Summary Information
Vincent Sheean Papers
1933-1980
Mss 950
2.4 c.f. (2 record center cartons and 1 archives box)
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Papers of an American journalist whose works included newspaper articles, magazine stories, and volumes of both fiction and non-fiction, and who traveled extensively throughout the world from the 1920s until his death in 1975. In the course of his travels Sheean met or became acquainted with a number of important 20th-century figures, including Dorothy Thompson, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Mahatma Gandhi, King Faisal ibn al-Saud of Saudi Arabia, and Adlai Stevenson, the last of whom was one of Sheean's closest friends in American political circles. Sheean's papers deal mostly with the period of his life from the immediate post-World War II years to his death and include personal correspondence with his wife Diana, 1943-1971; correspondence with his publishers; a separate file of correspondence of Diana Sheean, much of which was with playwright Thornton Wilder; eight personal journals kept by Sheean, 1944-1958; manuscripts of a number of Sheean's works, both published and unpublished; subject files documenting Sheean's interests, such as opera, and contacts, which include Indira Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Adlai Stevenson; assorted financial records from 1933-1976; and an assortment of Sheean's passports and notebooks.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00950 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
Vincent Sheean was born on December 5, 1899 in Pana, Illinois, the son of William and Susan (MacDermot) Sheean. Affectionately known as “Jimmy,” Sheean attended school in Pana and then went on to the University of Chicago where he gained his first newspaper experience working for the college daily, the Maroon. Sheean left the University of Chicago during his senior year in order to take a position as a reporter for the Chicago Daily News. The position in Chicago was short lived as Sheean was fired after three weeks. He soon boarded a train for New York City and took a similar job with the New York Daily News.
In 1922, Sheean left the United States to join other expatriates gathering in Paris, finding a job as a foreign correspondent for the Chicago Tribune. One of Sheean's drinking partners along the Left Bank was Ernest Hemingway. From trips to Lausanne and Geneva, he went to the Rhineland in 1923 and 1924 and then on to Rome, Madrid, and the London of Ramsey MacDonald. Sheean's big journalistic break came in 1925 when he was able to penetrate the French and Spanish lines in Morocco in order to interview the rebel leader Abd el-Krim. Out of this experience came Sheean's first book, An American Among the Riffs (1926). From this point on, Sheean rarely contributed to newspapers, preferring instead to collect material for publication in his many books.
During the remainder of the 1920's, Sheean traveled throughout the world, moving from one political hot spot to another. He was in China in 1927, where he met the American Communist Rayna Prohme as well as Madam Sun Yat-sen; in Russia where he studied the effects of Bolshevism and underwent a series of social revelations that he would later reject after the onset of the Second World War in 1939; in Jerusalem during the Arab-Jewish riots of 1929; in Central Europe when the German Army marched into the Ruhr Valley; and in Ethiopia during the Italian crisis. During these travels, Sheean interviewed those who were involved in the various conflicts and collected his reminiscences for inclusion in his most famous book, Personal History, which was published in 1935. In Personal History, Sheean describes and explains not only the events that he witnessed but also the philosophical and political currents of thought which lead to the rise and fall of fascism and nazism, the Second World War, the growth of national liberation movements in the lands under colonialism, the fascination and disillusionment that so many intellectuals felt for Marxism, the origins of the revolution in China, and the growth of the conflict between Arabs and Jews in the Middle East. Personal History remains required reading for many prospective journalists and politicians.
In 1935, Sheean married Diana Forbes-Robertson, the daughter of the great English actor Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson and niece of the late Maxine Elliott. While the relationship between the Sheeans was highly strained at times, they remained in constant communication with one another through letters and lived together for many years in their home in Arolo, Italy. Mrs. Sheean shared in many of her husband's travels and was also an accomplished writer in her own right with works such as War Letters from Britain, written in conjunction with Roger W. Strauss, Jr., and The Battle of Waterloo Road, an account of modern London, being the most prominent. Mrs. Sheean also carried on a long correspondence with Thornton Wilder.
While living in New York during the winter of 1941, the house that the Sheeans were renting from Dorothy Thompson, the wife of Sinclair Lewis, burst into flames. While all of the occupants of the home escaped unscathed, thousands of dollars worth of furniture and a significant collection of mystery stories belonging to Lewis were destroyed. Shortly thereafter, Sheean returned to England to perform an assignment for the Saturday Evening Post prior to his induction into the United States Armed Forces.
