Burroughs, William S., 1914-1997. William S. Burroughs Collection of Papers, 1951-1972 bulk (1958-1972).
Title:
William S. Burroughs Collection of Papers, 1951-1972 bulk (1958-1972).
The archive was organized during two periods of activity: by Burroughs in 1965, and then in 1972 by Burroughs, Brion Gysin, and Barry Miles, who divided the manuscripts and typescripts of Burroughs's works and notes into 169 collections of papers which they placed in consecutively numbered folders and portfolios of various sizes, which they called "Folios". Burroughs inscribed headings on the folders and sometimes also affixed collages to their front covers. In addition to manuscripts and typescripts, these folios include correspondence, clippings from magazines, photographs, exercise books, and cut-ups. The material relates to apomorphine, scientology, dreams, biofeedback and to the composition of Burroughs' Dream Diary, Soft Machine, Naked Lunch, The Wild Boys, Dead Fingers Talk, Nova Express, The Revised Boy Scout Manual and the Job. In addition to the 169 folios, the archive contains eleven files compiled by Burroughs and related to Scientology; 4 boxes of photographic files with approximately 1000 photographs, most of which were taken by Burroughs himself; and three boxes of audio material dating from 1960-1973. The archive also includes extensive correspondence to and from the author, written between 1955-1972, organized into 45 files. Correspondents include Paul Bowles, Mary Beach & Claude Pelieu, David Budd, Truman Capote, Gregory Corso, Brion Gysin, Allen Ginsberg, Rolf Gunter-Dienst, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Charles Henri Ford, Timothy Leary, Jack Kerouac, David Prentice and Terry Southern; as well as noted publishers Dick Seaver and Barney Rossett of Grove Press and Maurice Girodias of Olympia Press. Barry Miles compiled a descriptive catalog of the papers, which was published as A Descriptive Catalog of the William S. Burroughs Archive (London: Covent Garden Press for Barry Miles Associates, William Burroughs, and Brion Gysin, 1973). Folios 1-169 as given in the Descriptive Catalog comprise the finding aid's Series I. Though the Catalogue places the Correspondence files first, the finding aid follows the archival practice of placing an author's correspondence after the works (here as Series III). In some instances, in order to maintain Burroughs's arrangement, correspondence which accompanied drafts of some works was not removed to the Correspondence Series. Scope notes will alert the researcher to their presence. The Scientology Files and Photographic Files (Series II and IV) follow as given in the Descriptive Catalog, but Series V., Audiovisual Material, was not documented in this volume.
ArchivalResource:
94 manuscript boxes (17 1951-1972 bulk (1958-1972).
http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/430941447 View
View in SNAC
