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Richard Hoffman - Arthur Miller collection
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Held at: University of Delaware Library Special Collections [Contact Us]181 South College Avenue, Newark, DE 19717-5267
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the University of Delaware Library Special Collections. 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
Brooklyn-based theater collector and book dealer Richard Hoffman built a number of literary collections around American playwrights over a period of many years.
Hoffman has said that he entered the United States Army in the 1950s as an actor and left as a writer. His military experience led to an assignment to create a television program titled "Your Army in View," which consisted of interviews and live drama. After his discharge from the service in 1955, Hoffman taught in the drama department of The City University of New York. During this period he was awarded a Eugene O'Neill fellowship for playwriting. He also began to seriously collect rare books and first editions of contemporary American dramatists, notably the playwrights Eugene O'Neill, Arthur Miller, and Neil Simon. Hoffman's interest in collecting first editions led to his career as an antiquarian book dealer.
American dramatist, writer, and essayist Arthur Miller (1915-2005) is considered a pioneer of expressionistic realism in post-World War II American theater.
During the late 1940s and early 1950s, Miller's stage plays began receiving a number of awards, including the Drama Critics' Circle Awards, 1947, for
All My Sons , and 1949, for Death of a Salesman ; Tony Awards, 1947, for All My Sons , 1949, for Death of a Salesman , and 1953, for The Crucible ; Donaldson Awards, 1947, for All My Sons , 1949, for Death of a Salesman , and 1953, for The Crucible ; Pulitzer Prize for drama, 1949, for Death of a Salesman . Frequently cited as one of the central works of twentieth-century American drama, Death of a Salesman remains Miller's best known work.Miller's play concerning the Salem witch trials,
The Crucible (1953), has been interpreted by some critics as an allegory for the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) Trials, which investigated the motion picture industry searching for communist sympathizers in the late 1940s through the 1950s. Miller himself, accused of communist sympathies, was subpoenaed by the House Un-American Activities Committee, but refused to provide the committee with the names of other supposed communists. As a result Miller was found in contempt of Congress, but the conviction was overturned in 1958. During this same period Miller's life was affected by his marriage to the actress Marilyn Monroe, whom he wed in 1956. The public attention that surrounded the couple combined with Monroe's troubled fame proved difficult for Miller. However, his script for The Misfits (1961), based on a short story he first published in Esquire magazine in 1957, was written with Monroe in mind and reveals the admirable qualities he saw in her. The couple divorced in 1961. In After the Fall (1967), Miller further revealed the complexities of his relationship with Monroe, but within a broader thematic context that addresses man's alienation. One of Miller's most successful Broadway plays, The Price (1968), recalls the themes of his earlier works, such as All My Sons and Death of a Salesman . His other plays include Incident at Vichy (1964), The Archbishop's Ceiling (1977), The American Clock (1980), The Ride Down Mt. Morgan (1991), and Broken Glass (1994).As a socially conscientious writer, Miller has promoted human rights and artistic freedom; while serving as the president of International P.E.N. (1965-1969), Miller worked to open the organization to Soviet Bloc countries and to provide support for imprisoned and persecuted writers. He is credited with vitalizing the organization during his time as president.
Miller has received many honors for his writing, including an Obie Award, two New York Drama Critics' Awards, two Emmy Awards, three Tony Awards, the Pulitzer Prize (1949), the American Academy of Arts and Letters gold medal (1959), a John F. Kennedy Award for Lifetime Achievement (1984), the Jerusalem Prize (2003), and many other honors.
Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2004, reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: The Gale Group, 2004.
The Richard Hoffman - Arthur Miller Collection spans the dates between 1945 and 2000 and comprises 2.3 linear feet of play scripts, screenplays, photographs, correspondence, financial documents, posters, flyers, periodicals, journals, theater programs, news clippings, and ephemera related to the American playwright and author Arthur Miller.
Assembled by the writer and Brooklyn-based bookdealer Richard Hoffman, the collection also includes Miller's published plays, which are cataloged individually and housed with printed collections in the Special Collections Department at the University of Delaware Library. Richard Hoffman built this archive by collecting materials related to the dramatic works of Arthur Miller, as well as general sources about Miller. The collection is arranged into two series: I. Dramatic works and II. Miscellaneous journals, periodicals, and ephemera.
