Title: Hal Holbrook Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1942-1960

Creator:

• Holbrook, Hal, 1925-

Call Number: U.S. Mss 146AN

Quantity: 6.8 c.f. (16 archives boxes)

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society Archives / Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research
Contact Information

Archival Locations:

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

Abstract:

Papers of Hal Holbrook, a Broadway and television actor, primarily relating to the development of his one-man show Mark Twain Tonight!. In these diverse files are correspondence, financial records, Twain memorabilia and research, clippings, scripts and Twain stories, notes and drafts of a book based on his experiences, and files on merchandising this role in disc recordings, motion pictures, and television. The adaptations for other media include multiple scripts for a television version of Roughing It, and scripts and routines used in Holbrook's night club act. General correspondence, diaries, clippings, and reviews of his other stage roles and other miscellaneous personal papers form the remainder of the collection.

Note:

There is a restriction on access to this material; see the Administrative/Restriction Information portion of this finding aid for details.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-us0146an

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Hal Holbrook is an actor and writer who first achieved international prominence for his one-person show impersonating the American humorist Mark Twain. Holbrook was born Harold Rowe Holbrook, Jr. on February 17, 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio. He graduated from Culver Military Academy in 1942, and served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from 1943 to 1946, where he acquired his first radio experience on Special Services radio programs. On September 22, 1945 he married actress Ruby Johnston, with whom he later had a son and a daughter. After the war Hal and Ruby Holbrook returned to Denison University in Ohio, from which they both graduated in 1948.

Holbrook's theatrical career began with stock company performances in Cleveland, Ohio in 1942, and from 1947 to 1950 he performed another four seasons in stock and directed The Winslow Boy at Denison. In the winters of 1948-1953 he and Ruby Holbrook went on tour presenting scenes from the classics, in which Holbrook appeared as Mark Twain, Abraham Lincoln, and others. He first appeared in his original one-person show Mark Twain Tonight! in 1955-1956 at the New York City nightclubs The Purple Onion and The Upstairs at the Duplex. In the summer of 1958 he appeared in a musical version of The Doctor in Spite of Himself at the Westport Country Playhouse in Connecticut. Continuing work on his Mark Twain show resulted in his opening Mark Twain Tonight! on Broadway on April 6, 1959 at the 41st Street Theatre. For this performance Holbrook received a Vernon Rice Award, a Village Voice (Obie) Award, and the Outer Circle Award. Under the auspices of the U.S. State Department and ANTA he toured with the show in the U.S., Europe, and Saudi Arabia in 1959-1961. Again in 1963 Holbrook toured with the show in the U.S.

His theatrical career also includes a number of other performances. He played the Man in Do You Know the Milky Way? (Billy Rose Th., Oct. 16, 1961); John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster in Richard II (June 16, 1962) and Hotspur in Henry IV, Part I (June 17, 1962) at the American Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Conn.; Abraham Lincoln in the Phoenix Theatre production of Abe Lincoln in Illinois (Anderson, Jan. 21, 1963); and Andrew Mackerel in a tour of The Mackerel Plaza in the summer of 1963. He also played in After the Fall (ANTA, Washington Square Th., Jan. 23, 1964), Marco Millions (ANTA, Washington Square Th., February 20, 1964), and alternated with Jason Robards, Jr., as Quentin in After the Fall (ANTA, Washington Square Th., July 4, 1964). He returned to Broadway in 1968 in I Never Sang for My Father and played the lead in Man of La Mancha.

On television Holbrook has appeared on The Hollywood Screen Test in 1953; the soap opera The Brighter Day from 1954 to 1959; as Mark Twain on The Tonight Show and The Ed Sullivan Show in 1956 and in 1958 on Bob Hope's The Sound of Laughter. He was also in I Remember Mama in 1958. In 1963 he did scenes from Abe Lincoln in Illinois on The Ed Sullivan Show and played Abraham Lincoln in the Exploring series. In 1966 Holbrook starred with Shirley Booth in The Glass Menagerie. In addition, he played the lead in the Emmy award winning series The Bold Ones: The Senator in 1970-1971, and starred in the television movies, That Certain Summer (1972), a highly praised, controversial film about homosexuality, and Pueblo (1973), in which his portrayal of Cmdr. Lloyd Bucher won an Emmy.