During the Second World War, Sheean served as a captain in the Army Air Forces intelligence in North Africa and Italy. While in Italy, Sheean became reacquainted with the Italian philosopher Benedetto Croce, who had previously advised him in the writing of Sanfelice, a love story about Luisa Sanfelice, heroine of the uprising of 1799 against the Bourbons of Naples. Sheean persuaded Croce to put together a book consisting of four essays of a philosophical and political nature. Sheean later translated this work into the book Germany and Europe. He was discharged from the armed forces in 1944 with the rank of lieutenant colonel. His book This House Against This House, published in 1946, gave his personal views on war and his pleas for peace.
In 1946, Sheean traveled to Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, to cover the trial of twenty-five African-Americans who had been accused of attempted murder in a racial disturbance. While many other journalists attempted to remain objective in their coverage of the trial, Sheean's outspoken condemnation of the remnants of slavery and his pity for both whites and blacks earned him both the enmity and admiration of many.
In November 1947, Sheean traveled to India to interview Mahatma Gandhi. Only three days after starting his interviews, Sheean was present when the Indian leader was shot to death. Lead Kindly Light, the book that was written from Sheean's experience, interprets Gandhi's teachings and explains the fundamentals of Hinduism. It was followed by other writings about India, including a biography of Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. These works had an important and positive influence on relations between India and the west during the 1950's and the 1960's. Sheean would continue to visit India over the course of the rest of his life. He developed a close relationship with Indira Gandhi and made several trips to the subcontinent at her behest.
During his time in New York in the 1920s, Sheean, then a reporter for the New York Daily News, made the acquaintance of several members of the Greenwich Village radical set. Foremost amongst these members was the poet Edna St. Vincent Millay. After her death in 1950, Sheean wrote a memoir of her life entitled The Indigo Bunting.
Vincent Sheean's many books and articles covered a wide variety of interests including novels, biographies, political analysis and works of music appreciation. Opera was one of his true loves. One of his biographies, Orpheus at Eighty, details the life of Giuseppe Verdi, written in Arolo in 1958. It combines the story of Sheean's operatic hero with his own love for music and Italian history. Works such as First and Last Love (1956) and Oscar Hammerstein I (1956) reflected his devotion to the form. Sheean was also a regular contributor of columns and reviews for such magazines as Opera News and Bravo. Sheean was also close to both Ethel Barrymore and Lotte Lehman and traveled great distances to see either perform. Much of Sheean's free time in Italy was spent at the opera.
One of Sheean's best-selling works was written towards the end of his literary career. Dorothy and Red (1963) chronicled the disastrous relationship between Sinclair Lewis, one of America's best known authors, and Dorothy Thompson, a prominent journalist. Having become acquainted with Thompson while travelling throughout Europe in the 1920s, Sheean had maintained a close relationship with her through many letters and visits to her home in New England. At one point, Sheean even attempted to purchase Thompson's home but was unsuccessful. During the writing of Dorothy and Red, Sheean remained in constant contact with Ms. Thompson, asking a wide variety of questions related to her marriage. Dorothy and Red was very well received and received an extensive advertising campaign from Sheean's publisher, Houghton-Mifflin. A special supplement of the work appeared in Harpers Magazine. A source of great consternation for Sheean in his later years was the attempt by Marion Sanders to write a book about Thompson and Lewis's relationship. A visit by Sanders to Sheean's Italian home for research purposes fell apart due to Sheean's intoxication.
During the 1960s, Sheean was very involved in Middle Eastern affairs, making several trips around the region including stops in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Iran where he had an audience with the Shah. Over the course of these travels, Sheean developed a close relationship with Faisal ibn al-Saud, the King of Saudi Arabia. Sheean had been working on a study of the king's life at the time of his death. Faisal, the King and the Kingdom was published posthumously in 1975.
While Sheean spent the bulk of his time in Italy during his later years, he still remained interested and active in American politics. One of Sheean's closest friends in American political circles was Adlai Stevenson with whom he had a long-standing correspondence. Sheean wrote many letters of encouragement to his friend during his campaigns for the American Presidency in 1952 and 1956.
One of Sheean's last books was a historical novel, Beware of Caesar (1965). Vincent Sheean died at his home in Arolo, Italy on March 16, 1975 as a result of lung cancer. He was seventy-five years old. Biographies of Sheean's life were planned by Stan Augarten and Ted Pasca but remain unpublished as of this writing.
