by John Cheever
DRINKING, PARTIES: Interview Virginia Rice Kahn, 5 June 1985; interview Philip and Mimi Boyer, 8–9 July 1984; interview MC, 26 June 1984; JC to Eleanor Clark, 195__; interview Jane Cheever Carr, 27 September 1983; JC to Josephine Herbst, 29 December 1953; JC to Allan Gurganus, 24 February 1974; interview E. J. Kahn, Jr., 10 June 1984.
MUSIC, FIRE DEPARTMENT, SCHOOL: Mimi Boyer to SD, May 1984; JC to Josephine Herbst, 26 January 1955 and early 1956; interview Don and Ginger Reiman, 3 July 1984; E. J. Kahn, Jr., “NEW YORKER” AND ME, pp. 160–61; Arthur Spear to SD, 16 December 1983; JC, BULLET PARK (New York, 1969), pp. 225–28; interview Aline Benjamin, 5 July 1984; JC to Malcolm Cowley, early 1953.
MRS. VANDERLIP: JC to William Maxwell, 1958; interview Dudley Schoales, 25 June 1984; interview E. J. Kahn, Jr., 10 June 1984; JC, typescript 21; JC to Eleanor Clark, 4 November 1953.
ZINNY SCHOALES: Interview Dudley Schoales, 25 June 1984; interview Dudley Schoales, Jr., 17 July 1984; interview Robert Cowley, 20 June 1984; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, pp. 86–87.
AMBIVALENCE ABOUT SUBURBIA: JC to Josephine Herbst, 17 July 1951; JC to Eleanor Clark, 3 July 1952; JC to Malcolm Cowley, 12 January 1953, 8 February 1953, and 1 November 1953; Malcolm Cowley to JC, 22 January 1953 and 11 February 1953; JC to Josephine Herbst, late summer 1953; JC to Eleanor Clark, late 1953; JC to Josephine Herbst, 195__; interview Barrett and Jane Clark, 28 June 1984; interview MC, 26 July 1984; JC, “Moving Out,” pp. 67–68.
CAREER
STORY VS. NOVEL: Callaway, interview with JC, 15 October 1981; JC, typescript 21; Harvey Breit, “In and Out of Books,” NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, 10 May 1953, p. 8; JC quoted in Elizabeth Janeway et al., “Is the Short Story Necessary?” SHORT STORY THEORIES (Athens, Ohio, 1976), pp. 96–97.
RANDOM HOUSE TURNDOWNS: Robert N. Linscott to JC, 7 June 1951; JC to Josephine Herbst, fall 1951 and spring 1952; interview William Maxwell, 9 November 1983; JC to Candida Donadio, January 1965.
LIFE WITH FATHER, TELEVISION: “Life with Father and Mother,” CBS press release, 13 November 1952; interview Ezra Stone, 11 October 1985; JC, “Don’t Leave the Room During the Commercials,” TV GUIDE, 9 January 1982, p. 20.
ENORMOUS RADIO, NEW YORKER TARBRUSH: JC to Malcolm Cowley, 29 December 1952; George Garrett, “John Cheever and the Charms of Innocence: The Craft of THE WAPSHOT SCANDAL,” HOLLINS CRITIC, April 1964, pp. 3–4; interview Richard Stern, 23 April 1985; interview Norman Mailer, 29 March 1985; interview William Maxwell, 9 April 1985; Kees, “Cheever’s Stories,” pp. 516–17; Taliaferro Boatwright, “Snapshots in the East Fifties,” NEW YORK HERALD TRIBUNE, 24 May 1953, p. 16; Arthur Mizener, “In Genteel Traditions,” NEW REPUBLIC, 25 May 1953, pp. 19–20; William DuBois, “Books of the Times,” NEW YORK TIMES, 1 May 1953; James Kelly, “The Have-Not-Enoughs,” NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, 10 May 1953, p. 21; Morris Freedman, “New England and Hollywood,” COMMENTARY, October 1953, pp. 390, 392; dust-jacket copy, British edition of THE ENORMOUS RADIO; JC to Josephine Herbst, spring 1953; Malcolm Cowley to JC, 29 March 1952 and 27 April 1953; JC to Malcolm Cowley, April 1953.
