We left off in part one wondering how to evaluate the Ransom Center’s unique non-commercial sound recordings, particularly when we aren’t able to access their audio content prior to preservation. Verifying written descriptions helps, but there are other considerations to keep in mind, such as a recording’s physical format—different types of material become increasingly unstable with age, but at different rates, and in different ways. [Read more…] about Deadline: 2028—Countdown to preserve audio materials
Norman Mailer
Deadline: 2028—Time is not on our side
High stakes for cultural heritage
In just 11 years, the Harry Ransom Center could reach the point of no return!
Papers of actors Eli Wallach and Anne Jackson acquired
The Ransom Center has acquired the papers of actors, and husband and wife, Eli Wallach (1915–2014) and Anne Jackson (1925–2016). [Read more…] about Papers of actors Eli Wallach and Anne Jackson acquired
The Art of American Crime: Q&A with Dr. Jerome Loving on Jack and Norman: A State-Raised Convict and the Legacy of Norman Mailer’s “The Executioner’s Song”
In a review for The New Republic, Sarah Weinman says of Jerome Loving’s recently released biography, “Jack and Norman is a book that makes one wonder why it took so long for someone to write a full-length treatment of the whole mess.” [Read more…] about The Art of American Crime: Q&A with Dr. Jerome Loving on Jack and Norman: A State-Raised Convict and the Legacy of Norman Mailer’s “The Executioner’s Song”
Commitment to collecting
Going back to the origins of research libraries, there is a long history of scholars building collections to suit personal interests, constructing around themselves an athenaeum of books that supported their individual research goals. [Read more…] about Commitment to collecting
Coleccionismo comprometido
Cuando se busca en tiempo atrás los orígenes de las bibliotecas de investigación, damos con una larga historia de académicos dedicados a recabar colecciones de acuerdo a su interés personal, construyendo en torno suyo ateneos de libros que documentaran sus muy particulares metas de investigación. Y muchas veces, cuando dicho académico proseguía su carrera –en otro trabajo o en otro contexto intelectual- la colección emprendida se marchitaba, sin la mente directriz inicial que siguiera contando su historia. [Read more…] about Coleccionismo comprometido