Robert Ardrey (1908-1970) was born in Chicago, Illinois. He studied the natural and social sciences at University of Chicago and lectured on anthropology for two years, but later found himself more interested in drama. He became a Hollywood screenwriter and wrote film scripts, novels, and plays. The collection consists of correspondence, clippings, ephemera and motion picture scripts written by Ardrey.

Robert Ardrey was born October 16, 1908 in Chicago; studied natural and social sciences at University of Chicago and lectured on anthropology for two years, but later found himself more interested in drama, where he was influenced by Thornton Wilder; his first plays had brief runs, but led to his becoming a Hollywood screenwriter, 1938; wrote film scripts, novels, and plays, including Thunder Rock, which was successful in London and filmed in Hollywood; returned to the study of anthropology in 1955, and later produced four works: African Genesis (1961), The Territorial Imperative (1966), The Social Contract (1970), and The Hunting Hypothesis (1976) all arguing that man was innately aggressive creature; continued to write screenplays, including Khartoum; finished autobiography shortly before his death in Kalk Bay, South Africa in 1980.

4 boxes (4 linear ft.)

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