Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. William A. Koshland Files: A Preliminary Inventory of Its Records at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center

Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. William A. Koshland Files:

A Preliminary Inventory of Its Records at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center

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	Repository:	The University of Texas at Austin, Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center
	Creator:	Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
	Title:	Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., William A. Koshland Files
	Dates:	1921-1996
	Extent:	39 boxes (16 linear feet)
	Abstract:	This additional material for the Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. archive contains files from the office of William A. Koshland who joined the Knopf firm in 1934. He was president of Knopf from 1966, chairman in 1973, and chairman emeritus until his death in 1997. The bulk of the material is comprised of correspondence with authors and Knopf firm business.
	RLIN Record #:	None
	Language:	Material in English.

Administrative Information

Acquisition:

Gifts,1996 and 1998 (Gift nos. 10636 and 11186)

This additional material for the Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. archive contains files from the office of William A. Koshland who joined the Knopf firm in 1934. He was president of Knopf from 1966, chairman in 1973, and chairman emeritus until his death in 1997. The files were received in two accretions, one from Koshland in 1996 (Gift No. 10636, 6 boxes); and a second, larger shipment from the firm in 1998, after his death (Gift No. 11186, 32 boxes). The accretions are listed separately and original order has been retained. Because Koshland did not maintain a traditional filing system, preferring instead to have files at ready reach, some anomalies exist. For example, date spans often overlap, especially in the general correspondence where multiple alphabetical sequences exist for similar time periods.

The material in the first sequence (Gift no. 10636, Boxes 1-6) comprises author files for Raymond Chandler, Edward Craig, Langston Hughes, Helen Lowe-Porter, Thomas Mann, H. L. Mencken, Wallace Stevens, and B. Traven. These files date as early as 1921 and reflect the evolving relationship between the authors and the firm's members including Alfred and Blanche Knopf, as well as editors such as Jill Cutler, Herbert Weinstock, and others.

All the author files contain significant author correspondence with the exception of H. L. Mencken. The Mencken files are primarily concerned with his estate and dealings with the Mercantile-Safe Deposit & Trust Company.

The Thomas Mann correspondence is particularly lengthy and includes letters to and from Mann's wife Katia. There is a long run of letters between Mann and Alfred Knopf from 1925-1955. One folder in particular " Mann Special" contains a photocopy of Katia Mann's letter to Alfred Knopf written shortly after Mann's death. Both Knopf and Koshland kept this letter in a separate folder in their files. This folder also contains a photograph of Katia and Thomas, taken the summer of 1955, the year Mann died. Additional Chandler, Mann, and Mencken materials are found in the Gift No. 11186 accession.

The second sequence of files (Gift no. 11186, Boxes 7-38), gathered from Koshland's office after his death, is arranged in three series: Series I. Correspondence, 1925-1996; Series II. Knopf Firm, 1932-1996; and Series III. Koshland Personal Papers, 1942-1996. The correspondence series comprises Subseries A. Editorial Files and Subseries B. General Correspondence. Authors represented in the editorial files include Elizabeth Bowen, Wallace Brockway, Willa Cather, Julia Child, Alistair Cooke, Miguel Covarrubias, Clarence Day, Kahlil Gibran, Learned Hand, John Hersey, Margaret Lane, D. H. Lawrence, Robert Nathan, Otto Rank, Jean-Paul Sarte, and John Updike. Correspondence to and from Alfred and Blanche Knopf is found throughout. As with the previous accession, a substantial amount of Thomas Mann files are present.

Subseries B. General Correspondence dates from 1960-1996 with four separate alphabetical runs from 1978-1985, reflecting Koshland's arrangement of his files. This literary correspondence typically includes letters to and from agents, publishers, universities, libraries, literary journals, and individual writers.

Series II. contains office and business correspondence pertaining to the running of the Knopf firm, including authors lists, Board of Directors minutes, contract data, copyright and royalty information, catalogues, employee files, and salary reports, as well as files on Alfred and Blanche Knopf.

