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John Varley Papers
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Held at: Temple University Libraries: Special Collections Research Center [Contact Us]
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Temple University Libraries: Special Collections Research Center. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
John Varley was born in Austin, Texas, in 1947 and attended Michigan State University before travelling and settling upon a career in writing. Between 1977 and 1980, Varley published a trilogy, beginning with The Ophiuchi Hotline and concluding with The Titan, and The Wizard. Varley's most well-known collections of short stories are The Persistence of Vision, In the Hall of the Martian Kings, and The Barbie Murders and Other Stories. Since 1974 Varley has published dozens of short stories in a variety of science fiction magazines. After years of work, Varley saw his story "Millennium" transformed into a film starring Cheryl Ladd and Kris Kristofferson in 1988. Varley has won the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards several times each.
This collection consists primarily of manuscripts and proofs of stories, novels, and movie screenplays. The manuscripts include typescripts and proofs for novels, stories, and film treatments including "Blue Champagne," "Entropy," "Air Raid," The Gate, Galaxy, Labyrinth, "Millennium," Have Spacesuit, Will Travel, "Press Enter," The Master, The Ophiuchi Hotline, Titan, The Phantom of Kansas, "The Persistence of Vision," "The Pusher," "Tango Charlie and Foxtrot Romeo," Steel Beach, and Wizard. Related to Varley's work as a screenwriter are clippings, memoranda, conceptual drawings, architectural drawings, color negatives, storyboards, scripts, photographs, videotapes, crew lists, production stills, production schedules, typescripts, notes, and a small amount of correspondence, primarily related to the production of Millennium.
Series 2: 1990-2005 Additions, circa 1970s-2005
Donated by John Varley, 1977-2005.
Original audiovisual materials, as well as preservation and duplicating masters, may not be played. Researchers must consult use copies, or if none exist must pay for a use copy. Certain digital files may also be inaccessible. Please contact the Special Collections Research Center for more information.
Original accession processed and finding aid prepared in approximately 1993. Finding aid revised according to contemporary archival standards and additional accessions added in December 2014 by Katy Rawdon, Coordinator of Technical Services.
Subject
- Publisher
- Temple University Libraries: Special Collections Research Center
- Finding Aid Author
- Machine-readable finding aid created by: Rajkumar Natarajan, Sky Global Services India (P) Ltd.
- Finding Aid Date
- October 2024
- Access Restrictions
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Collection is open for research. Photocopying of more than three pages requires the permission of the author. Permission to quote from or copy any part of Gas Giant is expressly denied by the author.
- Use Restrictions
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The John Varley Papers are in the custody of the Special Collections Research Center, Temple University Libraries. Intellectual property rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. Researchers are responsible for determining the identity of rights holders and obtaining their permission for publication and for other purposes where stated.
Collection Inventory
Series 1 is comprised of manuscript and proofs of short stories, novels, and screenplays by Varley, film production records and videotapes from the making of the movie Millennium, and a small number of color photographic negatives.
Series 2 contains later additions to the papers, including manuscripts, proofs, and screenplays, as well as correspondence and ephemera related to Varley's work.
Includes introduction by Varley, and stories by Steve Antczak, P. J. Beese, Jerry Bingham , Brenda W. Clough, Dwight R. Decker, Laurell K. Hamilton, Gerald Hausman, Alan Dean Foster, Roland J. Green, Richard A. Knaak, Brad Linaweaver, William Marden, Frieda A. Murray, Jody Lynn Nye, Dennis O'Neil, Jonathan V. Post, Mickey Zucker Reichert, Mike Resnick and Schimel, Josepha Sherman, Michael A. Stackpole, Brian M. Thomsen, John Varley ("Truth, Justice, and the Politically-Correct Socialist Path"), Lawrence Watt-Evans, and Roger Zelazny