Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm92081531
Collection material in English.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
The papers of Val Lewton, motion picture producer, screenwriter, and novelist, were given to the Library of Congress by his son, Val Edwin Lewton, in 1992 and 2007.
The papers of Val Lewton were arranged and described in 1995 by Mary A. Lacy. The finding aid was revised in 2003 by Mary A. Lacy with the assistance of Michael W. Giese. The addition was processed by Andrea J. Briggs in 2019, and the finding aid revised to reflect the addition.
Some photographs have been transferred to the Library's Prints and Photographs Division where they are identified as part of these papers.
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Val Lewton is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
The papers of Val Lewton are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
A microfilm edition of part of these papers is available on five reels. Consult reference staff in the Manuscript Division concerning availability for purchase or interlibrary loan. To promote preservation of the originals, researchers are required to consult the microfilm edition as available.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container or reel number, Val Lewton Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The papers of Val Lewton (1904-1951) span the years 1919-2007, with the bulk of the items concentrated in the period 1926-1951. The collection contains film scripts, scrapbooks, and other material documenting Lewton's career as a novelist, screenwriter, and motion picture producer, and is arranged into family papers, writings, miscellany, and oversize materials.
Family papers, 1927-1982, include letters received by Lewton's wife Ruth, his sister Lucy Olga, his mother Nina, and his aunt, silent film actress Alla Nazimova. His mother and aunt both influenced his choice of career and early contacts. In 1928 Nina Lewton, as head of the story department at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, got her son a job writing publicity for M-G-M, training him in story analysis and synopsis writing. In 1933 she was approached by David O. Selznick to discover a Russian-born writer who could do a script of
Writings, 1924-1946, and scrapbooks, 1927-1934, document the publicity practices of Hollywood studios of the era. The writings include scripts of three of Lewton's dramatized radio reviews and a serialization in the
Lewton left M-G-M in 1932 and Vanguard Press signed him to a contract producing five novels per year, several of which he wrote under the pseudonym Carlos Keith. Lewton's journals for 1933-1934 document his writing and domestic activities. Brief entries for 1937 record frustration with his “despised role of story editor-censor” and with his inability to return to his own writing. Lewton's writings are also found in the scrapbooks in the form of printed articles; news features, including several on Greta Garbo, some published under pseudonyms; and fiction, including novelizations and serializations of M-G-M feature films, most of which he wrote in various capacities during his years at M-G-M. A sampling of press releases, all dated 14 January 1929, are found with the scrapbooks. The scrapbooks also contain dust jackets, reviews, and other material relating to books written by Lewton.
Lewton's output as head of the horror unit of RKO is represented primarily in the writings by a bound set of final scripts of the eleven films he produced at that studio with directors Jacques Tourneur, Robert Wise, and Mark Robson, beginning with
Miscellaneous and oversize material in the collection, 1926-1973, includes a scrapbook largely containing reviews for the years 1942-1950, a cast photograph of
The Addition expands upon the material within the collection, consisting primarily of letters written by Lewton to his mother and sister between the years 1931 and 1943. These letters document Lewton's work and personal life; included in the addition is an index of the letters created by the donor which provides estimated dates and brief summaries of their contents. Two prominent individuals mentioned in the letters include Alla Nazimova (as "Aunt Alla") and David O. Selznick. Also included is one letter from Jim Farrell to Nina Lewton.
This collection is arranged by type of material.
Available on microfilm. Shelf no. 21,993