Scope and Content Note
Papers of Vincent Sheean, an American journalist whose works included newspaper articles, magazine features, and non-fiction and fiction books. Although there are materials covering the early years of Sheean's career, the bulk of the collection covers the period immediately following the Second World War until the author's death in 1975. Accordingly, the collection offers little material dealing with Sheean's newspaper career and instead deals primarily with his later books. The collection is organized into the following series: CORRESPONDENCE, JOURNALS, MANUSCRIPTS, SUBJECT FILES, FINANCIAL RECORDS, NOTEBOOKS, and PASSPORTS.
CORRESPONDENCE, 1943-1971 and undated, compromises the bulk of the Sheean collection and covers a wide variety of topics. The largest grouping is made up of correspondence between Vincent Sheean and his wife Diana Sheean, written between 1943 and 1971. The majority of this correspondence covers a long period of Vincent's travels around the world and provides a detailed look into his thoughts and opinions on the subjects that he was covering. Another significant grouping of correspondence is between Sheean and his various publishers, particularly Hamish Hamilton, Ltd. and Curtis Brown, Ltd. Most of the correspondence relating to Sheean's published works deals primarily with the aspects and issues related to the publication of various pieces with very minimal attention paid to the content in question. However, these letters are an important insight into the publishing world and the issues that are raised over the entire process of writing a book for publication, particularly a work of non-fiction. The Hamish Hamilton material is the only part of the collection that actively deals with Sheean's writings during the 1930s. General correspondence consists of various notes of congratulations and inquiries. A separate file contains the correspondence of Diana Sheean with the bulk of the material being made up of photocopies of her correspondence with Thornton Wilder.
The JOURNALS, 1944-1958, consist of eight personal journals kept by Vincent Sheean documenting his activities between May 25, 1944 and July 23, 1958. This period covers many of Sheean's travels from the United States to India, the Middle East, and Italy. While only covering a fourteen-year period, the journals provide an in-depth look into the subjects that Sheean was covering.
The MANUSCRIPTS, 1935-1975, consisting of both published and unpublished material, do not cover the entirety of Sheean's works but are nevertheless highly representative of them as a whole. The manuscripts cover books, magazine submissions, and newspaper articles. Most of these manuscripts contain notes written in their margins as well as corrections within the text. Several of the unpublished manuscripts possess accompanying letters regarding their failure to be published.
The SUBJECT FILES, 1948-1980, cover a wide variety of subjects including many individuals with whom Sheean had a long-standing relationship. Included in this collection are subject files for Indira Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Adlai Stevenson. The bulk of the subject files consist of material related to opera, including Sheean's acquaintance with Ethel Barrymore and Lotte Lehman, his writings for Opera News and Bravo, and various article manuscripts. Furthermore, the subject files contain information about the separate biographies of Sheean planned by Stan Augarten and Ted Pasca. Neither biography has been published.
The FINANCIAL RECORDS, 1933-1976, are made up of records and receipts for magazine articles and books. These pay vouchers were created by Brandt and Brandt Co. for Sheean and cover the years 1933-1976. In conjunction with the correspondence between Sheean and Hamish Hamilton, the financial records are the only part of the collection that gives a detailed listing of Sheean's early career. These records also contain several pay vouchers for work done by Diana Sheean.
The remainder of the collection, the NOTEBOOKS and PASSPORTS, serve to complement the previously mentioned material. Notebooks, many possessing specific dates, help to support correspondence and manuscripts and give some insight into how Sheean collected material for his writings. The passports help to determine where Sheean traveled and at what time.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented under the authority of the will of Diana Sheean, 1987.
Processed by Adam Mix, 2000.
Contents List
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Series: Correspondence
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Personal Correspondence with Diana Sheean
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Box
1
Folder
1
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, 1943-1944 (V-Mail)
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Box
1
Folder
2-24
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1943-1971
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Box
1
Folder
25
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1970s undated
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Business Correspondence with Various Publishing Companies
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Hamish Hamilton, Ltd.