Series I. is organized alphabetically according to the title of Miller's dramatic works and comprises the majority of the collection. The series includes a broad representation of twenty-one of Miller's plays, beginning with
All My Sons (1947) and running through Mr. Peters' Connections (1998). Included are original play scripts for some of Miller's most well-known works, such as After the Fall (1967, two copies), The Creation of the World and Other Business (1972, three copies), Death of a Salesman (1949, three copies), The Price (1968, two copies), and Up from Paradise (1978, two copies). Several of the scripts once belonged to cast members of Miller's plays and bear the annotations and stage directions of Rose Arrick ( After the Fall , 1984), Stanley Beck ( After the Fall , 1964), Len Cariou ( Up from Paradise ), Paul Lipson ( Death of a Salesman ), and Esther Person ( An Enemy of the People ). Additionally, a revised film script for Let's Make Love (1959) and the screenplay and dialogue continuity for The Misfits (1960-1961) are included in the series. The series also contains a number of promotional posters and theater programs, as well as original cast phonographic recordings of After the Fall , Incident at Vichy , and an operatic treatment of The Crucible . The most well-represented work in the series is Death of a Salesman : included are theater programs from the original production, financial documents related to production agreements and investment dividends, and promotional materials for both film and stage productions. Dates provided during processing appear in square brackets.Series II. comprises material related to Miller's career in general and includes journal issues, clippings, postcards, flyers, programs, photographs, and other ephemera.
- Boxes 1-2: Shelved in SPEC MSS record center cartons
- Box 3: Shelved in SPEC MSS manuscript boxes
- Removals: Shelved in SPEC MSS oversize boxes (20 inches)
- Removals: Shelved in SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
- Removals: Shelved in SPEC MSS oversize mapcases
Gift of Richard Hoffman and purchase, December 2002 - January 2003.
Processed by Gerald Cloud, February 2004. Encoded by Jillian Kuzma, January 2009. Updated by Maureen Cech, November 2010.
People
Subject
Occupation
- Publisher
- University of Delaware Library Special Collections
- Finding Aid Author
- University of Delaware Library, Special Collections
- Finding Aid Date
- 2009 January 15
- Access Restrictions
-
The collection is open for research.
- Use Restrictions
-
Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections Department, University of Delaware Library, https://library.udel.edu/static/purl.php?askspec
Collection Inventory
Series I. is organized alphabetically according to the title of Miller's dramatic works and comprises the majority of the collection. The series includes a broad representation of twenty-one of Miller's plays, beginning with
All My Sons (1947) and running through Mr. Peters' Connections (1998). Included are original play scripts for some of Miller's most well-known works, such as After the Fall (1967, two copies), The Creation of the World and Other Business (1972, three copies), Death of a Salesman (1949, three copies), The Price (1968, two copies), and Up from Paradise (1978, two copies). Several of the scripts once belonged to cast members of Miller's plays and bear the annotations and stage directions of Rose Arrick ( After the Fall , 1984), Stanley Beck ( After the Fall , 1964), Len Cariou ( Up from Paradise ), Paul Lipson ( Death of a Salesman ), and Esther Person ( An Enemy of the People ). Additionally, a revised film script for Let's Make Love (1959) and the screenplay and dialogue continuity for The Misfits (1960-1961) are included in the series. The series also contains a number of promotional posters and theater programs, as well as original cast phonographic recordings of After the Fall , Incident at Vichy , and an operatic treatment of The Crucible . The most well-represented work in the series is Death of a Salesman : included are theater programs from the original production, financial documents related to production agreements and investment dividends, and promotional materials for both film and stage productions. Dates provided during processing appear in square brackets.Cast member Stanley Beck's typescript copy bound in maroon wrappers and heavily annotated with changes and stage directions. Beck played the role of Mickey, a character based on Elia Kazan.
