The Charles MacArthur Papers consist of three boxes of manuscripts written by MacArthur, both singly and with collaborators. The first box contains movie scripts and treatments, arranged alphabetically. Wuthering Heights (1939) was selected as one of the ten best pictures of the year by the film critics polled by The Film Daily.
Box two contains drafts of stageplays, also arranged alphabetically. Ladies and Gentlemen (1939) was the only MacArthur play in which Helen Hayes appeared. Lulu Belle (1926) was the first of MacArthur's plays to be produced. A Stag at Bay (unproduced), written with Nunnally Johnson, was based upon John Barrymore's relationship with his daughter Diana.
Box three contains stories written by MacArthur, and miscellaneous materials. The story “The Ragged Stranger” was written during his days as a reporter in Chicago. For an account of the circumstances under which it was written, see Charlie, by Ben Hecht (New York, 1957). The printed program for “It's Fun to Be Free,” produced by the St. Louis Chapter of the Fight for Freedom Committee to Defend America on December 10, 1941, includes the printed text of the pageant “Fun to Be Free,” which MacArthur wrote with Ben Hecht.