Among his recent motion pictures are Wild in the Streets (1968), The People Next Door (AVCO, Embassy, 1970), They Only Kill Their Masters (MGM, 1972), and Magnum Force (WB,1973).

In 1959 his book Mark Twain Tonight! An Actor's Portrait was published.

The Hal Holbrook Papers, 1942-1969, mainly relate to the development of his Mark Twain material, from its early use in the Holbrook's tours in the late 1940's through the one-person show on Broadway to the night club routines he is working on in the early 1970's. Included are general correspondence; personal papers; material on Holbrook's Mark Twain impersonations on the stage, film, and records as well as his published book of selections from Twain; and scrapbooks concerning the careers of Hal and Ruby Holbrook. As far as possible, the final arrangement reflects the way Holbrook maintained his papers.

The general correspondence, A-W, is arranged alphabetically then chronologically thereunder. The letters concern both personal and professional aspects of Holbrook's life, including his family and friends, research and financial and legal matters concerning the Twain impersonation over the years, invitations, and his dealings with the William Morris Agency.

The personal papers are comprised of a wide variety of records, including contracts for Abe Lincoln in Illinois and other productions Holbrook acted in from 1958 to 1963; diaries and trip notes reflecting the transiency and uncertainty of life for a struggling actor on tour; an account book; and a file of clippings on current events, his second marriage, and various live and filmed productions he appeared in, 1961-1968, and several professional associates. There is also one folder containing papers originally in an alphabetically arranged ring binder; they are a ready reference file re his personal and professional, financial, and legal obligations, 1957-1961. They provide sketchy documentation of Holbrook's personal insurance coverage; itineraries for the Twain show; and contractual obligations with his agencies, clipping service, and lecture bureau. There is also one folder of research on Abraham Lincoln.

The rest of the collection, boxes 4-16, relates specifically to his Mark Twain performances. Following the correspondence, 1956-1967, there is an alphabetical subject file of Twain memorabilia from which was separated a holograph poem manuscript by Twain that was annotated and signed by Holbrook (U.S./Mss/93AN/8). A chronological file, 1947-1969, shows how Hal and Ruby Holbrook developed their performances of scenes from the classics and how Hal Holbrook gradually worked on the Twain material to the exclusion of all else. The file includes clippings , programs, accounts, itineraries, schedules of engagements, budgets, other production material, and a folder of television fan mail. The engagement contracts in box 11 show how Holbrook's fee per Mark Twain performance rose from 500 dollars to as much as 2500 dollars between 1958 and 1963.

Folders 1-8 in box 12 briefly document the Mark Productions Company, formed by Holbrook and several associates. Correspondence and financial and legal papers illustrate how the Mark Twain act was adapted for disc recordings, motion pictures, and live performances.

In 1959 Holbrook edited and arranged a book of selections from Twain, with a lengthy autobiographical prologue. The collection includes notes, drafts, a book jacket, and a review of Mark Twain Tonight! An Actor's Portrait.

Box 13 contains Holbrook's file of Twain stories he edited for performance; these are arranged alphabetically and are generally undated. Scripts for three acts of the production Mark Twain Tonight! are followed by restricted notes and scripts for nightclub routines Holbrook is still developing. Notes, casting material, scripts, and other material relate to the Holbrook television special on Twain, Roughing It, circa 1960. Miscellaneous material on Twain includes a playscript, a speech before the National Federation of Women's Clubs, a New York Times article, and routines done on several television shows.

There is now one scrapbook, 1942-1947, providing a season by season view of the careers of Hal and Ruby Holbrook. (Six other scrapbooks once in the collection were returned to Ruby Holbrook at her request.)

Access Restrictions

Mr. Holbrook's permission is required to view the materials in boxes 13-15 concerning his performances of Mark Twain Tonight!.

