just three years later at age 52, having ingested liquor and 150 phenobarbital tablets. Though he went “underground” for several years and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1980, he has remained a symbol of the youth rebellion of the counterculture era.
The collection includes typed and photocopied drafts for the publications Soon to Be a Major Motion Picture (Putnam, 1980) and Square Dancing In the Ice Age (South End Press, 1982) (some under the working title “Free: a Radical American Romance”), with manuscript notes by Hoffman and his editors; published articles considered for books, correspondence with editors and publishing companies, and manuscript notes for speeches (1970s-early 1980s).
Michael Laird, July 2015
Compiled by Berg Collection staff, 2016