Aldous Huxley oral history papers, 1985-1990

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Summary

Creators:
Dunaway, David King
Abstract:
This collection contains audio cassette interviews and transcripts of interviews conducted by David K. Dunaway with twenty-six people who knew or came into contact with English writer Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) and his family. A majority of the interviewees are people who knew Huxley while he lived in California and, for the most part, cover his life after 1937. Some of the interviews include Lady Juliette Huxley (the widow of Sir Julian Huxley), Christopher Isherwood, Mary Loos, Burgess Meredith, and Lawrence Clark Powell.
Extent:
2 Linear Feet (5 boxes)
Language:
English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Aldous Huxley oral history papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains audio cassette interviews and transcripts of interviews conducted by David K. Dunaway with twenty-six people who knew or came into contact with English writer Aldous Huxley and his family. The collection was created by Dunaway for his book Aldous Huxley Recollection (1995) and comprises a total of 31 interview transcripts and 36 audio tapes. A majority of the interviewees are people who knew Huxley while he lived in California and, for the most part, cover his life after 1937. There is some material on his early life but it amounts to a very small part of the overall collection.

The following individuals are represented in the papers: Don Bachardy (b. 1934); Sidney Field (1905-1988); Juliette Huxley (b. 1896); Mark Trevenen Huxley; Christopher Isherwood (b. 1904); Mary Loos; Burgess Meredith (b. 1908); Lawrence Clark Powell (b. 1906). Topics discussed in the collection include: the Bates method of othopics, hallucinogenic drugs, LSD, marijuana, mescaline, and pacifism. Persons discussed in the collection include: W.H. Auden, Don Bachardy, Vanessa Bell, H. Abigail Bok, Charlie Chaplin, George Dewey Cukor, Sidney Field, Greta Garbo, George Gershwin, Rose de Haulleville, Gerald Heard, Edwin Powell Hubble, Julian Huxley, Juliette Huxley, Christopher Isherwood, D.H. Lawrence, Frieda von Richthofen Lawrence, Mary Loos, Burgess Merdith, Naomi Mitchison, Lawrence Clark Powell, Siegfried Sassoon, Bernard Shaw, Lytton Strachey, Igor Stravinsky, Virginia Woolf, and Jake Zeitlin.

Biographical / historical:

David K. Dunaway is American writer and historian. He received his Phd in American Studies from the University of California, Berkeley in 1981 and has since held positions at the University of New Mexico and San Francisco State University. Dunaway's published works include Huxley in Hollywood (1989) and Aldous Huxley Recollected (1995).

English writer Aldous Huxley 1894-1963 was born in Surrey, England, on July 26, 1894, to a family distinguished in science, education and literature. He began writing while at Oxford University. With his first wife, Maria, he departed for California in 1937 and for a time wrote motion picture screenplays. After the death of Maria, Huxley married Laura Archera and together they explored the worlds of Eastern religion and drugs. Huxley died on November 22, 1963. His novels include: Brave New World, The Gioconda Smile, The Doors of Perception, and Brave New World Revisited. He also published poetry and collections of essays. While in California he wrote the scenario for Pride and Prejudice with Jane Murfin (1940) and the treatment for Madame Curie (1943), both for M-G-M. In 1944 he wrote the scenario for 20th Century-Fox's Jane Eyre.

Acquisition information:
Purchased from David K. Dunaway in three installments: April, 1989 (accession number 1456), March, 1990 (accession number 1529), and July, 1992 (accession number 1627).
Arrangement:

Arranged in the following manner: 1. Transcripts, HM 56877-56896 (Box 1); 2. Audio cassettes, HM 56877-56896 (Boxes 2-3); 3. Transcripts, HM 56897-56907 (Box 4); 4. Audio cassettes, HM 56897-56907 (Box 5).

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

The following interviews were restricted until March 2004 (HM 56897-HM 56907): Ellen Hovde (2 interviews and 2 tapes); Laura Huxley (3 interviews and 2 tapes); Matthew Huxley (1 interview and 3 tapes); Rosalind Rajagopal (1 interview and 1 tape); Claire White (1 interview and 1 tape); Jake Zeitlin (2 interviews and 2 tapes); Note: the restricted interviews have not been subject indexed in this finding aid.

Terms of access:

Transcripts may be copied for research purposes. Tapes may not be copied. Anyone wishing to quote from or publish any of the interviews must obtain written permission from the holder of the Literary Rights:

David K. Dunaway, The University of New Mexico, Department of English Language and Literature, Humanities Building 217, Albuquerque, NM 87131

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Aldous Huxley oral history papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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