Collection Summary
Garson Kanin Papers
1941-1965
1941-1965
MSS29280
Kanin, Garson,
1912-1999
2,500
items
18 containers
7.5 linear feet
English
Collection material in
English
Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress
Washington, D.C.
Actor, author,
producer, and director. Correspondence and production material relating to
Kanin's stage and film projects.
Selected Search Terms
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.
People
Clair, René, 1898-1981--Correspondence.
Guinness, Alec, 1914-2000--Correspondence.
Kanin, Garson, 1912-1999.
Kanin, Garson, 1912-1999. Amazing Adele. 1950.
Kanin, Garson, 1912-1999. Born yesterday. 1946.
Kanin, Garson, 1912-1999. Boy. 1956.
Kanin, Garson, 1912-1999. Come on strong. 1962.
Kanin, Garson, 1912-1999. Diary of Anne Frank. 1955.
Kanin, Garson, 1912-1999. Do re mi. 1955.
Kanin, Garson, 1912-1999. Hole in the head. 1956.
Massey, Dorothy Ludington, 1902-1982--Correspondence.
Sherwood, Robert E. (Robert Emmet), 1896-1955--Correspondence.
Subjects
Drama--Stories, plots, etc.
Motion pictures--Production and direction.
Theater--Production and direction.
Occupations
Actors.
Authors.
Motion picture directors.
Theatrical directors.
Provenance
The papers of Garson Kanin, actor, author, producer, and director,
were deposited in the Library of Congress by Kanin in 1969.
Processing History
The Kanin Papers were arranged and described in 1972. In 2006 the
papers were rehoused and the finding aid was updated.
Transfers
Photographs have been transferred to the Library's Prints and
Photographs Division where they are identified as part of these papers.
Related Material
The Garson Kanin Papers complement the
Ruth Gordon Papers and the
[Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin Papers] , which are also
located in the Manuscript Division.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Garson Kanin
is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The papers of Garson Kanin 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.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the
following information: Container number, Garson Kanin Papers, Manuscript
Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Date
Event
1912, Nov. 24
Born, Rochester, N.Y.
1933
Graduated, American Academy of Dramatic Arts, New York,
N.Y.
Acted for the first time on Broadway in
Little Ol' Boy
1934
Appeared in
Spring Song
(play)
1935
Appeared in
Three Men on a Horse
(play)
1936
Directed
Hitch Your Wagon
(play)
1938
Directed
A Man to Remember
(film)
1939
Directed
The Great Man Votes
(film)
1940
Directed
My Favorite Wife
(film)
1941
Directed
Tom, Dick and Harry
(film)
1941
1945
Served with the United States army
1942
Married Ruth Gordon (died 1985)
1945
Codirectored with Carol Reed,
The True Glory
, Dwight D. Eisenhower's film report
on the Allied victory in Europe
1946
Wrote and directed
Born Yesterday
(play) for which he received the
Donaldson Award and the Sidney Howard Memorial Award
Directed
Years Ago
(play)
1948
Coauthored with Ruth Gordon
A Double Life
(screenplay)
1949
Coauthored with Ruth Gordon
Adam's Rib
(screenplay)
1950
Wrote the English libretto and directed
Die Fledermaus
for the Metropolitan Opera
Co.
1952
Coauthored with Ruth Gordon
Pat and Mike
(screenplay)
1955
Wrote and directed
The Diary of Anne Frank
(play)
1959
Published
Blow Up a Storm
. New York: Random House
1960
Wrote and directed
Do Re Mi
(play)
1964
Directed
Funny Girl
(play)
1966
Published
Remembering Mr. Maugham
. New York: Atheneum
1969
Published
Cast of Characters
. New York: Atheneum
1971
Published
Tracy and Hepburn: An Intimate Memoir
. New York:
Viking Press
1990
Married Marian Seldes
1999, Mar.13
Died, New York, N.Y.
Scope and Content Note
The papers of Garson Kanin (1912-1999) span the years 1941-1965 and
consist of
[
General
Correspondence
](gencor) and a
[
Production
File.
](prod)
The
[
General
Correspondence
](gencor) features letters exchanged with the playwright, editor,
and biographer Robert E. Sherwood beginning when Kanin was a private in
military training in 1941 and ending with Sherwood's death in 1955. Other
correspondents include René Clair, Alec Guinness, and Dorothy Massey.
The
[
Production
File
](prod) is comprised of scripts of plays and screenplays that Kanin wrote or
directed including
The Amazing Adele
,
Born Yesterday
,
The Boy
,
Come On Strong
,
The Diary of Anne Frank
,
Do Re Mi
, and
A Hole in the Head
. The scripts are accompanied by related
matter such as casting deliberations, performance evaluations, technical notes,
financial records, foreign productions, stock and amateur rights, publicity,
and printed matter.
Organization of the Papers
The collection is arranged in two serines:
-
[
General
Correspondence, 1941-1964
](gencor)
-
[
Production
File, 1945-1965
](prod)
Catalog Record: [https://lccn.loc.gov/mm73029280]
Container List
1
General Correspondence,
1941-1964
1941-1964
Letters sent and received by Kanin.
Arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent.
1
Clair, René
[
See Container 5, Foreign productions, France](france5)
Guinness, Alec, 1964
Massey, Dorothy, undated
Sherwood, Madeline (Mrs. Robert
E. Sherwood), 1949-1954
Sherwood, Robert E., 1941-1955
(4 folders)
1-18
Production File,
1945-1965
1945-1965
Article, book, film, and stage files.
Arranged by type of writing or production and therein
alphabetically by title.
1
Article, “On Playwriting,”
Diners' Club Magazine
, 1962
Book,
Blow up a Storm
, reviews, 1959-1960
Films
Born Yesterday
Script, 1950
Correspondence
Cohn, Harry,
1950-1951
Cukor, George,
1950
Frankfurter, Felix,
undated
“H-W” miscellaneous,
1948-1956
Legal papers,
1947-1953
Miscellany, 1950
Printed matter,
1950-1951
The Old Boy
, screenplay, 1956
The True Glory
, printed matter, 1945
2
Stage
The Amazing Adele
Script, undated
(2 folders)
Correspondence,
1950
Barillet,
Pierre
De Courville,
Albert
Shubert, Lee
“A-W”
miscellaneous
Financial records,
1950
Ticket requests, 1950
(5 folders)
Miscellany, 1950
3
Printed matter,
1950
Born Yesterday
Script, 1945
(4 folders)
Books
Netherlands,
undated
United States,
1946
Correspondence
Arthur, Jean,
1945
“A-B” miscellaneous,
1946-1951, 1963
(2 folders)
Chaney, Lon (1906-1973),
1948
4
“C-F” miscellaneous,
1946-1955, 1962
(3 folders)
Gordon, Max,
1945-1949
“G-L” miscellaneous,
1946-1951
(5 folders)
McKay, Scott,
undated
Mantle, Burns,
1946
“M-O” miscellaneous,
1946-1949
(3 folders)
Pardoll, David,
1948-1949
Parker, Jean,
1948
Porter, Cole,
1948
“P” miscellaneous,
1946
Robinson, Edward G.,
1949
Rogers, Ginger,
1949
“R-V” miscellaneous,
1946-1950
(5 folders)
William Morris Agency,
1946-1955
Foreign
productions
Argentina,
1946-1953
Australia,
1948-1953
Austria,
1948-1950
Belgium,
1952-1958
Brazil,
1952-1954
China, 1948
Czechoslovakia,
1946-1951
Denmark, 1947-1960
(2 folders)
5
England,
1946-1959
France,
1946-1949
Germany,
1947-1962
Greece, 1947-1948,
1957
Hungary, 1948
Iceland,
1951-1956
India,
1953-1959
Ireland,
1948-1949
Israel,
1948-1949
Italy,
1947-1953
Japan, 1949
Mexico,
1952-1959
Netherlands, 1947,
1958-1960
Norway,
1947-1956
Poland, 1946
Portugal, 1958
Spain,
1953-1959
6
Sweden, 1946-1959
(3 folders)
Switzerland,
1947
Turkey, 1959
Yugoslavia,
1959
Productions outside the
continental United States
Hawaii,
1948-1949
Puerto Rico,
1962
Stage manager's
reports
1946
(4 folders)
7
1947
(7 folders)
8
1948
(5 folders)
1949
(2 folders)
9
(4 folders)
Financial papers,
1946-1951
(4 folders)
10
(1 folder)
Stock and amateur rights,
1946-1959
Miscellany, 1949,
undated
Printed matter, 1946-1950,
1966, undated
(2 folders)
The Boy
, script, 1956
[
See also Containers 16-18,
A Hole in the Head
](hole16)
(5 folders)
11
(2 folders)
Come on Strong
Script, French translation,
1964
Correspondence
Bacall, Lauren,
1961
Baker, Carroll,
1961-1962
Cassini, Oleg,
1962
Davis, Sammy,
1962
Hopper, Hedda,
1962
Horne, Lena,
1962
Johnson, Van,
1961-1962
Merrick, David,
1962
Pardoll, David,
1962-1964
Stevens, Roger L.,
1962
“A-W” miscellaneous,
1962-1965
(2 folders)
Casting,
1961-1962
Contracts,
1962-1963
Financial papers,
1962
Music, 1962
Production notes, 1961-1962,
undated
(1 folder)
12
(1 folder)
Stage manager's reports,
1962
Ticket requests for premiere,
1962
Printed matter,
1961-1962
The Diary of Anne Frank
, scripts,
undated
(4 folders)
13
(4 folders)
Do Re Mi
Scripts, 1953-1961,
undated
(3 folders)
14
(7 folders)
15
(8 folders)
16
(1 folder)
Playbill, 1960
A Hole in the Head
, Scripts, 1955-1957, undated
[
See also Containers 10-11, The Boy
](boy10)
(5 folders)
17
(8 folders)
18
(2 folders)
How I Wonder
, contracts, 1947
The Rugged Path
, printed matter,
1945