Series III. WRITINGS FOR CHILDREN, ca.1935-2010 (#15.1-27.7, FD.2, FD.3, F+D.2)
Scope and Contents
Series III, WRITINGS FOR CHILDREN, ca.1935-2010 (#15.1-27.7, FD.2, FD.3, F+D.2), includes draft and final manuscripts; play scripts; contracts; correspondence with publishers, collaborators, illustrators, and agents; clippings; notes; illustrations and photographs; galley proofs; fan letters from adults and children; mock-ups and hand-bound versions of books, etc. Most of Lifton's early writing for children was based on Japanese folk tales that were researched while living in Japan, perhaps while working on the United States Information Service film The Bridge of Arts. One of her most popular works Kap, the Kappa, was based on the mischievous Japanese kappa, or water elf. Other early books featured mythical Japanese characters such as Joji (a scarecrow) and the Amanojaku (a goblin). During the 1960s and 1970s, Lifton became interested in children's theater and adapted a number of her early books for the stage including Kap the Kappa and Joji and the Dragon which appeared at the Act IV Children's Theatre in Provincetown, Massachusetts, and Automation House in New York City, and wrote original plays such as Moon Walk: A Rock Musical which appeared at The Electric Circus in New York City. In 1972 she incorporated a multi-media theater troupe for children called The Jugglers which operated on grants from the New York State Council of the Arts, the Astor Foundation, The Electric Circus, and donations from private individuals (see #17.1). It is unclear how long this theater troupe operated. Many of her later children's books featured animals as main characters and were often based on actual stories found in newspapers and magazines (these clippings remain with Lifton's manuscripts). An example of this is Lifton's book "Yellow Duck's Journey" (unpublished) based on a newspaper article regarding a cargo container filled with bathtub ducks that fell from a cargo deck in the Pacific Ocean and the ducks subsequently arriving on the shores of New England eleven years later. Although she continued to write and submit children's books for publication until her death, it appears that publishers began to consider her style antiquated and unsalable in the modern market. As a result most of her later children's books remain unpublished. One exception to this is her book, Tell Me a Real Adoption Story, which was published in 1993. Although she continued to try to have her earlier books reissued because of regular requests from fans, few were reissued and those that were, were in limited numbers. Most recently the New York Review of Books reissued Taka-chan and I: A Dog's Journey to Japan by Runcible. Currently there is work being done on an animated film based on another of her children's books, Joji and the Fog. Original folder titles were retained. The series is arranged alphabetically.
Dates
- Creation: 1884-2010
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1939-2010
Language of Materials
Materials in English, Polish, Hebrew, German, or Japanese.
Access Restrictions:
Access. Most of the collection is open for research. An appointment is necessary to use any audiovisual material.
Folders #28.7, 28.9, 28.11-28.12, 31.4, 31.6, 31.13-31.14, 32.1, 32.4-32.5, 32.8-32.10, 32.13, 32.16, 33.10, 33.12, 34.2, 34.5-34.6, 34.21, 35.4, 35.7, 36.1-36.2, 36.5, 36.7-36.10, 36.15, 36.17, 37.3, 37.6, 38.3, 38.5, 38.14, 39.14, 43.4, 44.1, 44.6, 45.8, 45.15, 46.6, 17.6, 47.7, 50.7 are closed until January 1, 2020 though January 1, 2080 as noted below. These files, where access would constitute an unwarranted invasion of privacy for third party individuals, are closed for a period of 90 years from the date of birth of the individual discussed in the file.
Folders #86.1-107.20 are closed until January 1, 2027 through January 1, 2096 and folders #108.6-108.15 are closed until January 1, 2042 through January 1, 2070 as noted below. Client files are closed for a period of 90 years from the date of birth of the youngest client discussed in the file.
Extent
45.04 linear feet ((108 file boxes) plus 3 folio folders, 2 folio+ folders, 1 oversize folders, 25 photograph folders, 58 audiotapes)Physical Location
Collection stored off site: researchers must request access 36 hours before use.
Repository Details
Part of the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute Repository
The preeminent research library on the history of women in the United States, the Schlesinger Library documents women's lives from the past and present for the future. In addition to its traditional strengths in the history of feminisms, women’s health, and women’s activism, the Schlesinger collections document the intersectional workings of race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and class in American history.