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Subseries II: J. Michael Lennon , 1970-2023

 Sub-Series

Scope and Content

From the Collection: J. Michael Lennon’s collection of Norman Mailer’s Publication Research, 1948-2024, is arranged into eight series: Series I: Publications, 1948-2024; Series II: Speeches and Interviews, 1962-2006; Series III: Unpublished Works, c. 1945-2004; Series IV: Family and Peer Publications, 1978-2007; Series V: Correspondences, 1947-2007; Series VI: Norman Mailer’s Legacy, 1970-2023; Series VII: Personal papers and photographs, c. 1948-2011; and Series VIII: Objects, c. 1990s - c. 2005. Each series is further divided into corresponding subseries and subsubseries to aid in the research process.

The collection contains a wide range of materials from Norman Mailer’s writing process such as draft typescripts (short publications and novel length); handwritten draft pages; film typescript; notebooks and notepads; novel dictation (recording and typescript); galley copy typescript; galley copy color plates; research books; periodicals; and online publications (original and xerox/fax copy); handwritten notes; edits; and highlights; research notecards; research post-it notes; unused research; non-specified research; file folder compilations of research; publication legal contracts and typescript (signed and unsigned); book publication cover creations; editorial comments; book publications; publication press; book reviews; interviews; print periodical publications; online publications; best seller lists; speech typescript; lecture materials and research; unpublished draft typescript; original and xerox copy artwork; artwork in art pads; bound sketchbook collections; email correspondences; letter correspondences; handwritten correspondences; birthday cards; postcards; greeting cards; thank you notes; fan mail; request letters; legal letters; pamphlets; fliers; informational typescript; booklets; brochures; health booklets; medical paperwork; phone logs; film reel; sound reel; promotional adverts; membership cards; certificates; floppy discs; CDs; videocassettes; photographs; color transparencies; selling aid typescript; print press release; invitations; travel arrangement receipts; educational typescript; floor plans; credit cards; membership cards; business cars; maps; rubles; playing cards; pocket book; letterhead and envelopes; postcards; comic pages; book slip covers; schedules; paperweights; glass objects; wooden objects; metal objects; and posters.

The collection provides insight on Norman Mailer’s research and drafting process, publication history, and literary legacy spanning the arc of his career from 1948-2007, as well as posthumous acclaim up to 2024. The collection also provides insight on Mailer’s personal relationships both professionally and personally, along with the writing careers of family members and peers.

Dates

  • 1970-2023

Access:

Open for research, with the exception of restricted folders 73.7., 73.8.; 73.9.; 74.4.; 74.5.; 74.6.; 74.7.; 74.8.; 74.9.; 74.10.; 74.11.; 74.12.; 74.13.; 74.14.; 75.14.; 76.7.; 76.8.; 77.31.; 80.8.; 81.11.; 82.1.; 82.5.; 84.8.



Specific folders within this collection have been digitized for research purposes only. If you wish to reprint unpublished materials within the collection, you must first obtain permission from the Mailer Estate. Please contact the Wilkes University Archives for more information.

Extent

From the Collection: 94 boxes ( (85 letter size boxes; 4 legal boxes; 2 object boxes; 3 oversized boxes) 43.03 linear feet. )

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

Subseries II: J. Michael Lennon, 1970-2023

Subseries II: J. Michael Lennon, 1970-2021 is arranged into four subsubseries: Subsubseries I: University of Rhode Island Dissertation and Extended Research , 1970-1981; Subsubseries II: The Inventory of The Papers of Norman Mailer, 1995-2021; Subsubseries III: Publications and Periodicals 2000-2018; and Subsubseries IV: Archiving Efforts, 1994-2023. Within each subsubseries, the materials are in chronological order of research, publication and/or archival dates and contain J. Michael Lennon’s archival efforts, research, and articles on Norman Mailer.

J. Michael Lennon began his scholarly work on Norman Mailer at the University of Rhode Island, where he wrote his Ph.D. dissertation on Mailer’s The Armies of the Night under Dr. Nancy Potter’s direction. Lennon and Mailer met in 1972 following a letter Lennon wrote to Mailer in his support after an altercation on The Dick Cavett Show. As Lennon wrote in his essay collection, Mailer’s Last Days (2022), for thirty-five years, he and Mailer “grew closer in aesthetic interests and fervor for the same philosophical entanglements.” The relationship between Lennon and Mailer has preserved Mailer’s legacy through Lennon’s archiving and biographical efforts.

Creator

Repository Details

Part of the Wilkes University Archives Repository

Contact:
84 W South St.
Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 US
570-408-2000
570-408-7823 (Fax)