1 card, Paris, 1974 September 1
Dates
- Creation: 1974 September 1
Scope and Contents
The Samuel Beckett collection at the John J. Burns Library comprises seven distinct collections of Beckett-related material including manuscripts and typescripts by Beckett, correspondence with Beckett, ephemera, photographs, and publications by and about Beckett.
The Samuel Beckett-Calvin Israel collection is primarily Beckett manuscripts and publications, but also includes theater programs, audiovisual material, and ephemera spanning 1929 to 1981.
The Samuel Beckett-Robert Pinget letters document the friendship between Beckett and Pinget and demonstrate Beckett’s support for Pinget’s literary career. Both authors worked with the publisher Jerome Linden at Editions de Minuit and each translated a work written by the other – Pinget converting Beckett’s All That Fall into French and Beckett translating Pinget’s La Manivelle into English. These and other business-related matters are well documented in the letters. There are also many letters of an exclusively personal nature.
The Samuel Beckett-Barney Rosset collection includes manuscripts representing three decades of Beckett's writing, annotated copies of plays, stories, and other works, letters and cards from Beckett to Rosset discussing the author's life and work, and Grove Press business and financial records relating to Beckett's career. Included is a manuscript of the early, unpublished play Eleutheria written in French. The focus of the correspondence is primarily business and publishing aspects of the literary world; however, as their friendship developed, the correspondence became increasingly personal.
The Judith Schmidt Douw collection of Samuel Beckett letters and Judith Schmidt Douw Letters together document a correspondence between Beckett and Judith Schmidt (later Schmidt Douw) from 1956 to 1984. The letters deal with professional matters relating to Grove Press and Beckett's works and also concern the personal relationship between Beckett and Schmidt Douw.
The Alan Schneider-Samuel Beckett collection is primarily composed of correspondence between American stage director Alan Schneider and Samuel Beckett, with some additional correspondence between Schneider, Thornton Wilder, and others; also included are manuscripts and other material relating to Beckett's Film and a translation of Waiting for Godot by Thornton Wilder.
Creator
- From the Collection: Beckett, Samuel, 1906-1989 (Person)
- From the Collection: Schneider, Alan, 1917-1984 (Person)
- From the Collection: McGovern, Robert F. (Person)
Language of Materials
Materials in this collection are primarily in English, with some French and German.
Restrictions on access
Collection is open for research.
Extent
From the Sub-subseries: 1.25 Linear Feet (6 containers)
Repository Details
Part of the John J. Burns Library Repository
John J. Burns Library
Boston College
140 Commonwealth Avenue
Chestnut Hill MA 02467 USA
617-552-4861
burns@bc.libanswers.com