“GOODBYE, MY BROTHER,” FRED: JC, “Goodbye, My Brother,” ENORMOUS RADIO, pp. 3–27; Malcolm Cowley to JC, 22 January 1953; JC to Malcolm Cowley, 8 February 1953; interview JC, August 1977; interview MC, 20 October 1984; interview Virginia Rice Kahn, 5 June 1985; interview E. J. Kahn, Jr., 10 June 1984; interview Ben Cheever, 19 October 1984; interview Edward Newhouse, 5 June 1984; Susan Cheever Cowley and John Cheever, “A Duet,” p. 69.
“THE COUNTRY HUSBAND,” NABOKOV: JC, “The Country Husband,” ENORMOUS RADIO, pp. 49–83; Vladimir Nabokov, “Inspiration,” SATURDAY REVIEW OF THE ARTS, 1 January 1973, p. 32.
MCCARTHY, HERBST: Langer, HERBST, pp. 294–95, 360–61; JC to Josephine Herbst, 1954 (two letters).
BARNARD, TEACHING: JC to William Maxwell, 1955; David Robertson to SD, 23 March 1985; interview MC, 12 July 1984; interview Judith Sherwin, 18 January 1985.
HEALTH PROBLEMS: Interview Dr. Raymond Mutter, 22 June 1984; interview Aline Benjamin, 5 July 1984; JC (“Cassie”) to Philip and Mimi Boyer, 1954; Dr. Bernard C. Glueck to SD, 11 March 1985; JC to William Maxwell, 1955; JC to Josephine Herbst, 1955; JC to Eleanor Clark, 24 June 1955; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, p. 167.
CHRONICLE SOLD: Interview Simon Michael Bessie, 6 June 1984; Random House memo, Tony Wimpfheimer to Bennett Cerf, 21 January 1965.
ITALY
AWARDS, MOTHER’S DEATH: Benjamin Franklin award, NEW YORK TIMES, 29 May 1955; O. Henry award, NEW YORK TIMES, 4 January 1956; JC to Josephine Herbst, 18 May 1955 and 22 February 1956; Robb, “Cheever’s Story,” p. 12; interview Jane Cheever Carr, 27 September 1983; JC, typescript 21; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, p. 6; Smithers Center notes, 10 April 1975.
WAPSHOT NOVEL, INSTITUTE: JC to Josephine Herbst, summer 1954; Malcolm Cowley, citation, 23 May 1956; JC to Elizabeth Ames, 1956; JC to Eleanor Clark, 26 June 1956; MC to Malcolm Cowley, 4 October 1982.
FRIENDSHIP, SUMMER PLACES: JC to William Maxwell, 1955, summer 1956 (three letters), 1961; JC to Josephine Herbst, 26 June 1956; JC to Jean Stafford, 26 June 1956.
MEETING BESSIE: Reminiscences of Simon Michael Bessie, Oral History Research office, Columbia, pp. 82–84.
PREPARING FOR ITALY, TRIP ACROSS: Stephen Becker to SD, 30 April 1985; JC to Eleanor Clark, 3 October 1956; JC to William Maxwell, October 1956; JC, “Atlantic Crossing,” Ex Ophidia, 1986.
PALAZZO DORIA, IOLE: Interview Peter and Ebie Blume, 12 June 1984; JC to William Maxwell, 5 November 1956, 10 November 1956, 12 November 1956, 24 November 1956, and 7 December 1956; JC to Philip and Mimi Boyer, 17 November 1956; JC to Josephine Herbst, 4 January 1957; JC to Malcolm Cowley, 7 January 1957; Elizabeth Spencer to SD, 11 December 1985 and 17 January 1986.
