Contents
Collection Overview
Biographical Note
Scope and Contents of the Collection
Organization of the Collection
Search Terms
Series 1: Produced Plays,
1929-1979
Series 2: Unproduced Plays,
1925-1937
Series 3: Produced Screenplays,
1935-1946
Series 4: Unproduced Screenplays,
1936-1980
Series 5: Treatments,
1934, n.d.
Series 6: Novels and Poems,
1979-1985, n.d.
Series 7: Amherst College Papers,
1922-1938
Series 8: Biographical Materials,
1992, n.d.
Series 9: Correspondence,
1920-1962
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Sheridan Gibney (AC 1925) Papers,
1920-1992 (bulk 1922-1985)
Finding Aid
Finding aid prepared by .
Encoding funded by the Andrew W. Mellon
Foundation.
© 2002
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Creator:
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Gibney, Sheridan |
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Title:
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Gibney Papers |
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Dates:
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1920-1992 |
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Dates:
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1922-1985 |
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Abstract:
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The bulk
of the Papers consists of play scripts and dramatic
treatments written by Gibney for stage and television,
1925-1980; personal and professional correspondence,
1920-1962; the manuscript of an unpublished novel, Flatbush
Man, ca. 1979-1985; and various papers related to his
undergraduate years at Amherst College and his receipt of an
honorary degree in 1939. |
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Extent:
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2 records storage boxes, 2 archives boxes, 1 half archives box(3.25 linear ft.) |
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Language:
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English. |
Sheridan de Raismes Gibney (AC 1925), a popular playwright
and screenwriter, was born in New York City on June 11, 1903.
He attended Phillips Exeter Academy before entering Amherst
College. After Amherst and from 1926 to 1929 he worked as an
instructor at Hobart College, Geneva, N.Y. In the 1920s
Gibney wrote several plays, including Sunshine, Penelope's
Web, Letter to a Lover, Calico Wedding, Encore, Merry
Madness, and The Wiser They Are. In the 1930s as a chief
contract writer with Warner Brothers, he got his first movie
credits with I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang. He
collaborated on the House on West 56th Street and, with Marc
Connelly, Green Pastures. His screenplay for Anthony Adverse
resulted in a big hit in 1936. In that same year he won two
Oscars for the original story and screenplay for The Story of
Louis Pasteur. Amherst College awarded him an honorary M.A.
in 1939.
With the arrival of television, Gibney wrote episodes or
stories for Bachelor Father, Thriller, Fair Exchange, The Man
From U.N.C.L.E., The Six Million Dollar Man and Police Woman.
He was a charter member of the Screen Writers Guild and
served as its president from 1939-1941 and 1947-1948.
In 1931 Gibney married Mildred McCoy; he was married again
in 1952 to Katrin Janecke in Hollywood, California. Sheridan
Gibney died on April 12, 1988.
Return to the Table of Contents
The bulk of the Papers consists of play scripts and
dramatic treatments written by Gibney for stage and
television, 1925-1980; personal and professional
correspondence, 1920-1962; the manuscript of an unpublished
novel, Flatbush Man, ca. 1979-1985; and various papers
related to his undergraduate years at Amherst College and his
receipt of an honorary degree in 1939.
Return to the Table of Contents
Return to the Table of Contents
This collection is organized into eight series:
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1. Produced Plays, 1929-1979
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2. Unproduced Plays, 1925-1937
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3. Produced Screenplays, 1935-1946
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4. Unproduced Screenplays, 1936-1980
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5. Treatments, 1934, n.d.
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6. Novels and Poems, 1979-1985, n.d.
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7. Amherst College Papers, 1922-1938
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8. Biographical Materials, 1992, n.d.
Return to the Table of Contents
Series 1: Produced Plays,
1929-1979
Box
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Folder
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| 1 |
1 |
"Merry Madness," telegrams
1929
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3 |
"Unser Sonnenschein" ("Sunshine" in German)
1961
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4 |
"Sunshine" - correspondence from Producers
1955-1956
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5 |
"Sunshine" - critics reviews from Germany
1961
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6 |
"Anything to Please"
1960
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8 |
"Calico Wedding"
1931 Feb
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9 |
"The Chinese Paper Knife" (formerly "Letter
to a Lover")
1976
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10 |
"The Chinese Paper Knife" (formerly "Letter
to a Lover")
1976
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11 |
"The Chinese Paper Knife" correspondence
1952-1957
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12 |
"The Chinese Paper Knife" correspondence
with Agent
1976-1979
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15 |
"Nine Bells at Sea"
[1930?]
