Herman Wouk Papers, 1915-2003 [Bulk Dates: 1940-1960].

Series I: Correspondence, 1935-2000

Series I holds letters sent between Wouk and his colleagues at Columbia University, admiring fans, personal friends, publishing houses and journals, and family members. The bulk of the correspondence consists of complimentary letters sent to Wouk in regards to his book Marjorie Morningstar, although there are also some references to The Caine Mutiny. Condolence letters for the death of his son, personal correspondence, and letters from Jewish institutions are found here. This series is arranged alphabetically by the individual’s last name or the name of the institution. Note that there are considerable gaps in this series: the letters are primarily from the 1940s through the late 1950s with some dating from the late 1990s.

Series II: Writings, 1940-1999

This is the largest series in the collection and holds Wouk’s writings. The series has been divided into two subseries, one that consists of articles and books and one for plays. Both subseries contain the text itself in numerous draft forms, research material, publicity and reviews, and working notes. In most cases, there are multiple drafts documenting Wouk’s creative process. These drafts illustrate the progression from preliminary notes to a final piece.

Subseries II.1: Articles and Books, 1943-1999

The bulk of Subseries 1 are manuscripts of books. Titles held in this subseries include The Caine Mutiny, Aurora Dawn, City Boy, Marjorie Morningstar, This Is My God, Youngblood Hawke, Aurora Dawn, The Caine Mutiny, and The Will to Go On. These texts mainly span Wouk’s early literary career, although The Glory was published in the middle 1990s. The manuscripts exist in multiple draft versions that are often both handwritten and typed with extensive rewrites and notes by Wouk. These notes range from the purely theoretical to the comic and illustrate how Wouk crafted his longer writings and the ways in which he molded his ideas. There are also several articles that Wouk wrote for a variety of journals. Article topics range from complimentary pieces about other writers that Wouk respected, portraits of geographical locations, and issues relevant to the American Jewish community.

Subseries II.2: Plays, 1940-1957

Subseries 2 is composed of plays spanning from Wouk’s time in the United States Navy all the way through the mid-1950s. Often, the plays would go through several iterations that would include name changes. In these cases, the final name has been retained. The majority of the plays are comedic in nature and is concerned with topics such as human nature, art, relationships between men and women, and contemporary American society. Some of the plays include an unmarked script as well as the director's marked script. Set sketches, drafts of blocking for the actors, printed material, such as playbills and tickets, and background research notes are also held in this subseries. Of interest in this subseries are several radio scripts written during the early 1940s that address the political situation and foreign policy at that time, often in a comedic way.

Subseries II.3: Poems, 1941-1943

This small subseries consists of poems written by Wouk while he was stationed in Hawaii. Like the plays, the subject of these poems is World War II. Wouk brings attention to the faceless individuals from the war, like the Red Cross nurses and various military units, in an effort to personalize a seemingly impersonal experience.

Subseries II.4: Short Stories, 1947-1951

Subseries 4 is comprised of short essays on a variety of topics including Judaism, relationships, the military, art and theater, and moral dilemmas. Some of the pieces are portraits of fictional characters and the majority of them seem to have been unpublished. As is the case with Wouk's other writings, these short stories exist in multiple draft form, both handwritten and typed, and contain much annotation and notes from Wouk himself.

Series III: Subject Files, 1915-2003

Series III contains topical files such as documents relating to Wouk's work on the Adlai Stevenson presidential campaign, speeches, printed material, records from Wouk's time in the United States Navy including coursework, notes, and drawings. There is also a small amount of personal documents in the form of newspaper articles about Wouk, records pertaining to his United States citizenship, and religious documents. Of particular interest are two oversized posters from Israel, one advertising a 1955 performance of The Caine Mutiny " by the Habimah Theatre Troupe and the other a 1967 lecture given by Herman Wouk for the Hebrew Writer's Union entitled "American Jewry and Israel."

Series IV: Photographs, 1940-1959

Photographs of Herman Wouk, Victor Wouk, other family members, friends and admirers are held in this series. The bulk of the photographs are in regards to Wouk's writings. Examples are research photographs taken of specific military and geographical locations and production shots from plays and radio broadcasts.

Series V: Audio Visual Material, 1951-1980

Series V is composed of audio visual material in a variety of formats. Most of the recordings are of Wouk himself giving lectures, addresses, or reading from his works. Also in this series are an educational filmstrip with accompanying audio cassette soundtrack for The Caine Mutiny classroom materials and recordings of the original soundtracks from the movie version of Marjorie Morningstar and the television production of The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial.

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