On Malcolm Cowley and titles for On the Road - photo 1

On Malcolm Cowley and titles for On the Road

Lot 223
07.12.2022 10:00UTC -05:00
Classic
Sold
$ 9 450
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUSA, New York
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 859742
Lot 223 | On Malcolm Cowley and titles for On the Road
Estimate value
$ 8 000 – 12 000
KEROUAC, Jack (1922-1969). Typed letter signed (“Sam Karooch Chrysostoph Screwm Scrabe Scrwal Jack xxx”), dated 6 August 1953 in autograph. Unpublished.

Quarto. Two leaves of onion skin; rectos only. With envelope addressed in autograph only, postmarked New York, New York.

"Ah Ed what a beautiful letter from you from the wide plains of night in Colorado [...] a Johnsonian magical wonderful letter, I am so glad we are buddies, I am so glad you think of writing me when you don't even know where I am."

There had been a year lapse in White and Kerouac's correspondence before the letters pick up again in 1953. Jack’s reply is a landmark letter; he sketches in spontaneous prose gleaned from notepad scribbles and spun with total control through his old Underwood upright. He explains in part, “Here is an example of my trying to swirl my brain from commonplace expression into seas of English or English seas [...].”

Among other things, he reports that “Malcolm Cowley still wanted wild novel of hitching, so I fixed it 50 percent better and gave to him. [...] we wont use On the Road [...] but will use Heroes of the Hip Generation – I spose Cassady will sue, let him sue.” On the topic of his personal life he enthuses, “I have love at last,” writing about Alene Lee (1931-1991), the basis for Mardoe in The Subterraneans. He describes her as “more intelligent than any woman I have ever known since Joan Adams.” She has had “the same force of idealistic pathos on my gullible loving senses that the history of life and soul of Allen, Hal Chase, Lucien and Sebastian had, in other words I really love her, not only as a ‘woman,’ but as a ‘man,’ in other words she is a complete humanbeing, so therefore I feel free and glad again.”
Auction house category:Letters, documents and manuscripts
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
20 Rockefeller Plaza
10020 New York
USA
Preview
23.11.2022 – 07.12.2022
Phone +1 212 636 2000
Fax +1 212 636 4930
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase
Shipping Postal service
Courier service
pickup by yourself
Payment methods Wire Transfer
Business hoursBusiness hours
Mo 09:30 – 17:00   
Tu 09:30 – 17:00   
We 09:30 – 17:00   
Th 09:30 – 17:00   
Fr 09:30 – 17:00   
Sa closed
Su closed

Related terms

Frequently asked questions

First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.