Acquisition Information

Placed on deposit by Hal Holbrook, New York, New York, July 5, 1973. Accession Number: MCHC73-68

Processing Information

Processed by Eleanor McKay and A. Astell, January 21, 1975.

	Series: General Correspondence
Box   1 Folder   1	A - D
Box   1 Folder   2	H, General - Howard Higgins
Box   1 Folder   3	Holbrook (personal) - Invitations
Box   1 Folder   4	K, General - Lewis, Lilian
Box   1 Folder   5	John Lotas
Box   1 Folder   6	June Nyle - James Pond
Box   1 Folder   7	Pryor-Menz to S, General
Box   2 Folder   1	Nina Clemens Samossoud
Box   2 Folder   2	V - W, General
Box   2 Folder   3-5	William Morris Agency
Box   2 Folder   6	Ed Wright
	Series: Personal Papers	⇧
Box   1 Folder   7-8	Personal and professional, legal, and financial obligations, 1957-1961 Note: This material was originally in an alphabetically arranged looseleaf binder; it includes information on his personal insurance coverage, contractual obligations to his agencies, clipping bureau, and lecture service; and itineraries for the Twain show.
Box   2 Folder   9	Contracts, 1958-1963
Box   2 Folder   10	Contract: Abe Lincoln in Illinois, 1962, Nov.
	Diaries and trip notes
Box   2 Folder   11	1955-1959
Box   3 Folder   1	1958-1959; undated
Box   3 Folder   2	Playbills of productions he attended, 1951-1964; undated
Box   3 Folder   3	Accounts, 1960-1961
	Clippings and Reviews
Box   3 Folder   4	Current events, 1956-1962
Box   3 Folder   5	Do You Know the Milky Way?, 1961
Box   3 Folder   6	Abe Lincoln in Illinois, 1963
Box   3 Folder   7	The Glass Menagerie, 1966-1967
Box   3 Folder   8	Ward Morehouse, 1966-1967
Box   3 Folder   9	Holbrook - Rossen wedding, 1966-1967
Box   3 Folder   10	General, 1967-1968
Box   3 Folder   11	The Apple Tree, 1967
Box   3 Folder   12	Culver Award, 1967
Box   3 Folder   13	Wild in the Streets, 1967-1968
Box   3 Folder   14	I Never Sang for My Father, 1967-1968
Box   3 Folder   15	Man of La Mancha, 1968
Box   3 Folder   16	Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie?, 1968
Box   3 Folder   17	Jay Barney, undated
Box   3 Folder   18	Research Material - Abraham Lincoln, 1961
	Series: Mark Twain Materials	⇧
	Correspondence
Box   4 Folder   1	1956, June - 1957, September
Box   4 Folder   2	1957, Oct. - 1967, April
	Twain Memorabilia (alphabetical subject file)
Box   4 Folder   3	The Autobiography of Mark Twain, clippings and book jacket, 1959
Box   4 Folder   4	“Carson Footprints” - Orion Clemens
Box   4 Folder   5	Closing Scenes
Box   4 Folder   6	Correspondence - Hannibal scenes
Box   4 Folder   7	Interview with Mark Twain - Mark Twain Centennial
Box   5 Folder   1	Mark Twain Journal - palmistry reading
Box   5 Folder   2	Redding Times - Virginia City, Nevada
Box   5 Folder   3	The Twainian
	Chronological File
Box   5 Folder   4	Schedule of Engagements, 1st bookings, 1947
Box   5 Folder   5	Schedule of Engagements, 1949-1950
	Clippings
Box   5 Folder   6	Hal and Ruby Holbrook, 1949; 1951
Box   5 Folder   7	“Mark Twain,” 1955
Box   5 Folder   8	“Mark Twain,” 1956
	Mark Twain Tonight!
Box   5 Folder   9	1957
Box   6 Folder   1	1956-1957
Box   6 Folder   2	1958
Box   6 Folder   3	1958
Box   6 Folder   4	Program, 1957-1959