Typescript copy of a revised script bound in black wrappers with cast member Rose Arrick's annotations (Arrick played the character of the mother). Copyright 1964, Revised February 1983, August 1984. Property of: Roger Berlind & Ray Larsen, Alfie Productions, Inc., New York City.
Mercury Records, Original cast recording, four phonograph set. Repertory Theatre of Lincoln Center; directed by Elia Kazan and starring Jason Robards.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC Media audio records
Starring Frank Langella and Dianne Wiest.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Starring Charles Aidman and Judi West.
"Charting the Course: Inge Morath's Photographs of Arthur Miller's After the Fall," p. 32-5, from Lincoln Center Repertory Company's first season. Morath is an Austrian-born photojournalist who met Miller during the filming of
The Misfits , and later married him in 1962.Includes the entire text of the play with photographs by Inge Morath and an essay by Miller commenting on the play.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Universal Pictures Company production starring Edward G. Robinson and Burt Lancaster.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Laura Pels Theatre, New York.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Staged by Elia Kazan, starring Beth Merrill, Arthur Kennedy, and Ed Begley.
Staged by Elia Kazan, starring Beth Merrill, Arthur Kennedy, and Ed Begley.
Staged by Elia Kazan, starring Beth Merrill, Arthur Kennedy, and Ed Begley.
Staged by Elia Kazan, starring Beth Merrill, Arthur Kennedy, and Ed Begley.
Directed by Barry Edelstein, starring John Cullum.
Typescript copy bound in blue wrappers, signed by Miller and numbered "68/200." Includes a program from the Harold Clurman Theatre production, Dock Street Theatre, Spoleto Festival, Charleston, South Carolina, May 21 - June 7, 1980.
Typescript copy bound in blue wrappers, inconsistent font size throughout.
Removed to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Directed by James Houghton. (2 copies)
Opening night program, starring Joan Copeland, John Randolph, and William Atherton.
Typescript copy bound in a blue wrapper with a flyer from the World Premier at the Eisenhower Theater at Kennedy Center production laid-in.
Starring Ron Rifkin, Amy Irving and David Dukes.
Typescript copy bound in black wrappers, Dowling-Whitehead-Stevens, New York City. Pages 1.8 - 1.12 heavily annotated in an unknown hand.
Typescript copy bound in maroon wrappers. Bears the address label of Katherine Brown's at the International Famous Agency.
Typescript copy bound heavy off-white binder. Heavily annotated copy with the autograph note "Office Copy. | Act I, Act II, Act III…" on the binding cover.
Fireside Theatre, Garden City, New York.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Original hand-colored poster, Miller's last name is missing from the poster.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Program for the November 30, 1972, premiere performance.
An Opera in four acts, libretto by Bernard Stambler, music by Robert Ward; featuring Frances Bible, Chester Ludgin, and Patricia Brooks.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC Media audio records
Costume illustration, designed by Lewis Brown, for the American Conservatory Theatre, San Francisco, California, July 1967. Ink and gouache on board, signed and dated by the artist.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Costume illustration, designed by Lewis Brown, for the American Conservatory Theatre, San Francisco, California, July 1967. Includes a letter from the artist to Richard Buck at the New York Library for the Performing Arts concerning the sales of Lewis's sketches for fund raising, dated 8 October 1991. Gouache on board, signed and dated by the artist.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
The Belasco Theatre, New York City. (2 copies)
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Sixteen 8x10 black and white photographs, cast and crew list, promotional brochure housed in a portfolio from Twentieth Century Fox, starring Daniel Day Lewis and Winona Ryder.
Starring Arthur Kennedy, E. G. Marshall, Walter Hampden, and Beatrice Straight. (2 copies)
Off-Broadway production starring Michael Higgins, Ford Rainey, Noah Keen, and Ann Wedgeworth.
Starring Liam Neeson and Laura Linney.
Twentieth Century Fox, starring Daniel Day Lewis and Winona Ryder.
New York: Hart Stenographic Bureau, "Sept. 1948." Typescript copy, signed by Miller on the title page. The detached red paper binding bears the address sticker of Hart Stenographic Bureau, New York City. This copy bears many textual differences from the published version.