Series III. Koshland Personal Papers includes files on his involvement with various literary and cultural entities, addresses, correspondence, and details of trips taken from 1961-1978. Of note is the exchange of correspondence between Koshland and the Knopfs during the war years, 1942-1945 wherein news of the war and activities at the firm were exchanged. Several letters from Alice B. Toklas can be found in Koshland's unsorted personal correspondence.

Dictabelts included with a folder "notes to self and Helen Lawkins, 1964" were transferred to the Sound Recordings Collection.

Index Terms

People

Bowen, Elizabeth, 1899-1973.

Cather, Willa, 1873-1947.

Chandler, Raymond, 1888-1959.

Child, Julia.

Cooke, Alistair, 1908-2004.

Covarrubias, Miguel, 1904-1957.

Gibran, Kahlil, 1883-1931.

Hammett, Dashiell, 1894-1961.

Hellman, Lillian, 1905-1984.

Hersey, John, 1914-1993.

Hughes, Langston, 1902-1967.

Knopf, Alfred A., 1892-1984.

Knopf, Blanche W., 1894-1966.

Lowe-Porter, H. T. (Helen Tracy), 1876-1963.

Mann, Katia, 1883-1980.

Mann, Thomas, 1875-1955.

Mencken, H. L. (Henry Louis), 1880-1956.

Nathan, Robert, 1894-1985.

Stevens, Wallace, 1879-1955.

Traven, B.

Updike, John.

Document Types

Address books.

Autographs.

Contracts.

Minutes.

Typescripts.

Container List


Gift No. 10636
		Series I. Author Files, 1921-1982
			Chandler, Raymond
Box	Folder
1	1			1938-1946
	2			1946-1959
	3-4		Craig, Edward, 1966-1969
			Hughes, Langston
Box	Folder
1	5			1925-1940
	6			1945-1949
	7			1950-1953
			Lowe-Porter, Helen
Box	Folder
2	1			1925-1937
	2			1928-1941, set of photocopied correspondence
	3			1938-1946
	4			1947-1955
			Mann, Thomas and Katia
Box	Folder
2	5			1921-1936, includes Heinrich and Klaus Mann
	6			1937-1941, includes Erika Mann
	7-8			1945-1952

3	1			1953-1954
	2			1953-1956, re "Mario the Musician" libretto and "Fiorenza" script
	3-5			1955-1958
	6			1961-1965; 1973-1980
			Mann, Thomas and Alfred A. Knopf
Box	Folder
3	7			1925-1933
	8-9			1934-1938

4	1			1939-1942
	2			1943-1946
	3			1947-1950
	4			1951-1955
			Mann, Thomas, various files
Box	Folder
4	5-7			Clippings and printed material, 1934-1975

5	1			Correspondence with others re Mann, 1934-1951
	2			"Mann, Special"
	3			Royal Highness, introduction, 1939 reissue
	4			Testimonial dinner on fifty-ninth birthday, 1934
	5			"The Woman of a Hundred Faces," preface by Jean Cocteau, typescript photocopy
			Mencken, H. L., correspondence about
Box	Folder
5	6			1949-1963
	7			1956-1963, estate correspondence
	8			1957-1958, Robert McHugh
	9			1964-1966
	10			1979-1982
	11			Article from The Sun, Sunday Magazine, Jan. 24, 1960
			Stevens, Wallace
Box	Folder
5	12			1923; 1930-1936
	13			1944-1946; 1950-1953, re Fortune Press

6	1			1947; 1949-1951
	2			1952-1954
	3			1955-1957
			Traven, B.
Box	Folder
6	4			1937-1958
	5			1967-1982, correspondence re identity