ROMAN SOCIETY, LANGUAGE, SCHOOLS: JC to Josephine Herbst, 24 November 1956 and 2 December 1956; JC to Malcolm Cowley, 25 November 1956; Weaver, “Reminiscences,” p. 3; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, pp. 109–10; interview MC, 2 June 1984; JC to Francis Steegmuller, 13 June 1957; Elizabeth Spencer to SD, 11 December 1985; tape recording, Ben and Susan Cheever, n.d.; JC to Philip and Mimi Boyer, 17 November 1956; JC to Mary Dirks, 17 December 1956; Stephen Becker to SD, 30 April 1985; interview Peter and Ebie Blume, 12 June 1984.
STORIES WITH STAFFORD ET AL.: JC to Jean Stafford, July 1955 and 24 July 1956; interview William Maxwell, 9 April 1985; JC, Author’s Note, STORIES (New York, 1956), unpaginated; Richard Sullivan, “A Talented Quartet,” NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, 23 December 1956, p. 10; William Peden, “Four Cameos,” SATURDAY REVIEW OF LITERATURE, 8 December 1956, pp. 15–16.
ELECTION TO INSTITUTE: Jacques Barzun, nomination to institute, 1956; Louise Bogan to JC, 21 January 1957; Malcolm Cowley to JC, 23 February 1957; Susan Cheever, “Remembering John Cheever,” NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, 9 September 1984, p. 51; JC to Felicia Geffen, 9 October 1957; JC, file at American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters.
PROTECTING REPUTATION: Interview Simon Michael Bessie, 6 June 1984; JC, correspondence with Curtis Brown, 1956–57.
BIRTH OF FEDERICO: JC to William and Emmy Maxwell, 22 March 1957, 4 April 1957, 5 April 1957, and late April 1957; JC to Robert Penn Warren and Eleanor Clark, 29 February 1957, 9 March 1957, and 28 March 1957; JC to Josephine Herbst, 17 March 1958; interview Peter and Ebie Blume, 12 June 1984; interviews MC, 28 June 1984 and 20 October 1984; interview Ben Cheever, 19 October 1984.
WAPSHOT CHRONICLE: JC to Malcolm Cowley, 26 February 1957; JC to William Maxwell, 22 March 1957; William Esty, “Out of an Abundant Love of Created Things,” COMMONWEAL, 17 May 1957, p. 187; Joan Didion, “A Celebration of Life,” NATIONAL REVIEW, 22 April 1961, p. 255; Richard Rupp, “John Cheever: The Upshot of Wapshot,” CELEBRATION IN MODERN AMERICAN FICTION (Coral Gables, Fla., 1970), p. 31; Maxwell Geismar, “End of the Line,” NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, 24 March 1957, p. 5; Donald Malcolm, “John Cheever’s Photograph Album,” NEW REPUBLIC, 3 June 1957, pp. 17–18; JC, Introduction, CHRONICLE (TIME Reading Progra
m special edition, 1965), p. xviii; JC to Granville Hicks, 10 April 1957; JC to Frederick Bracher, 15 July 1962; Carlos Baker, “Yankee Gallimaufry,” SATURDAY REVIEW OF LITERATURE, 23 March 1957, p. 14; Coates, dissertation, pp. 54–56; Malcolm Cowley, “Novelist’s Life,” pp. 4–5; JC, “Independence Day at St. Botolph’s,” NEW YORKER, 3 July 1954, pp. 18–23; interview Jane Cheever Carr, 27 September 1983; Jo Brans, “Stories to Comprehend,” p. 340; interview Stephen Becker, 26 March 1986; “Quincy Son’s First Novel Wins National Book Prize,” QUINCY PATRIOT-LEDGER, 12 March 1958; interview William Maxwell, 9 April 1985; interview Francis Steegmuller, 17 January 1985.