Typescript copy in red leather binding with "DEATH OF A SALESMAN | ARTHUR MILLER | [rule] | PRODUCED BY | KERMIT BLOOMGARDEN | and | WALTER FRIED" gold stamped on the front cover. This copy bears many textual differences from both the published version and the copy listed above. "Property of Bloomgarden and Fried… New York, NY."
New York: Hart Stenograph Bureau, "Copyright by the author, September 1948/Property of Bloomgarden & Fried, 1545 Broadway, New York, N.Y. Green paper covers with name "Lipson," for Paul Lipson, who played Willie Loman. Inside note "Play opened February 1949." This copy bears many penciled actor's notes for the character Willie.
Legal contract between Kermit Bloomgarden and Walter Fried for the production of
Death of a Salesman . Includes a list of limited partners and their share of profits to be received. 18 p.Pinto, Winokur, & Pagano Accountants and Auditors. Includes monthly reports for February 1949 and October 1952, and a group of financial statements addresses to Samuel Krebs dating from February 1951 - December 1967 documenting the statement of receipts, disbursements, expenses, and net profit for investors. 17 p.
Signed by Miller. Starring Lee J. Cobb as Willy Loman.
Starring Lee J. Cobb as Willy Loman.
Starring Lee J. Cobb as Willy Loman.
Starring Thomas Mitchell as Willy Loman, with the new cast.
Cast includes Dustin Hoffman as Willy Loman and John Malkovich as Biff. The program is autographed by the cast and crew of the production.
Starring Dustin Hoffman as Willy Loman, plus Kate Reid, and John Malkovich. (3 copies)
Directed by Robert Falls and starring Brian Dennehy as Willy Loman.
Directed by Elia Kazan, with Thomas Mitchell in the role of Willy Loman. Includes Miller's essay "Tragedy and the Common Man." Cover mentions Pulitzer Prize and New York Drama Critics Award.
Reviews by John Mason Brown and Katherine S. Rosin.
Pencil sketch of cast members Lee J. Cobb, Mildred Dunnock, Arthur Kennedy, and Cameron Mitchell autographed by each cast member.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
8x10 color photograph, Peter A Juley & Sons, photographers of fine arts, New York City.
Black and white photograph of Arthur Kennedy, Mildred Dunnock, Cameron Mitchell, and Gene Lockhart. Signed by Kennedy.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (20 inches)
Removed to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (20 inches)
Nine posters, including six lobby cards.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Removed to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (20 inches)
For the production starring Dustin Hoffman and John Malkovich.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
11x14 board with cloth samples and staging directions.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (20 inches)
Review in
Life , " Death of a Salesman : Fine Tragedy Becomes a Critical and Box-Office Sensation." Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (20 inches)
Two 8x10 black and white publicity photographs from the Lopert Films production. Miller wrote the English language narrative for the Italian version,
Anni Difficili .Typescript copy in International Creative Management paper binding with an autograph note on ICM stationery from "Marilyn" to "Doris" laid in.
Typescript copy bound in maroon wrappers heavily annotated by cast member Esther Person.
Copy of
An Enemy of the People , by Henrik Ibsen, acting edition.Directed by Gene Frankel. Includes ticket stub, February 10, 1959.
Directed by Jules Irving.
New York: Theatre Recording Society. Harold Clurman, director; starring David Wayne and Hal Holbrook. Repertory Theatre of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC Media audio records
Typescript copy revised shooting final bound in a yellow Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation paper covers.
Laser-printed copy with green paper covers, title page signed by Arthur Miller and cast members from the Roundabout Theatre Company's production.
Typescript copy bound in brown wrappers, dated "Revision - March, 1960," and signed by Miller on the title page.
Typescript copy of the dialogue and cutting continuity for the finished film, with blue paper covers.
Directed by Garry Hynes and starring Peter Falk.
"A Linda Yellen Project," for the Sy Fischer Company, New York. Typescript copy, including the following note on p.[2], "a screenplay based on the facts in the Memoir by Fania Fenelon, member of the Women's Orchestra in the Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp."