Gift No. 11186
		Series I. Correspondence, 1925-1996
			Subseries A. Editorial Files, 1925-1996
Box	Folder
7	1			Austin, William W., correspondence, proposals, 1970-1974
	2			Benkovitz, Miriam J., 1969
	3			Bowen, Elizabeth, 1968-1973
				Brockway, Wallace
Box	Folder
7	4-6				1960-1973
					The Encyclopedia of Music and Musicians
Box	Folder
7	7-9					1961-1970
	10-11					1967-1973
	12					1972-1981, letters from contributors

8	1			Carpentier, Alejo, Reasons of State, 1974-1976
				Cather, Willa
Box	Folder
8	2				1976-1982
	3				Contract data, 1925-1955
	4-12				Cost ledgers to 1987, various works
	13				Lindley, Lucia Woods, re A Lost Lady, 1995-1996

9	1			Chandler, Raymond, 1975-1978
				Child, Julia
Box	Folder
9	2-4				1966-1969
	5				Beck, Brooks, 1967-1969
	6				DeVoto, Avis, memoirs of Child; readers' reports, photocopies
	7-9			Cooke, Alistair, contracts, royalties, etc., 1972-1985
				Covarrubias, Miguel
Box	Folder
9	10				"South America text"

10	1-2				South American art manuscript "C. Andes"
	3				South American art
	4			Craig, Minsa, 1986
	5			Day, Clarence, "Proposal for Life/Letters, Feb. 1996," re A Life in Letters
	6			De Onis, Harriet, personal, 1962-1969
	7			De Voto, Mark, 1973-1990
	8			Erval, François, 1967-1968
	9			Fletcher, Richard, and Charles Jahant, re Mary Garden biography, 1973-1977
	10-11			Friedell, Egon, 1940-1966
				Gibran, Kahlil
Box	Folder
11	1				"Old, 1962-1972"
	2				1970-1972
	3				1973-1990
					Comité National de Gibran
Box	Folder
11	4					1971-1972
	5					1973, royalties, etc.
	6					1973-1974, Frank Colucci
	7				Copyright, 1970-1972
	8				Gibran, Kahlil (cousin), 1969-1974
	9				Otto, Annie Salem, 1965-1973
	10				Time magazine article, readers' letters, 1965

12	1			Godden, Jon and Rumer, Two Under the Indian Sun, financial correspondence, 1968
	2			Goldman, Eric, 1966-1970
	3			Guimaraes Rosa, Joao, 1964-1979
	4			Hammett, Dashiell and Lillian Hellman, 1972-1974
	5			Hand, Learned, The Spirit of Liberty, reissue project, 1974
	6			Heilbut, Anthony, book proposal
				Hersey, John
Box	Folder
12	7				The Algiers Motel Incident, 1968
	8				The Writer's Craft, 1974
	9			Hofstadter, Richard, royalty statements, 1970
	10-11			Jonas, Klaus, 1971-1996
	12			Kafka, Franz, Schocken Books, 1960-1974
	13			Kinel, Lola, re translation of Milosz, 1964
	14			Knoll, Robert E., re Weldon Kees, 1983
	15			Lahr, John, Notes on a Cowardly Lion, permissions, 1969
	16			Lane, Margaret, A Night at Sea, 1964

13	1-2			Lawrence, D. H., 1975-1983
	3			Mann, Katia, Unwritten Memories, contract and correspondence, 1974-1975
	4			Mann, Michael, re Katia Mann's Unwritten Memories, 1973-1975
				Mann, Thomas
Box	Folder
13	5				Angell, Joseph and Henry Hatfield, 1976-1983
	6				Berlin, Jeffrey and Patricia Lowe, re Mann correspondence, 1990 and 1992
	7				Brennan, Joseph, 1990-1996
	8				Buddenbrooks, 1933-1968
	9				Clippings, offprints
					General correspondence
Box	Folder
13	10					1965; 1975-1976, re letters and diaries
	11-13					1971-1974
	14					1977-1994