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Box
1
Folder
26
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January 1935 - April 1935
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Box
1
Folder
27
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May 1935 - December 1935
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Box
1
Folder
28
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January 1936 - June 1936
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Box
1
Folder
29
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July 1936 - November 1936
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Box
1
Folder
30-34
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1937-1973
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Box
1
Folder
35
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Curtis Brown, Ltd., 1953-1979
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Box
1
Folder
36
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General Correspondence, 1940-1974
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Box
1
Folder
37
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Diana Sheean Personal Correspondence, 1956-1979
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Series: Journals
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Box
1
Folder
38
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Volume One, May 25, 1944 - May 23, 1946
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Box
1
Folder
39
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Volume Two, May 24, 1946 - January 12, 1947
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Box
1
Folder
40
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Volume Three, January 12, 1947 - March 1, 1948
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Box
2
Folder
1
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Volume Four, March 5, 1948 - May 18, 1949
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Box
2
Folder
2
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Volume Five, May 31, 1949 - September 17, 1952
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Box
2
Folder
3
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Volume Six, September 22, 1952 - March 12, 1955
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Box
2
Folder
4
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Volume Seven, September 29, 1955 - September 22, 1957
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Box
2
Folder
5
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Volume Eight, February 22, 1957 - July 23, 1958
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Series: Manuscripts
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Published Material-Books
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Personal History(1935)
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Box
2
Folder
6
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Manuscript copy of new introduction for re-release , (1969)
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Box
2
Folder
7
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Indigo Bunting(1951)
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Dorothy and Red(1963)
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Box
2
Folder
8
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Clippings, 1962-1964
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Correspondence
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Box
2
Folder
9
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General, 1963-1968 and undated
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Box
2
Folder
10
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Dale Warren, 1963 and undated
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Box
2
Folder
11
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Harpers Magazine Supplement, 1963
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Box
2
Folder
12
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Intimate Strangers play production, 1978
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Box
2
Folder
13
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Legal Material, 1963 and undated
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Box
2
Folder
14
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Miscellaneous, 1963 and undated
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Box
2
Folder
15
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Notes and Drafts
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Box
2
Folder
16
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Research Material
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Box
2
Folder
17
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Sanders, Marion, 1971
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Box
2
Folder
18
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Beware of Caesar(1965)
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Box
2
Folder
19
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Faisal, the King and the Kingdom(1975) published posthumously
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Unpublished Material - Books
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Box
2
Folder
20
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Ethel Barrymore Biography , (1962)
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“Remembering Eleanor” , (1968)
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Box
2
Folder
21
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Manuscript Copy
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Box
2
Folder
22
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Miscellaneous
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Box
2
Folder
23
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Notes
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Published Material - Magazines
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Box
2
Folder
24
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“Over There, Shoe Factory” (1968)
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Box
2
Folder
25
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“Jefferson and the Party System” , (1968)
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Unpublished Material - Magazines
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Box
2
Folder
26
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“The Story of the Russian Revolution” , (1968)
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Box
2
Folder
27
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“All Aboard for Philly, Frisco, and L.A.” (undated)
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Box
2
Folder
28
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Published Material - Newspapers, 1947-1953 and undated
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Box
2
Folder
29
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Miscellaneous Manuscripts , (undated)
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Box
2
Folder
30
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Manuscript Appraisal Record, 1964
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Series: Subject Files
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Box
2
Folder
31
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Augarten, Stan, 1978-1980
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Box
2
Folder
39
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Barrymore, Ethel
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Box
2
Folder
32
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Clippings, 1963-1975 and undated
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Box
2
Folder
33
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Gandhi, Indira, 1966-1975 and undated
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Box
2
Folder
34
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Gandhi, Mahatma, 1948-1974
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Box
2
Folder
35
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Kennedy, John Fitzgerald, 1963
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Box
2
Folder
36
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Memorial Service, 1975
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Box
2
Folder
37
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Miscellaneous
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Box
2
Folder
38
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Nehru, Jawaharlal, 1948-1968
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Opera
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Box
2
Folder
40
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Correspondence - General, 1958-1969 and undated
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Box
2
Folder
41
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Magazines containing articles by Sheean, 1964-1973
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Box
2
Folder
42
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Manuscripts (undated)
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Box
3
Folder
1
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Pasca, Ted, 1975-1986 and undated
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Box
3
Folder
2
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Stevenson, Adlai, 1952-1967 and undated
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Series: Financial Records
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Box
3
Folder
3
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Brandt and Brandt Co. Pay Vouchers, 1933-1976
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Box
3
Folder
4-6
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Series: Notebooks
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Box
3
Folder
7
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Series: Passports
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