TRAVELING, LA ROCCA: JC to William Maxwell, summer 1957 (seven letters); JC to Malcolm Cowley, 14 June 1957; JC to Arthur Spear, 15 June 1957; JC to Peter and Ebie Blume, 24 June 1957 and July 1957; interview Robert Penn Warren and Eleanor Clark, 10 July 1984; JC, typescript 21; interview Iole Masullo, 23 June 1984.
LURE OF ITALY, TASSO: Baumann, “At Home,” p. 15; interview MC, 6 June 1983; Augustus J. C. Hare, WALKS IN ROME (London, 1909), pp. 644–48; C. F. Brand, TORQUATO TASSO: A STUDY OF THE POET (Cambridge, 1965); interview Peter and Ebie Blume, 12 June 1984; Peter Blume to SD, 18 April 1986.
FIGURE OF IMPORTANCE, NBA: JC to Morton Dauwen Zabel, 25 January 1958; JC to Cabell Greet, 6 October 1958; JC to William Maxwell, fall 1958; JC, acceptance remarks, National Book Award ceremony, 11 March 1958; interview Bernard Malamud, 18 January 1985; Brans, “Stories to Comprehend,” p. 338.
HOUSEBREAKER, SUBURBIA: JC, THE HOUSEBREAKER OF SHADY HILL AND OTHER STORIES (New York, 1958); JC, “Don’t Leave the Room,” p. 20; Richard Gilman, “Dante of Suburbia,” COMMONWEAL, 15 December 1958, p. 320; Irving Howe, “Realities and Fictions,” PARTISAN REVIEW, 1959, pp. 130–31.
ITALIAN STORIES, IOLE: JC, “The Bella Lingua” and “Clementina,” THE BRIGADIER AND THE GOLF WIDOW (New York, 1964), pp. 106–32, 133–55; SD, “Americans in Italy: The Clash of Cultures in John Cheever’s Stories,” LETTURE ANGLO-AMERICANE IN MEMORIA DI ROLANDO ANZILOTTI (Pisa, 1986), pp. 113–26; interview Iole Masullo, 23 June 1984; interview Dudley Schoales, 25 June 1984; JC to William Maxwell, 16 July 1958; JC to Morton Dauwen Zabel, 9 February 1959.
YADDO, SARATOGA: Interview MC, 7 November 1983; interview Allan Gurganus, 16 September 1984; interview Pauline Hanson, 17 October 1984; JC to Morton Dauwen Zabel, 9 February 1959; JC to William Maxwell, 1960; JC, typescript 21; JC to Josephine Herbst, fall 1957 and winter 1958; JC to Malcolm Cowley, 1960; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, pp. 33–35.
WINTER’S DEATH, EUROPE: JC quoted in Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, pp. 132–33; JC to Josephine Herbst, September 1959; JC to William Maxwell, summer 1959 (two letters); JC to Peter and Ebie Blume, summer 1959; interview Simon Michael Bessie, 6 June 1984.
MIDDLE-CLASS LIFE: Interview Lila Refrigier, 14 January 1985; interview Elizabeth Logan, 2 July 1984; Dana Gioia, “Meeting Mr. Cheever,” HUDSON REVIEW, Autumn 1986, pp. 419–34.
NEW YORKER FLAREUP, ROSS, MAXWELL: Dana Gioia et al., interview with JC, 23 January 1976; JC to Robert Gottlieb, 8 July 1976; Grant, “John Cheever: The Art,” pp. 52–53; interviews William Maxwell, 9 November 1983 and 9 April 1985; Susan Cheever Cowley and JC, “A Duet,” p. 69; JC to William Maxwell, December 1960; interview MC, 10 April 1985; Susan Cheever, “Remembering,” p. 51.