14	1-2					1980-1983
	3				Hannam, Hunter, 1974-1975
	4				Jens, Inge, re diaries, 1992-1994
	5				Lowe-Porter, Helen, re translations, 1975
	6				Mann family, 1972-1993
	7-8				Mendelssohn, Peter de, 1980-1982
	9				Motschan, Georges, 1989
	10				Naef, Anita, re diaries, 1983-1986
	11-12				Newton, Caroline, 1962-1969
	13				Proposed essay collection, 1989
	14				Rutgers University symposium, 1975
				Mencken, H. L.
Box	Folder
15	1				1967-1968, re Gretchen Hood letters
	2				Rothman, John, "The Impossible H. L. Mencken," 1979
					Shyre, Paul
Box	Folder
15	3					"Blasts and Bravos," 1975
	4					"An Unpleasant Evening with H. L. Mencken," 1970-1972
	5			Miller, Edward, The History of Human Society
				Moldenhauer, Hans, Webern biography
Box	Folder
15	6				1974-1977, Victor Gollancz
	7-9				1976-1979

16	1-2				1976-1979, con't.
	3			Morante, Elsa, La Storia, 1974-1977
	4			Nathan, George Jean and Julie Haydon Nathan, 1981-1990
				Nathan, Robert
Box	Folder
16	5				1956
	6				1959-1960, The Weans, "photos and spoof stuff"
	7-8				1971-1989
	9			Nordenskiold, Erik, The History of Biology, 1959- 1966
	10			Pierce, Bessie Louise, History of Chicago, 1975
	11			Prescott, Peter, re AAK biography, 1988-1995

17	1			Rank, Otto, 1956-1969
	2			Raphael, Chaim, 1976, 1994
				Sartre, Jean-Paul, re translation of Critique de la Raison Dialectique
Box	Folder
17	3				Allan, Anderson, and Halliday, 1972-1976
	4				Black, Richard and Vanessa Clark, 1970-1975
	5				"Outsiders," 1972-1974
	6-7			Sheehan, Susan, re biography of AAK,1974-1975
	8			Spaak, Paul-Henri and Jacob Blaustein, 1967-1969
	9			Stevens, Holly (daughter of Wallace Stevens), 1971-1991
	10			Undset Svarstad, Christianne, re Sigrid Undset, 1980- 1986
				Updike, John
Box	Folder
17	11-12				1960-1981
	13				1968-1970, Couples, movie correspondence, contracts
			Subseries B. General Correspondence, 1960-1996
Box	Folder
18	1-2			1960-1994
	3			1964-1966, "confidential letters/memos"
				1966, congratulatory correspondence
Box	Folder
18	4				Sr. Vice-President
					President
Box	Folder
18	5					A-D
	6-7					E-L
	8					M-R
	9					S-W

19	1-2			1969-1994
	3			1971-1991
	4			1971-1995
	5			1977-1996
				1978-1983
Box	Folder
19	6				A
	7				B
	8-9				C

20	1				D-E
	2				F-G
	3				H
	4				J-K
	5				L
	6				M
	7				N-P
	8				R
	9				S
	10				T
	11				U
	12				V-W
				1980s
Box	Folder
21	1				A-B
	2				C-D
	3				E-G
	4				H-J
	5				K-L
	6				M-O
	7				P-S
	8				T-W
				1983-1984, general information requests
Box	Folder
21	9				A-D
	10				E-L
	11				M

22	1				N-S
	2				T-Z
				1983-1985
Box	Folder
22	3				B-F
	4				G-K
	5				L-M
	6				N-R
	7				S-Z
	8			1990s
		Series II. Knopf Firm, 1932-1996
Box	Folder
22	9		AAK, Inc. credo, 1957, 1962
	10		American Book Awards, 1982
			Authors list
Box	Folder
22	11			Aaron-Echegaray
	12			Ede-Krutch
	13			Kuby-Rippy
	14			Roazen-Zuckerman

