Found 8 collections related to Van Druten, John, 1901-1957

Collection of correspondence, book reviews, typescripts of plays and books written by Van Druten, and clippings. Correspondence, 1938-1957, consist of letters concerning his writings and personal letters between Van Druten and his friend, dramatist and novelist Dodie Smith. Book reviews, ca. 1920-1925, written by Van Druten for an English publication published in Switzerland. Typescripts of his plays and books, many of which contain changes and corrections in his hand. Clippings of articles collected by Van Druten from magazines and newspapers, 1924-1951. less

Lloyd R. Morris (1893-1954) was an American author and critic. He wrote critical studies, fiction, plays, and a series of books on American culture. Collection consists of correspondence, manuscripts, legal and financial papers, photographs, and printed matter. Correspondence, 1916-1954, reflects Morris's involvement with literary and theatrical figures. Manuscripts contain a variety of works by Morris, generally in typescript, including book reviews, essays, plays, and his history of the theatre, Curtain Time. Also, appointment and address books, legal and financial papers relating mainly to royalties paid to Morris, photographs of Morris and his family, and clippings. less

John Van Druten (1901-1957) was an Anglo-American playwright, theatrical director, screenwriter, and novelist. Born in London of a Dutch father and an English mother, Van Druten was educated at London's University College School. His controversial play YOUNG WOODLEY (1928), initially prohibited, was eventually staged successfully in London and New York. Van Druten's later plays include THERE'S ALWAYS JULIET (1931), OLD ACQUAINTANCE (1940), the hugely successful VOICE OF THE TURTLE (1943), and BELL, BOOK, AND CANDLE (1950). Van Druten adapted several of these plays into film versions, and also wrote original screenplays, including UNFAITHFUL (1931) for Ruth Chatterton. Van Druten adapted Christopher Isherwood's BERLIN STORIES into the play I AM A CAMERA, which was made into a movie and later musicalized on stage and screen as CABARET. Van Druten's novels include A WOMAN ON HER WAY (1931) and THE VICARIOUS YEARS (1956). John Van Druten died on Dec. 19, 1957, at the age of 56. John Van Druten's letters to his friend D. Franklin Houston were written between Feb. 1929 to March 1931, from London, various places in France, and later from Hollywood, where Van Druten was writing a screenplay. Van Druten writes about his novel in progress, ELINOR, later to be retitled A WOMAN ON HER WAY, expresses his opinions about current plays in London, writes heartfelt but obscure notes about love affairs gone awry, and expresses disdain for the Hollywood movie industry. Also included is a very brief note to Houston from Noel Coward. less

Michel Mok (1889?-1961) was a theatrical press agent and journalist. Born in the Netherlands, he immigrated to Canada and later to the U.S. where he worked as a reporter for the New York Post. In the mid-1940s he associated himself with Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II for whom he handled publicity, public relations and scheduling of major productions. He also translated The Works of Anne Frank for Doubleday. Collection consists of correspondence, business files, typescripts of writings and translations, photographs, and printed matter. Business files include biographical sketches of actors and actresses, programs and press releases. less

Marian Winters (1920-1978) was born Marian Weinstein on April 20th in New York City. She began acting as early as 1936 in a Carnegie Hall production of Motherly Love, and debuted on Broadway as an understudy for Frances Dee in Blithe Spirit (1945). Around this time she married Jerome H. "Jay" Smolin, an executive at NBC, to whom she remained married until her death. In 1952, Winters won a Tony award for her performance as Natalia Landauer in I Am A Camera, and her acting career continued on the stage and screen through the 1970s. She also wrote and published her own plays. Of particular note are A is for All (1968) and All is Bright (optioned 1968, performed 1970). In 1967, Winters won an Emmy for her television adaptation of Animal Keepers, one of the three one-act plays comprising A is for All. In 1976, she was meant to play Mama Kolowitz in So Long, 174th St., but her part was cut before the musical opened. Between 1977 and 1978 she collaborated with Albert Hague on the new musical A New World, which received a partially staged reading in May of 1977, but the partnership fell through in 1978 when Hague and Winters failed to reach mutually acceptable terms of collaboration. Her last role was Helga ten Dorp in Ira Levin’s 1978 production of Deathtrap. She died of cancer in New York City on November 3rd, 1978. The materials in this collection focus on Winters' stage career, to the exclusion of her roles in television. There is a special emphasis on the productions Winters created herself, the bulk of material supporting those plays she wrote or performed in. These include scripts in multiple drafts (some annotated, some used in performance) clippings, promotional material, programs, recordings, sheet music, books (some annotated), photographs, contracts, and correspondence. The collection also includes a number of portraits, three recordings of unknown contents, and seven large scrapbooks containing a variety of materials that trace the steps in Winters' theatrical career. The collection also contains some materials relevant to Winters' non-theatrical life, most notably a series on the creation of the book Catwise. less