Lyle Stuart papers, 1926-2010, bulk 1949-2003
Collection context
- Creator:
- Stuart, Lyle
- Abstract:
- Controversial publisher Lyle Stuart (1922-2006) was a self-described "First Amendment fanatic." He founded two publishing companies, Lyle Stuart, Inc. and Barricade Books, and published newsmaking and bestselling books, including The Sensuous Woman and The Anarchist Cookbook. The collection consists of 35 linear feet documenting Lyle Stuart's personal and professional activities, including his prolific correspondence and journalism, and his many lively (and often litigated) personal feuds.
- Extent:
- 36 linear feet 26 record cartons 2 halfwidth document case 4 small flat boxes 2 large flat boxes
- Language:
- Chiefly in English, with some items in Danish, French, German, Norwegian, and Spanish.
- Scope and content:
-
The papers of Lyle Stuart cover his personal and professional life as a maverick publisher, writer, and vivid personality. Beyond his career as a publisher, the collection documents his many interests and passions, including alternative medicine, Cuba, erotology, gambling, gossip, juvenile delinquency, pornography, and songwriting. There is extensive documentation of his career, first as a journalist, lyricist, and scriptwriter, and later as a prolific publisher of controversial books, including Inside the FBI (1967), Naked Came the Stranger (1969), The Sensuous Woman (1969), The Anarchist Cookbook (1970), The Turner Diaries (1996), and Great Big Beautiful Doll (2007).
Stuart was a forceful personality, and his correspondence series is rich with major figures in celebrity and journalism, including Helen Gurley Brown, Morris Cargill, William Gaines, Al Goldstein, Paul Krassner, Ferdinand Lundberg, Roger Price, Liz Renay, Barney Rosset, and George Seldes. He was party to dozens of lawsuits, often stemming from what he perceived to be personal slights, breaches of contract, or occasions of libel and slander, and his legal records comprise several boxes. Most notably was an early libel suit against Walter Winchell and a series of suits in the 1990s and 2000s related to accusations of libel in a biography of Steven Wynn.
Collection materials include advertising, army records, art, book proposals and contracts, business and office records, clippings, collectibles, correspondence, creative writing, financial records, journalism, lawsuits, magazines, newspapers, photographs, poetry, production files, published volumes radio scripts, research files, and sheet music.
- Biographical / historical:
-
Lyle Stuart was born Lionel Simon in New York City on August 11, 1922. After dropping out of high school he joined the Merchant Marine, later serving with the Air Transport Command of the Air Force during World War II. During the war he officially changed his name to Lyle Stuart, partially due to antisemitism he encountered in the service. After the war, he began working as a journalist, first for the International News Service in Columbus, Ohio (where he met and married Mary Louise Strawn), and later for assorted trade publications in New York City, including Ready to Wear Scout, Music Business, and Variety. He also wrote radio scripts for the State Department and published short stories and a novel.
In 1951, Stuart and his wife founded Exposé, a monthly tabloid. In its early years, Exposé published investigative articles about Franco's Spain and Jim Crow Laws, as well as fiction and essays by Norman Mailer, Ferdinand Lundberg, George Seldes, and others. In later years, Exposé (now retitled The Independent) became more of a personal newsletter by and about Lyle Stuart. After Mary Louise's death from cancer in 1969, Stuart temporarily ceased publication, resuming on a bimonthly schedule in 1971 before finally shuttering The Independent in 1973. One of Exposé's early articles, a 1951 takedown of columnist Walter Winchell, led to a libel suit and a $8000 award for the Stuarts. The award allowed Stuart and Mary Louise to found their first publishing company, Lyle Stuart, Incorporated.
The first book published by Lyle Stuart, Inc., was The Pulse Test (1956), a book on experimental medicine. Stuart focused on controversial and scandalous nonfiction, publishing Fidel Castro, sex manuals, conspiracy manifestos and exposés, sensationalist unauthorized biographies (including Kitty Kelley's first book), and (perhaps most famously)The Anarchist Cookbook (1971). While Stuart sold his company to the now-defunct Carol Publishing Group in 1989, he quickly resumed his career as publisher, founding Barricade Books with his second wife Carole. Barricade features similar titles, including reprinting The Anarchist Cookbook and the equally controversial The Turner Diaries (1996).
Stuart was an expansive personality, and a fierce friend and fiercer enemy - often to the same individual. He was a passionate gambler, writing two books on the subject and publishing many more, and was generous with both loans and lawsuits. He died in his home in Fort Lee, New Jersey, on June 24, 2006.
Sources:
Schudel, Matt. "Controversial Publisher Lyle Stuart."Washington Post, June 26, 2006.
Stuart, Lyle. "The Outrageous Lyle."The Independent, December 1971.
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
This collection is located off-site. You will need to request this material at least three business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room.
Material in boxes 28, 29, and 31 is extremely fragile and therefore access to this material will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
- Terms of access:
-
Reproductions may be made for research purposes. The RBML maintains ownership of the physical material only. Copyright remains with the creator and his heirs. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.
- Preferred citation:
-
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Lyle Stuart Papers; Box and Folder; Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University Library.
- Location of this collection:
- Before you visit:
- Researchers interested in viewing materials in the RBML reading room must must book an appointment at least 7 days in advance. To make the most of your visit, be sure to request your desired materials before booking your appointment, as researchers are limited to 5 items per day.
- Contact:
- rbml@library.columbia.edu