23	1-2		Bernstein, Robert L., reports, correspondence, misc., 1968-1971
			Board of Directors, correspondence and minutes
Box	Folder
23	3-5			1957-1959
	6			1960-1961
	7			1962-1964
	8			1965-1966
	9			1966-1968
	10			1967-1973
	11		Board of Directors annual meeting, president's report, memos, ca. 1970-1972

24	1		Borzoi books on music
	2-3		Borzoi catalogues, 1961-1970
	4		Borzoi Quarterly, including issue dedicated to Blanche Wolff Knopf, 1965-1966
	5		Child, Julia, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, "British paperback selling in American market," correspondence, 1971-1972
			Contract data, 1946-1967, bulk 1960s
Box	Folder
24	6			A
	7			Ba
	8			Be
	9			Bi-Bo
	10			Br
	11			Bu-By

25	1			C-Ce
	2-3			Ch-Co
	4			Cr-Cu
	5			D
	6			E
	7			F
	8			G-Go
	9			Gr-Gu
	10-11			H

26	1			I-J
	2			K
	3			L-Ll
	4			Lo-Ly
	5			M-McW
	6			Me-Mi
	7			Mo-My
	8			N
	9			O-Ph
	10			Pi-Q

27	1			R
	2			S-Sk
	3			Sk-Sz
	4			T
	5			U-V
	6			W
	7			X-Z
			Contract data, Vintage Books, 1950s-1960s
Box	Folder
28	1			A-L
	2			M-Z
	3		Contracts pending, German, 1950
			Copyright renewals
Box	Folder
28	4			1944-1965
	5			1965-1976
	6			1977-1992
	7		Crist, Clifford, Editor-in-chief, college textbooks, 1966
	8		Editorial lists, ca. 1978
	9*		Employees retirement correspondence [*employee card file containing names, dates of employment, and salary, removed to Box 39]
	10		Estates, correspondence, notes, 1984-1996
			Expense reports, WAK
Box	Folder
29	1-3			1966-1969
	4			1976, London
	5		Gottleib, Robert, Simon & Schuster contracts, correspondence, ca. 1968-1970
	6		IMG information, for East European authors, correspondence, 1959-1960
	7		Jacobs, Sidney, office correspondence, 1968
			Knopf, Alfred A.
Box	Folder
29	8			Articles re AAK, firm
	9			Columbia College, Alexander Hamilton award dinner
	10			Correspondence, "to file," various, 1976-1984
	11			"A profile of Alfred A. Knopf," TV program transcript, 1965
	12			60th birthday dinner
	13-14			75th birthday dinner
			Knopf, Blanche Wolff
Box	Folder
30	1			Travel reports (photocopies), 1942-1948
	2			Papers related to probated will, 1966
			Knopf catalogues
Box	Folder
30	3			1969-1972
	4			1973-1975
	5			1976-1978
	6			1979-1981
	7			1982-1986
	8			1992

31	1		Knopf Cooks, thank you notes, 1972
	2		Knopf deaths (Samuel, Blanche, Alfred), correspondence, 1932, 1966, 1984
	3		Kolodin, Irving, AAK biography draft, photocopy
			Koshland, William A.
Box	Folder
31	4			Election to president, clippings, 1966
	5			Notes to self and Helen Lawkins, 1964
	6		Lesser, Joseph, office correspondence, 1963-1969
	7		"Lists, special," Knopf books, award programs, 1970- 1971
	8		Management, operations, notes and memos, 1967- 1972
	9		McSweeney, John, office correspondence, 1969
	10		New building, office memos re blueprints (copies), 1968-1969
	11-12		Office communications, various, 1965-1968
	13		Organization affairs, charts, ca. 1969

