Papers of Kenward Elmslie, a writer, performer, editor and publisher associated with the New York School. Elmslie's lyrics and libretti for operas and musicals, Miss Julie (1965), Lizzie Borden (1966), The Sweet Bye and Bye (1966), The Grass Harp (1972), and The Seagull (1974), brought a contemporary style to the language of musical theatre. The collection documents his literary career and personal life, with the bulk of the material spanning the period from 1965-2000.
Kenward Elmslie Papers, 1901-2011 (MSS 521)
Restrictions: Boxes 92-94 contain delicate originals that have been preservation photocopied. Permission
is required from the director of Special Collections & Archives to access these boxes.
Original media formats in series 17) and 18) are restricted. Viewing/Listening copies
may be available for researchers.
Extent: 85 Linear feet (138 archives boxes, 18 records cartons, 10 card file boxes, 8 flat boxes, and 2 map case folders), + 1.09 GB of digital files
Digital Content
A selection of audio visual content from this collection has been digitized.
Kenward Gray Elmslie was born in New York City on April 27, 1929, to William Gray Elmslie, a British businessperson, and Constance Pulitzer, daughter of newspaper magnate Joseph Pulitzer. His early childhood was spent in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and he attended preparatory schools in Virginia, Ohio and Massachusetts. He graduated from Harvard in 1950 with a B.A. in literature and began his writing career as a lyricist and librettist, writing witty and melodic songs in collaboration with several composers. His published work for the musical theatre includes The Sweet Bye and Bye (1966) and Lizzie Borden (1966), music by Jack Beeson; Miss Julie (1965), music by Ned Rorem, and three works with composer Thomas Pasatieri, The Seagull (1974), Washington Square (1976), and Three Sisters (1986). Elmslie also wrote both the book and lyrics for a musical, The Grass Harp (1972) based on Truman Capote's 1951 novel. In 1993, Elmslie wrote and subsequently performed Postcards on Parade his one-man conceptual musical play incorporating Elmslie's collage works with performance art and his love of postcards.
In 1954 Elmslie began to publish stories, short plays and verse in little magazines and gather them into collections including: Pavilions (1961), Power Plant Poems (1967), The Champ, Album (1969), Circus Nerves (1971), Motor Disturbance (1971), Orchid Stories (1973), Tropicalism (1975), Topiary Trek (1977), Moving Right Along (1980), Sung Sex (1990), Champ Dust (1994), Bare Bones (1995), and Routine Disruptions: Selected Poems & Lyrics (1998).
Alice Notley in her review of Routine Disruptions for Jacket Magazine wrote, "Elmslie has never done what he was supposed to, and after the nearly forty years this book represents, his poetry can be seen to be unique. You do keep reading the poems, not because they're part of an ongoing discussion as to What Poetry Should Be Right Now, but because they continue to be unpredictable and unlike (other poetry) and lifelike (weird, patterned, tender.)"
In addition to his theatrical partnerships, Elmslie also collaborated with several artists over the course of his career including projects with his partner, Joe Brainard such as The Baby Book (1965), The 1967 Gamebook Calendar (1967), The Champ (1968), Shiny Ride (1972), 1984 Comics (1983), Sung Sex (1989), and Pay Dirt (1992); with Donna Dennis on 26 Bars; with Ken Tisa on Bimbo Dirt (1982) and Palais Bimbo Snapshots (1982), with Trevor Winkfield on Cyberspace (2000), among others.
In 1973 Elmslie became the editor of Z Press which annually published the eponymous Z Magazine - included titles Z (1973), ZZ (1974), ZZZ (1974), ZZZZ (1974), ZZZZZ (1976), and ZZZZZZ (1977). Z Press also published literary works by Elmslie as well as John Ashbery, Bill Berkson, Jean Boulte, Joe Brainard, Ian Finlay, Steve Gianakos, Joanne Kyger, Harry Matthews, Ron Padgett, James Schuyler, Anne Waldman and Marjorie Walsh, among others. Elmslie became a member American Guild of Authors and Composers, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and the Dramatists' Guild. His Power Plant Sestina (1967) received an award from the National Endowment for the Arts and Motor Disturbance (1971) received the Frank O'Hara Award. John Ashbery commenting about Elmslie's life said, "Kenward Elmslie has led an extraordinarily diverse and rich writing career. Master showman, poet, novelist, librettist and 'performance artist,' Elmslie is one of the unforgettable writers of our time."
For a chronology of Elmslie's life, bibliographic information for his work and an extensive interview, see William C. Bamberger, Kenward Elmslie: A Bibliographical Profile. Bamberger Books, 1993.
Papers of Kenward Elmslie, a writer, performer, editor and publisher associated with the New York School. The collection documents Elmslie's personal life and career from the 1930s through the 2000s and includes correspondence, personal and working journals and notebooks, drafts, revisions, original submissions, and edited galleys for most of his published writings, and much unpublished material. Correspondence is a large and significant part of the collection, and includes letters exchanged with composers Jack Beeson, John Latouche, Claibe Richardson, Thomas Pasatieri and Ned Rorem, and graphic artists Joe Brainard, Donna Dennis and Kenneth Tisa. The production files of Z Magazine and Z Press contain correspondence and manuscripts of writers and artists including John Ashbery, Jean Boulte, Joe Brainard, Ian Hamilton, Steve Gianakos, Joanne Kyger, Harry Matthews, Ron Padgett, James Schuyler, Anne Waldman, and Marjorie Welish. There are a substantial number of photographs including formal portraits and snapshots depicting Elmslie, his friends and colleagues, his travels and interests, as well as albums containing photographs of members of the Pulitzer and Elmslie families in the early decades of the twentieth century. Also represented are pre-publication drafts by other poets and writers and manuscripts and miscellaneous materials by Joe Brainard and John Latouche.
Accession Processed in 2005
Arranged in ten series: 1) CORRESPONDENCE, 2) PERFORMANCE/THEATRE WORKS, 3) WRITINGS, 4) PHOTOGRAPHS, 5) BIOGRAPHICAL, 6) Z PRESS PRODUCTION FILES, 7) JOE BRAINARD MATERIAL, 8) JOHN LATOUCHE MATERIAL, 9) WRITINGS OF OTHERS, and 10) MISCELLANEOUS.
Accessions Processed in 2019-2021, 2024
Arranged in nine series: 11) BIOGRAPHICAL, 12) CORRESPONDENCE, 13) WRITINGS, 14) JOE BRAINARD MATERIAL, 15) WORK BY OTHERS, 16) MISCELLANEOUS, 17-18) AUDIOVISUAL RECORDINGS, and 19) Z PRESS.