Typescript copy bound in red wrappers with revised carbon pages and cancelled passages. Includes Producer Robert Whitehead's address sticker on the title page.
Corrected typescript copy bound in red wrappers, front cover missing, also includes Miller's production note, p.[2]. "Property of: Robert Whitehead Productions… New York."
Directed by Ulu Grosbard and starring Pat Hingle, Kate Reid, Harold Gary, and Arthur Kennedy.
Directed by Ulu Grosbard and starring Pat Hingle, Kate Reid, Harold Gary, and Arthur Kennedy.
Directed by John Stix and starring Joseph Buloff, Mitchell Ryan, Fritz Weaver, and Scotty Bloch.
Includes the entire text of the play.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Photograph of Pat Hingle, Harold Gary and Arthur Kennedy in Arthur Miller's
The Price .Typescript copy bound in spiral plastic covers, including the autograph note "Working copy sent to publisher of limited edition, River Run."
Directed by David Esbjornson; signed by cast member Patrick Stewart.
Typescript copy heavily annotated with stage diagrams and directions, includes text, musical lyrics, and the director's stage directions. Also includes signed typed letter to Ran Avni, Jewish Repertory Theatre from Bridget Aschenberg, International Creative Management, dated March 7, 1984, and original mailing envelope.
Typescript copy in green plastic three-ring binder labeled "God" (cast member Len Cariou) with autograph corrections in multiple hands. Includes sheet music for the songs in the play.
Complete text of the play removed from the original magazine.
Starring Van Heflin and J. Carrol Naish.
Starring Van Heflin and J. Carrol Naish.
Directed by Martin Ritt and starring Van Heflin and J. Carrol Naish.
From the film; directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Raf Vallone and Maureen Stapleton
Directed by Ulu Grosbard and starring Robert Duvall. Signed by Miller
Directed by Ulu Grosbard and starring Richard Castellano.
Directed by Ulu Grosbard and starring Robert Duvall.
Starring Tony Lo Bianco.
Directed by Michael Mayer and starring Anthony LaPaglia.
Directed by Michael Mayer and starring Tony Danza. Includes a handbill.
Continental Distributing. Film directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Raf Vallone and Jean Sorel.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Continental Distributing. Film directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Raf Vallone and Jean Sorel.
Physical LocationRemoved to MSS oversize mapcases
Directed by Arvin Brown and starring Tony LoBianco.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Directed by Michael Mayer and starring Anthony LaPaglia.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Signed by Richard Hoffman on the verso.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (32 inches)
Series II. comprises material related to Miller's career in general and includes journal issues, clippings, postcards, flyers, programs, photographs, and other ephemera.
"The State of Theatre, Arthur Miller Interviewed by Henry Brandon."
"Arthur Miller Talks."
"The Role of P.E.N.," by Miller.
"Story of G.I. Joe, A Sequence from the film." Includes Miller's introductory note.
"An American Reaction," by Miller, including a portrait, text in French and English.
Article on Miller by Robert Hogan.
"Please Don't Kill Anything," by Miller.
"Glimpse at a Jockey," by Miller.
"The Art of Theatre II, Arthur Miller: an Interview."
"Poetry and the Film: a Symposium," group interview with Miller originally held October 28, 1953. Signed by Miller.
One 8x10 black and white photograph of Miller. One black and white photograph of Miller and one magazine still of Miller, both signed.
Physical LocationRemoved to SPEC MSS oversize boxes (20 inches)
Liner notes from the compact disc recording of Beethoven: Symphonies 5 & 7, Philharmonia Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy. Miller discusses his thoughts on how Beethoven's Seventh Symphony helped Lee J. Cobb form his approach to the role of Willie Loman.
The Silver Tassie by Sean O'Casey, theatre program with Miller's brief essay on The Interplayers theater group.
Honorees include Miller, Lena Horne, Danny Kaye, Gian Carlo Menotti, and Isaac Stern. Includes a black and white photograph of the honorees and a flyer from CBS television.
Includes the PEN American Center program "An Eightieth Birthday Celebration for Arthur Miller," October 30, 1995 (three copies).