The collection relates chiefly to McGilligan's career as a writer about motion pictures and a film critic and to a lesser extent to his involvement in anti-Vietnam War activities in Madison. Included are copies of articles written for the Daily Cardinal, the Boston Globe, The Real Paper, and various film magazines and motion picture periodicals; a play script; a prospectus, synopsis and one chapter of a book on Armstrong; drafts of his Cagney book; motion picture synopses and scripts; correspondence; notebooks; and biographical material. The majority of the collection, however, consists of interviews with various motion picture celebrities.
These papers were presented and arranged in two groups. Though physically in separate folders, in the contents list below, the two groups have been listed together in a single intellectual order.
BIOGRAPHICAL MATERIAL consists of clippings, notes, and statements relating to McGilligan's arrest following a demonstration in support of Armstrong in 1973. Also included are news stories in The Daily Cardinal and the Capital Times. The CORRESPONDENCE is quite fragmentary, consisting primarily of material on prison conditions, draft proposals for Glenn Silber's The War at Home sent to McGilligan, and letters from McGilligan's friends and associates.
WRITINGS reflect both McGilligan's social activism and interest in motion pictures. Included are articles about the Susan Saxe and Karleton Armstrong cases, a 1976 review of the underground in the United States written for the Globe, and the Armstrong book materials. Political concerns are also evident in the incomplete script for the historical play Sawdust Ain't Enough. Cardinal, Capital Times, Boston Globe and other articles are present. Notebooks also include fragments of political writings. Drafts and working papers on his Cagney book and scripts and synopses for several motion pictures complete this section of the collection.
The MOTION PICTURE ARTICLES, INTERVIEWS, AND TRANSCRIPTS are arranged alphabetically by interviewee name and include material from audio-taped interviews to final printed form.