Box   6 Folder   5	Accounts, 1959-1961
Box   6 Folder   6	Clippings, 1959
Box   6 Folder   7	Itineraries, 1959-1960
Box   6 Folder   8	Clippings, 1959-1960
Box   6 Folder   9	Review of record album, 1959
Box   6 Folder   10	Schedule of engagements, 1959
Box   6 Folder   11	Show time charts, 1959
Box   6 Folder   12	Accounts, 1960-1961
Box   6 Folder   13	Clippings, 1960
Box   7 Folder   1	Clippings - Charles Stafford article, 1960
Box   7 Folder   2	Clippings - European tour, 1960
Box   7 Folder   3	Concert itinerary, 1960-1961
Box   7 Folder   4	Clippings, 1960-1961
Box   7 Folder   5	Programs, 1960
Box   7 Folder   6	Schedule of engagements, 1960
Box   7 Folder   7	Schedule of engagements, 1960; 1962
Box   7 Folder   8	Budget, 1961
Box   7 Folder   9	Clippings, 1961
Box   8 Folder   1	Concert itineraries, 1961-1962
Box   8 Folder   2	Programs, 1961-1962
Box   8 Folder   3	Schedule of engagements, 1961
Box   8 Folder   4	Staging facilities, 1961
Box   8 Folder   5	Concert itineraries, 1962-1963
Box   8 Folder   6	Accounts, 1962
Box   8 Folder   7-8	Clippings, 1962
Box   8 Folder   9	Schedule of engagements, 1962
Box   8 Folder   10	Staging facilities, 1962
Box   8 Folder   11	Accounts, 1963
Box   8 Folder   12	Clippings, 1963
Box   8 Folder   13	Itineraries, 1963-1964
Box   8 Folder   14	Programs, 1963
Box   8 Folder   15	Schedule of engagements, 1963
Box   9 Folder   1	Clippings, 1963
	Clippings (television reviews)
Box   9 Folder   2	1966, July - Dec.
Box   9 Folder   3	1967, Jan. - Feb. 9
Box   9 Folder   4	1967, March 1-4
Box   10 Folder   1	1967, March 5
Box   10 Folder   2	1967, March 6
Box   10 Folder   3	1967, March 7
Box   10 Folder   4	1967, March 8-10
Box   10 Folder   5	1967, March 11 - July 9
Box   10 Folder   6	Television fan mail, 1968, Dec. - 1969, Jan.
	Engagement contracts
Box   11 Folder   1	1958
Box   11 Folder   2	1959
Box   11 Folder   3	1960
Box   11 Folder   4	1961
Box   11 Folder   5	1962, Jan. - April
Box   11 Folder   6	1962, May - Dec.
Box   11 Folder   7	1963
	Mark Productions Company
Box   12 Folder   1	Agreement with Columbia Records, 1959
Box   12 Folder   2	Coronet Films, 1959
Box   12 Folder   3	Limited partnership certificate re publication, 1959
Box   12 Folder   4	Partnership agreement certificate, 1959
Box   12 Folder   5	Miscellaneous Mark Twain Tonight! correspondence and memos, 1959
Box   12 Folder   6	Mark Twain Tonight! financial statements, 1959
Box   12 Folder   7	Mark Twain Tonight! limited partnership agreements, 1959
Box   12 Folder   8	Mark Twain Tonight! theater lease, 1959
	Mark Twain Tonight! An Actor's Portrait (1959) - book
Box   12 Folder   9	Notes, 1959
Box   12 Folder   10	Outline, 1959
Box   12 Folder   10	Acknowledgement, undated
Box   12 Folder   11	Introduction, 1959
Box   12 Folder   12	Prolog, Draft, undated
Box   12 Folder   13	Prolog, Draft, undated
Box   12 Folder   14	Incomplete draft, pp. 7-76, undated
Box   12 Folder   15	Footnotes, undated
Box   12 Folder   16	Corrections, undated
Box   12 Folder   17	Book jacket and review, 1959
	Mark Twain Tonight! - Holbrook edition of Twain stories for live performances
Box   13 Folder   1	“Advice to Youth”
Box   13 Folder   2	“Animal Talk”
