August 7, 2013, Filed Under: Authors, Books + ManuscriptsTim O’Brien becomes first fiction writer to win Pritzker Award Novelist Tim O’Brien has been awarded the 2013 Pritzker Military Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing, marking the first time a fiction writer has won the $100,000 prize. O’Brien, whose archive resides at the Ransom Center, is the author of such works as The Things They Carried… read more
July 31, 2013, Filed Under: Books + ManuscriptsUnpacking the McSweeney’s archive When a new archive arrives at the Ransom Center, it is quickly whisked away to a designated quarantine area in our basement. The first order of business is for staff to inspect the collection carefully—under the diligent leadership of one of our conservators—for signs of bugs or mold, or any… read more
July 31, 2013, Filed Under: Books + ManuscriptsMcSweeney’s archive acquired The Harry Ransom Center has acquired the archive of the McSweeney’s publishing company. Founded in 1998 by Dave Eggers, McSweeney’s is considered one of the most influential literary journals and publishing houses of its time. McSweeney’s publishes books, Timothy McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern, The Believer magazine, the food journal Lucky Peach,… read more
July 25, 2013, Filed Under: Authors, Theatre + Performing ArtsDramaturg uses archival materials to edit new version of Tennessee Williams play for production at The Old Vic Dramaturg James Graham admits he had barely heard of Tennessee Williams’s Sweet Bird of Youth before starting work on the play. Alongside Williams’s other works—including Pulitzer Prize winners A Streetcar Named Desire and Cat On A Hot Tin Roof—the difficult script often fades into the background. This summer The Old… read more
July 23, 2013, Filed Under: Authors, Books + Manuscripts, Exhibitions + EventsIn the galleries: Norman Mailer’s handwritten draft of “The Fight” Norman Mailer once wrote, “[Boxing] arouses two of the deepest anxieties we contain. There is not only the fear of getting hurt, which is profound in more men than will admit to it, but there is the opposite panic, equally unadmitted, of hurting others.” Mailer used boxing to explore many… read more
July 18, 2013, Filed Under: Authors, Books + Manuscripts, Exhibitions + EventsIn the galleries: David Foster Wallace’s copy of John McPhee’s “Levels of the Game” Considered one of the best books on tennis ever written, John McPhee’s 1969 publication Levels of the Game chronicles Arthur Ashe’s win over Clark Graebner in their 1968 U.S. Open semifinal match. The book offers a nearly stroke-by-stroke account of the match, opening with the first serve and concluding with… read more
