Full Text:

PAPERS OF W. SOMERSET MAUGHAM

(with 2 photos)

BOSTON, MASS. -- The Department of Special Collections at Boston University is

exhibiting never-before-seen rare manuscripts, personal papers, and

memorabilia of author William Somerset Maugham (1894-1965). The exhibition,

"The Papers of W. Somerset Maugham," is at the Grabosky-Rosenfield Exhibition

Hall in the University's Mugar Memorial Library, and will run for several

months. In 1996, The Department of Special Collections thousands of pieces

related to Maugham's life and work as one of the Twentieth Century's important

literary writers, known for such classic works of fiction as "Of Human

Bondage" and "The Razor's Edge."

"This collection is truly a major contribution to the world of literature,

since it gives us insight into the human side of one of the world's greatest

writers," said Dr Howard Gotlieb, Director.

Among the pieces are more than 500 letters to Maugham from a wide range of

artists, literary giants and noted dignitaries, including: Raymond Chandler,

Sir Winston Churchill, Noel Coward, T.S. Eliot, E.M. Forster, John Gielgud,

Rudyard Kipling, Claire Booth Luce, Henry Miller, Laurence Olivier, J.B.

Priestly, and H.G. Wells, among others. There are also manuscript drafts,

portrait etchings, and the well-known portrait lithograph by Graham

Sutherland, as well as an archive of personal and legal papers, from Maugham's

birth certificate to six variant versions of his will.

"These rare items fill an important gap in our understanding of Maugham's

character and his place in the annals of great writers," noted Gotlieb. "I'm

proud that Boston University is able to shed light on this man for the world

to see, and to be able to share these memorabilia with the world's scholars

and the public."

The Twentieth Century Archives of The Department of Special Collections

Created in 1963 by Dr Howard Gotlieb, the newly appointed director of the

department, the Twentieth Century Archives represents a cross section of

personalities and fields, from the collections of opera diva Rise Stevens to

playwright Eugene O'Neill to author/socialist George Bernard Shaw; from singer

Ella Fitzgerald to Irish dramatist Samuel Beckett; from the original drawings

of "Little Orphan Annie," "Dennis the Menace," and "L'il Abner" to the papers

of poets Robert Frost and Walt Whitman, to Dan Rather's Emmys and Arthur

Fiedler's lucky Boston Pops rehearsal stand.

The Archives contain the world's largest collection of Hollywood memorabilia.

Bette Davis contributed over 119,000 papers alone. There are Gene Kelly's

Oscar for "An American in Paris" and Fred Astaire's dancing shoes. Other movie

stars represented include Angela Lansbury, Robert Redford, Edward G. Robinson,

Joan Fontaine, Glenda Jackson, Roddy McDowall, Anthony Newley, Rex Harrison,

Shirley MacLaine, and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.