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17 |
"Penelope's Web" correspondence
1957-58
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18 |
"Scotty Brown's Bridge"
1955
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19 |
"Scotty Brown's Bridge" correspondence
1955
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20 |
"The Wiser They Are"
n.d.
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Series 2: Unproduced Plays,
1925-1937
Box
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Folder
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| 1 |
21 |
"Dona Volga"
1925
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22 |
"A Game of Billiards"
n.d.
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23 |
"The Harvest Moon"
1925
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24 |
"The Immortal Sinner"
1930
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25 |
"The Immortal Sinner" correspondence
1930
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27 |
"My Name is Claire"
n.d.
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29 |
"A Penny's Worth of Love"
1928
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30 |
"The President's Daughter"
1932
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31 |
"The Race of Life and Death"
n.d.
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34 |
The Price of Beans," and "Contemplated
Revisions
1937
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Series 3: Produced Screenplays,
1935-1946
Box
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Folder
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| 2 |
35 |
"Anthony Adverse"
1935
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36 |
"Cheers for Miss Bishop"
1940
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37 |
"Dynasty of Death"
1940
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38 |
"I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang"
n.d.
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39 |
"Enemy of Man" (The Story of Louis Pasteur)
1935
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40 |
"What Nancy Wanted"
1946
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Series 4: Unproduced Screenplays,
1936-1980
Box
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Folder
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| 2 |
41 |
"Danton" (Part I)
1936
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42 |
"Flowers of Evil"
n.d.
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43 |
"Hey Diddle Diddle"
n.d.
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46 |
"Other Voices" correspondence
1974-1980
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Series 5: Treatments,
1934, n.d.
Box
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Folder
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| 2 |
48 |
"The Bridal Claim"
n.d.
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49 |
"The Gentleman from Kimberly"
n.d.
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50 |
"The High Cost of Living"
n.d.
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51 |
"Lady in the Straw"
n.d.
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52 |
"The Love Specialist"
n.d.
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54 |
"Too Much Happiness"
n.d.
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Series 6: Novels and Poems,
1979-1985, n.d.
Box
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Folder
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| 3 |
55 |
Flatbush Man
correspondence
1979-1985
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56 |
Flatbush Man
manuscript
n.d.
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57 |
Notebook of poems
n.d.
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59 |
Early poems, legal sheets
n.d.
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Series 7: Amherst College Papers,
1922-1938
Box
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Folder
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| 3 |
61 |
Correspondence to his mother
1922-26
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62 |
Gibney's poetry in "Amherst Writing"
1922-24
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63 |
Student papers and handwritten bluebooks
1924-25
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64 |
"The Theater Today," acceptance speech at
Amherst College for honorary degree
1938
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Series 8: Biographical Materials,
1992, n.d.
Box
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Folder
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| 3 |
65 |
Gibney's resume
ca. 1985
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66 |
A Profile of Sheridan Gibney, compiled by Katrin Janecke Gibney
1992
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Box
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Folder
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| 8 |
4 |
Extra copy of Moon Songs: Selected Letters, 1920-1929, and Selected Poems from Various Periods of his Life / by Sheridan Gibney; edited by Katrin Janecke Gibney
1993
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Series 9: Correspondence,
1920-1962
Box
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Folder
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| 3 |
67 |
Correspondence and contracts
1936-1950
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68 |
Correspondence, playbill, clipping, news
release
1956-1962
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Box
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Folder
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| 4 |
1 |
Phillips Exeter Academy: 13 postcards, 5
letters
1920
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2 |
Erskine, John: 2 letters to Mrs. E. W.
Freeman
1924
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4 |
Amherst College: 24 letters
1923-1925
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5 |
Europe (mostly France): 26 letters
1924-1925
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6 |
Mostly Boothbay Harbor: 7 letters
[1925?]-1929
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7 |
Hobart College (Geneva, N.Y.): 17 letters
1926-1929
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Box
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Folder
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| 5 |
1 |
Phillips Exeter Academy: 13 postcards, 5
letters
1920
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2 |
Erskine, John: 2 letters to Mrs. E. W.
Freeman
1924
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3 |
Amherst College: 24 letters
1923-1925
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4 |
Europe (mostly France): 26 letters
1924-1925
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5 |
Mostly Boothbay Harbor: 7 letters
[1925?]-1929
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6 |
Hobart College (Geneva, N.Y.): 17 letters
1926-1929
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