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University of Texas at Austin

Alexander B. Miller:

A Preliminary Inventory of His Collection of Henry Miller in the Manuscript Collection at the Harry Ransom Center

Creator: Miller, Alexander B.
Title: Alexander B. Miller Collection of Henry Miller
Dates: 1936-2007
Extent: 2 boxes (.84 linear feet) and 1285 electronic files (1.9 GB)
Abstract: Mainly correspondence from Henry Miller to Renate Gerhardt, including handwritten and typed letters, postcards, and telegrams; the materials also include a small amount of correspondence to Conte Antonini, as well as some related autograph material and photographs. There are also electronic versions of the materials.
Call Number: Manuscript Collection MS-05078
Language: English
Access: Open for research. Researchers must create an online Research Account and agree to the Materials Use Policy before using archival materials. To request access to electronic files, please email Reference.
Restrictions on Use: Certain restrictions apply to the use of electronic files. Researchers must agree to the Materials Use Policy for Electronic Files before accessing them. Original computer disks and forensic disk images are restricted. Copying electronic files, including screenshots and printouts, is not permitted.


Administrative Information


Acquisition: Gift, 2007 (G 12558)
Processed by: Stephen Cooper, 2007 Born digital materials processed, arranged, and described by Chance Adams and Brenna Edwards, 2015-2022.
Repository:

Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin

Scope and Contents


This collection of Henry Miller materials was given to the Ransom Center by Alexander B. Miller, a private collector unrelated to Henry Miller, who purchased most of the materials in 1998. The bulk of the collection is made up of correspondence from Miller to Renate Gerhardt, a German publisher with whom he had a romantic relationship during the 1960s, as well as a few letters to Gerhardt from Gerald Robitaille, Miller's secretary. This correspondence has not been publicly available since its creation. Also present in the collection are twenty letters to and from Count Antonini and others, one carbon copy of a letter from Gerhardt to Henry Miller, one letter from Gerhardt to Alexander Miller, and a small amount of business and personal materials related to Henry Miller.
The papers are arranged in two series: I. Correspondence, 1936-2000; and II. Miller-Related and Other Materials, 1949-2007. Upon arrival, all of the correspondence was in rough chronological order organized by author, and a small amount of further organization was done to complete this arrangement.
The correspondence in Series I. includes handwritten and typed letters, postcards, telegrams, and a large number of envelopes that were separated from their corresponding letters before arrival at the Ransom Center. The correspondence to Gerhardt reveals a wide variety of subject matter, from romantic conversation to discussions about their children, financial matters, health difficulties, literary issues, contemporary writers and other notable persons, and travel plans.
The materials in Series II., Miller-Related and Other Materials, include a photograph of Miller with Brenda Venus, a book catalog of "Titles Available and Unavailable" for works available directly from Miller in Big Sur, two pamphlets and a press release put out by Miller, promotional materials related to Miller's watercolor paintings, a Henry Miller Literary Society newsletter from 1960, publishing promotional materials, an essay by Karl Orend titled "Miller-Gerhardt Collection, An Introduction," and a thesis titled "The Temple Of the Living God."
The materials in Series III. Electronic Materials includes electronic versions of the materials in Series I and II.

Related Material


Seventeen books by or about the author were part of the gift and were transferred to the Ransom Center Library.

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