Box   13 Folder   3	“The Ant”
Box   13 Folder   4	“The Ball”
Box   13 Folder   5	“Boggs-Sherburn”
Box   13 Folder   6	“Buck Fanshaw's Funeral”
Box   13 Folder   7	“Cigar”
Box   13 Folder   8	“Closing”
Box   13 Folder   9	“Conscience”
Box   13 Folder   10	“An Encounter with an Interviewer”
Box   13 Folder   11	“Evolution and Man”
Box   13 Folder   12	“Facts Concerning the Recent Resignation”
Box   13 Folder   13	“First Interview with Artemus Ward”
Box   13 Folder   14	“German Language”
Box   13 Folder   15	“The Gilded Age”
Box   13 Folder   16	“The Golden Arm”
Box   13 Folder   17	“The Great French Duel”
Box   13 Folder   18	“His Grandfather's Old Ram”
Box   13 Folder   19	“Horse Routine”
Box   13 Folder   20	“Huckleberry Finn”
Box   13 Folder   21	“The Invalid's Story”
Box   13 Folder   22	“Italian Guide”
Box   13 Folder   23	“Make-Up Success”
Box   13 Folder   24	“Mining Experiences”
Box   13 Folder   25	“The Mormons”
Box   13 Folder   26	“Now I Am Seventy”
Box   13 Folder   27	“On the Mississippi”
Box   13 Folder   28	“On Smoking”
Box   13 Folder   29	“Opera”
Box   13 Folder   30	“Poet”
Box   13 Folder   31	“Prefatory”
Box   13 Folder   32	“Religion”
Box   13 Folder   33	“Sandwich Islands”
Box   13 Folder   34	“Satan”
Box   13 Folder   35	“Seventy Years Old”
Box   13 Folder   36	“Taming the Bicycle”
Box   13 Folder   37	“Temperance”
Box   13 Folder   38	“To the President of the Western Union”
Box   13 Folder   39	“Twain on His Uncle's Farm”
Box   13 Folder   40	Unidentified Twain entries
Box   13 Folder   41	“United States of Lyncherdom”
Box   13 Folder   42	“Watermelon Story”
Box   13 Folder   43	“White Suit”
Box   13 Folder   44	Program notes
	Mark Twain Tonight! - complete production
Box   14 Folder   1-2	Act I, script - Holbrook's copy
Box   14 Folder   3-4	Act II, script - Holbrook's copy
Box   14 Folder   5-6	Act III, script - Holbrook's copy
	Mark Twain Tonight! - nightclub routines
Box   15 Folder   1	Notes
Box   15 Folder   2-3	Scripts
	Roughing It - television program
Box   16 Folder   1	Background information, undated
Box   16 Folder   2	Notes on the adaptation, 1960
Box   16 Folder   3	Notes and treatments, 1959 Dec.
Box   16 Folder   4	Casting, 1960
Box   16 Folder   5	Outline, locations listed, 1960?
Box   16 Folder   6	Act I script, annotated by Walter Kerr, 1960?
Box   16 Folder   7	Act II script, annotated by Walter Kerr , 1960?
Box   16 Folder   8	Act III script, annotated by Walter Kerr, 1960?
Box   16 Folder   9	Act I, final draft of T.V. adaptation, 1960
Box   16 Folder   10	Act II, final draft of T.V. adaptation, 1960
Box   16 Folder   11	Act III, final draft of T.V. adaptation, 1960
Box   16 Folder   12	Final draft with comments by Holbrook, undated
	Miscellaneous Holbrook Material on Twain
Box   16 Folder   13	“The Cracker Barrel and the Lady,” playscript, undated
Box   16 Folder   14	“In Defense of Huck Finn,” Holbrook speech before National Federation of Women's Clubs ( 1958?)
Box   16 Folder   15	“Mark Twain” - article for the New York Times, 1959, Nov. - Dec.
Box   16 Folder   16	Mark Twain routines, Jack Paar Show, undated; Cultural Center Television Show, 1960, Nov. 30
Box   14 Folder   1	Scrapbook, 1942-1947