University of Pennsylvania Finding Aids

Arthur Henry (1867-1934) was an author and a playwright who enjoyed a close friendship with Theodore Dreiser. This collection includes one of Henry's marriage licenses; a draft typescript of The Night Before, a play he co-wrote with his daughter, Dorothy Henry Van Auken; and two typescripts of his semi-autobiographical novel, "Roger Allen."

William Clyde Fitch (better known as Clyde Fitch, 1865-1909) is considered one of the most successful American playwrights of his time, and the first to be produced abroad on a regular basis. This collection consists of typescripts of ten unpublished plays and four autograph letters written by Fitch.

Writer, song-writer, and reporter Edgar Meck Dilley attended the University of Pennsylvania from 1893 to 1895 and is known for having written the school's alma mater, "Hail, Pennsylvania." This collection consists mainly of drafts of his writings, including novels and stories, plays and operas, lyrics, poems, and musical scores, as well as a few accompanying miscellaneous items.

Edith Wharton (1862-1937) was an American novelist, best known for works that provided insightful representation of New York high society. In 1905, her novel, The House of Mirth, was published; and shortly thereafter, she worked with dramatist, Clyde Fitch (1865-1909), to develop a play adapted from the novel. The collection consists in the complete typescript of the play The House of Mirth, as well a photocopy made at a later date.

Gerald Clifford Weales was a professor of English and Drama who taught for about 30 years the University of Pennsylvania, until 1987. This collection of writings includes the drafts and galley proofs of several books, both fiction and non-fiction, as well as the typescript of four unpublished plays.

Howard Melvin Fast (1914-2003) was a best-selling and prolific American author of historical fiction, mysteries, and science fiction, known for his books on themes of patriotism, social justice, and the immigrant experience. He wrote nearly 100 books and more than 150 short stories, as well as numerous screenplays, stage plays, and newspaper columns. The Howard Fast papers include correspondence, journals, appointment books, address books, financials, writings, promotion and reviews, scrapbooks, biographies, profiles, chronologies, bibliographies, interviews, governmental and political files, vital records, personal documents, awards, photographs, artwork, and audiovisual materials. The papers were deposited at the University of Pennsylvania over the course of 45 years and represent nearly all facets of the writer's life.

Padraic Colum (1881-1972) was a poet, playwright, novelist, biographer, and folklorist, known primarily for his collections of myths and folktales for children, his novels Castle Conquer and The Flying Swans, a volume of collected poetry, and several plays. This collection consists of typescript manuscripts of three plays by Padraic Colum: Balloon(circa 1929), Moytura: a play for dancers (circa 1962), and Timbuktu (1957).

Paul Eldridge (1888-1982) was an American poet, novelist, essayist, short story writer, and teacher. Most prolific in the 1940s, Eldridge's writing focused on issues of World War II, the Israeli-Palestine conflict, and Zionist and Jewish issues more generally. This collection consists of manuscripts, typescripts, and reprographic copies of Eldridge's poems, stories, and essays; scrapbooks of clippings related to Eldridge's writing and other activities; dustjackets; photographs; issues of newspapers and periodicals in which his columns appeared; and correspondence related to Eldridge's writing and career.