32	1		Pantheon and Knopf juvenile departments, salary and bonus correspondence, 1968-1969
	2		Publisher's Lunch Club, 1966-1970
			RCA
Box	Folder
32	3-4			Incentive plan, 1966-1972
	5			Miscellaneous
			Random House
Box	Folder
32	6			Merger negotiations
	7			Miscellaneous, 1960-1972
	8			Stock/acquisition correspondence, contracts ca. 1960-1961
			Ransom Center
Box	Folder
32	9			1970-1987
	10			1989-1994
	11-12			1995, re exhibit
	13		Raskin, Jacob, business correspondence, 1961-1965

33	1-2		Royalty statements, correspondence and notes, 1978- 1979, 1993-1996
	3		St. Catherine's Monastery, Sinai publications, 1989- 1990
			Salary reports
Box	Folder
33	4-5			1968-1972
	6			1971-1973
	7			1973
	8		Schulte, Anthony M., office correspondence
	9		Strauss, Harold, obituaries
	10		Weinstock, Herbert, re death, 1971
	11		Westminster Distribution Center, 1969
	12		Wimpfheimer, Tony, office correspondence, 1966- 1967
		Series III. Koshland Personal Papers, 1942-1996
Box	Folder
34	1		Articles, clippings, eulogies, obituaries
	2		Boston, correspondence, address lists, 1968-1971
	3		Calendar, 1996
	4		Christmas card lists, business and personal
	5		"Contract," re warranty and indemnification, 1957
	6		Copyright committee, American Book Publishers Council, correspondence, 1969
			Correspondence, 1942-1996
Box	Folder
34	7			1942-1945, war letters to and from Blanche and Alfred Knopf
	8			1946-1981, personal, unsorted
	9			1962-1970, WAK-AAK inter-office
	10			1965-1970, personal
				1967-1968
Box	Folder
34	11				B-G
	12				H-N
	13				O-S
	14				T-Z
	15-16			1990-1996, miscellaneous
	17		Culture, music, arts, programs, misc., 1967-1968
	18		Financial (personal), 1967-1970

35	1		Harvard, Board of Overseers election, 1982
	2		Jury duty, 1968-1970
	3-5		The New Dramatists committee, 1968-1971
	6		New York Public library, annual dinner, 1969
	7		Old ticket records, 1969
	8-9		Personal, 1962-1964, 1969
	10		Philips Exeter 50th reunion, 1974
	11		Photographic and visual arts materials
			Rolodex
Box	Folder
35	12			A-G
	13			H-O
	14			P-Z
	15		Sloane, William, financial correspondence, 1952
	16		Social Security and retirement information
	17		Society of American Historians, Allan Nevins prize, correspondence, 1969
			Trip correspondence, reports, misc.
Box	Folder
36	1-2			1961-1962, Frankfurt Book Fair
				1963, London trip, Feb.
					Correspondence
Box	Folder
36	3					Incoming
	4					Outgoing
	5				Miscellaneous
	6				"Travel and accommodations, Feb. 1963"
				1963, European trip, Sept.-Oct.
Box	Folder
36	7-9				Correspondence and reports on trip

37	1-3				Paris, Frankfurt, London, correspondence
	4				Germany, notes and address book, 1963-1964
	5			1964, Travel expenses, accommodations, hotel reservations
	6			1965, Frankfurt
				1966
Box	Folder
37	7				Vacation
	8-9				London and Paris, Spring
	10				London, July-August
	11				Frankfurt (with two photos of WAK), Fall 1967
				1967
Box	Folder
37	12-13				Cambridge, Frankfurt

38	1-2				Paris
				1968
Box	Folder
38	3				England
	4				Frankfurt
	5				Greece, Zurich, vacation
	6				London
				1969
Box	Folder
38	7-8				Frankfurt Book Fair and Paris, expense reports
	9				London, Paris
	10			1970, Frankfurt, Rome
	11			1976, Frankfurt Book Fair, accommodations, material sent
	12			1977-1978, Frankfurt Book Fair

39			Oversize

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