An Inventory of His Collection at the Harry Ransom Center
Creator:
Harrison, Michael
Title
Michael Harrison Collection
Dates:
1939-1962 (bulk 1958-1961)
Extent:
2 boxes (.83 linear feet)
Abstract:
The collection includes
working notes, drafts, printer's copies, page proofs, illustration pulls, a
published book, and correspondence, focusing primarily on Harrison's most
famous work,
In the Footsteps of Sherlock
Holmes.
Call Number:
Manuscript Collection MS-01854
Language:
English.
Access
Open for research
Administrative Information
Acquisition
Purchase, 1974 (R6216)
Processed by
Christopher D. Filippi, April 1995; Sarah Demb, 1996; Jennifer Peters,
1996
Michael Harrison was born on April 25, 1907, in Milton, England. He was
educated at King's College and the School of Oriental and African Studies at
the University of London. He served briefly in the British Military
Intelligence during World War II. He worked as a journalist, editor, creative
director of an advertising agency, managing editor of Trade News Ltd. and
The British Ink Maker, a market research
executive, and an industrial and technical consultant.
Michael Harrison's literary career began in 1934 with the publication of
his first novel. His early years were prolific, and he published seventeen
novels between 1934 and 1954. His early publications included
What are We Waiting For? (1939) and
There's Glory For You! (1949). During the
1950s, he turned to the genre of mystery writing. Harrison wrote three short
crime novels under the pseudonym of Quentin Downes (1952-54) and achieved his
greatest literary success with the publication of
In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes in 1958.
Harrison became a leading authority on Sherlock Holmes, writing seven
subsequent novels about the Victorian sleuth. Harrison was also a great admirer
of Edgar Allan Poe's detective, C. Auguste Dupin. He wrote twelve short sequels
to
Murder in the Rue Morgue, and entitled the
resulting anthology
Murder in the Rue Royale (1972).
Harrison was awarded the Occident Prize for
Weep for Lycidas (1934), was named Duke of
Sant Estrella by the Kingdom of Redonda (1951), and was named Irregular
Shilling by the Baker Street Irregulars of New York (1964). He was a member of
the Society of Authors, Crime Writers Association, Baker Street Irregulars of
New York, and the Sherlock Holmes Society of London. He died in 1991.
Scope and Contents
The Michael Harrison Collection, 1939-1962 (bulk 1958-1961), includes
working notes, drafts, printer's copies, page proofs, illustration pulls, a
published book, and correspondence. The collection is arranged in two series:
I. Works, 1939-59 (1.5 boxes); and II. Correspondence, 1958-62 (.5 box). The
collection focuses on Harrison's most famous work,
In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes,
containing both manuscript drafts and correspondence pertaining to the
book. Manuscript drafts of two other novels complete the collection.
Manuscript materials relating to
In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes (1958)
constitute the bulk of Series I. Eight folders contain holograph working notes,
a printer's copy with holograph revisions, an incomplete set of page proofs, a
preliminary set of illustration pulls, and the second edition of the book,
heavily annotated with notes, comments, and inserts by the author. Manuscripts
for two other novels by Harrison,
There's Glory For You! (1949) and
What Are We Waiting For? (1939), are also
present in this series. Consisting of a printer's copy only, the manuscript for
There's Glory For You!, an example of
historical fiction, is highlighted by a note from the author reading “this is the
typescript ready for printing. It was typewritten by me, and constitutes the original
(indeed, the only) MS of this novel.” The manuscript for
What Are We Waiting For?, Harrison's fifth
novel, is almost completely handwritten. The series is arranged alphabetically
by title and is organized to reflect the process of editing and
publication.
Series II contains correspondence relating to the publication of
In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes.
Outgoing correspondence has been arranged chronologically in one
folder, and incoming correspondence is arranged alphabetically in three
folders. Most of the letters are from individuals interested in Sherlock
Holmes, writing to Harrison with corrections to his book and insight into the
fictional character. Also present is correspondence with Harrison's literary
agent, Jacques Chambrun, prospective book publishers, and societies devoted to
Holmes, books, and authors. This series also includes two dinner programs from
The Author's Club and the Sherlock Holmes Society of London. Other
correspondents of note include The Baker Street Irregulars, Cassell and
Company, Ian MacMillan, Cecil Roth, F. J. P. Veale, and the Jules Verne
Society. Harrison's carbon copy responses to his admirers and literary
contacts, varying in length and formality, are found in the Outgoing
Correspondence files.
Related Material
Additional papers of Michael Harrison are located in Mugar Memorial
Library at Boston University.
