Description
The collection documents the professional and
personal lives of science fiction author Robert Heinlein and his wife, Virginia
Heinlein. Materials in the collection include manuscripts, short stories,
articles, book reviews, screen plays, television and radio programs, personal
and professional correspondence, legal and financial papers, illustrations,
photographs, slides, scrapbooks, yearbooks, memorabilia, and realia.
Background
Robert Anson Heinlein was
born July 7, 1907, in Butler, Missouri and died May 8, 1988, in Carmel,
California. Son of Rex Ivar, an accountant and Bam Lyle Heinlein, he was the
third of seven children. He married Elinor Curry in 1929 but they divorced in
1931. His second marriage to Leslyn McDonald lasted from 1932 until their
divorce in 1947. He married his third wife, Virginia Doris Gerstenfeld, on
October 21, 1948 and stayed with her until his death in 1988. None of the
marriages produced any children.Virginia G. Heinlein was
born on April 22, 1916 in Brooklyn, New York, to George (a dentist) and Jeanne
Gerstenfeld and had one younger brother, Leon. She died in Florida on January
18, 2003. Virginia attended New York University, majoring in chemistry where
she lettered in swimming, diving, basketball, and field hockey. She also
reached national competitive levels in figure skating, the sport that became
her lifelong passion. In time, she came to speak over seven languages,
including French, Latin, Italian, and Russian.
Restrictions
Property rights reside with the
University of California. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the
records and their heirs. For permission to publish or to reproduce the
material, please contact the Head of Special Collections and Archives.