Cornell Woolrich papers, 1958-1964

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Series I: Subject Files, 1934-1968

This small series holds correspondence between Cornell Woolrich and his friend William Thailing. The letters span the bulk of Woolrich's life. Of interest are several cancelled checks made out to Woolrich as payment for twelve stories, including his first story in a pulp magazine.



Box 1 Folder 1 Checks, 1934-1940


Box 1 Folder 2 Correspondence, 1952-1958, 1968, 1952-1958, 1968


Box 1 Folder 3 Last Will and Testament, 1961-1965


Box 1 Dodd, Mead, and Co. Correspondence and Contracts, 1956-1958

Series II: Writings, 1937-1960

Series II contains drafts of several novels, plays, and a run of short stories. There are also portions of Woolrich's unpublished "autobiography."


Blues of a Lifetime


Box 1 Folder 4 "Remington Portable NC69411,", undated


Box 1 Folder 5 "The Poor Girl,", undated


Box 1 Folder 6 "Even God Felt the Depression" and "President Eisenhower's Speech,", undated


Box 1 Folder 7 "The Maid Who Played the Races," undated (notes), undated


Box 1 Folder 8 Cover Charge, undated (play), undated


Box 1 Folder 9 to 10 Hotel Room , undated, (2 Folders)


I Was Waiting for You


Box 1 Folder 11 "I Was Waiting for You,", undated


Box 1 Folder 12 "New York Blues" and "Two Lives,", undated



Box 2 Folder 1 Into the Night--Notes, 1950s


Box 2 Folder 2 Into the Night--Draft, 1950s


King Features Syndicated Articles


Box 2 Folder 3 "The Murderer's Story,", 1937


Box 2 Folder 4 "Endicott's Girl,", 1938


Box 2 Folder 5 "Murder Does Its Homework,", 1941


Box 2 Folder 6 "Double-Life,", 1943


Box 2 Folder 7 "Death Wins the Sweepstakes,", 1947 October 6


Box 2 Folder 8 "Mystery in Room 913,", 1947 October 13


Box 2 Folder 9 "Death Holds the Downbeat,", 1947 November


Box 2 Folder 10 "Accessory to Murder,", 1948


Box 2 Folder 11 "The Case of the Body in Grant's Tomb,", 1949 January


Box 2 Folder 12 "Case of the Lying Son,", 1949 November


Box 2 Folder 13 "Murder before the Camera,", 1955


Box 2 Folder 14 "Murder in the Dark Blue Night,", 1956


Box 2 Folder 15 "The Corpse in the Statue of Liberty,", 1957


Box 2 Folder 16 The Loser , undated


Box 2 Folder 17 Miscellaneous Fragments, undated


Box 2 Folder 18 The Moon of Montezuma , [1949-1960]



Box 3 Folder 1 Night Has a Thousand Eyes--Part I, 1940s


Box 3 Folder 2 Night Has a Thousand Eyes--Part II, 1940s



Box 4 Nine Nights in a New York Hotel. Printed book, with holograph corrections. New York, late 1950s, 1 volume

This is Cornell Woolrich's own copy of Hotel Room, as published by Random House in 1958, with his manuscript changes to the book. Acquired with the book are typescripts of two new stories that Woolrich intended to have included in a new, never published edition: Episode 2, "The Fiancee without Future (1900)," and Episode 3, "The Fault-Finder (1915)." Woolrich changed the title of the book and the titles of each chapter, created a new table of contents with the two new stories, and changed "Cornell Woolrich" to "William Irish," one of his pseudonyms. The Random House publication does not include two of the stories listed in the typescript shown below: Chapter 7, "The Night of May 12th, 1935," and Chapter 8, "The Night of September 20th, 1937."



Box 3 Folder 3 Somebody Else's Life, 1958 (television play), 1958


Box 3 Folder 4 Wardrobe Trunk, 1958 (radio play), 1958


Waltz into Darkness


Box 3 Folder 5 Part I, 1940s


Box 3 Folder 6 Part II, 1940s


Box 3 Folder 7 Part III, 1940s