GUGGENHEIM, SAN FRANCISCO: JC to Mrs. Leighton (Guggenheim application), 21 January 1960 and 30 January 1960; Wallace Stegner to SD, 16 September 1984; “Publisher’s Page,” ESQUIRE, October 1960, p. 6; interview Philip Roth, 18 July 1984; Robert Gutwillig, “Dim Views through Fog,” NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, 13 November 1960, pp. 68–69; JC, “The Death of Justina,” SOME PEOPLE, PLACES, AND THINGS THAT WILL NOT APPEAR IN MY NEXT NOVEL (New York, 1961), pp. 1–19.
CEDAR LANE MORTGAGE: JC to Josephine Herbst, 17 March 1958; JC to William Maxwell, 1960 (two letters); JC to Malcolm Cowley, 16 September 1960; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, p. 123.
HOLLYWOOD, JERRY WALD: JC to Josephine Herbst, 10 October 1958; John D. Weaver to SD, 26 February 1985 and 12 April 1986; John D. Weaver, “Recollections,” p. 3; Daniel Fuchs to SD, 8 May 1984; interview Daniel and Sue Fuchs, 11 February 1985; interview Barrett and Jane Clark, 13 July 1984; interview Ben Cheever, 19 October 1984; JC to William Maxwell, 17 November 1960, Thanksgiving 1960, December 1960, and 1961; JC to Malcolm Cowley, 22 December 1960.
OSSINING, HOUSE: Dr. George Jackson Fisher, “Ossining,” HISTORY OF WESTCHESTER COUNTY (Philadelphia, 1886), Vol. II, pp. 321–65; Martha Smilgis, “The Dark Moments of His Life Rival—and Perhaps Inspire—John Cheever’s Stories,” PEOPLE, 23 April 1979, p. 78; interviews MC, 7 November 1983 and 10 April 1985; interview Charles Shapiro, 11 April 1985; interview Barrett and Jane Clark, 28 June 1984; Carl Oechsner, OSSINING, NEW YORK (Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y., 1976), p. 7; interview Marion Ascoli, 5 July 1984; JC quoted in Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, pp. 123–24; JC, “A Vision of the World,” BRIGADIER, pp. 241–42; JC to Max Zimmer, February 1977; MC to Malcolm Cowley, 4 October 1982; interview Saul Bellow, 10 July 1984.
OSSINING
SOCIAL LIFE, BOYER, SPEAR: Interview Alan Williams, 18 September 1984; JC to William Maxwell, June 1964; JC to John Hersey, 196__; JC to Frederick Bracher, 16 March 1963; interview Philip and Mimi Boyer, 8–9 July 1984; JC to Frederick Exley, 1 June 1965; interviews Arthur and Stella Spear, 19 July 1983 and 10 November 1983; Arthur Spear to SD, 31 March 1986.
SARA SPENCER, RUDNIK, ROBINS: Interview Sara Spencer, 10 November 1983; interview Anthony and Susan Spencer, 15 September 1984; interview Arthur and Stella Spear, 19 July 1983; JC to Sara Spencer, 196__ (two letters); interview Raphael Rudnik, 18 January 1985; interview Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, 26 July 1984; interview Natalie Robins, 22 October 1984.
PHYSICAL LIFE, POOL, DOGS, CATS: JC quoted in Robb, “Cheever’s Story,” p. 12; interview Federico and Mary Cheever, 10 February 1985; tape recording, Christopher Lehmann-Haupt interview with JC, February 1969; JC to Allan Gurganus, 24 January 1974; JC to Laurens Schwartz, 26 June 1977; Nora Sayre to SD, 8 April 1985; JC to Malcolm Cowley, late 1961 and 1962; Malcolm Cowley to JC, 13 January 1962; JC to Josephine Herbst, 6 December 1963; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, pp. 144–45; Susan Cheever Cowley and JC, “A Duet,” p. 70; Ron Hansen to SD, 25 June 1984; JC, “The Geometry of Love,” THE WORLD OF APPLES (New York, 1973), p. 150; JC, FALCONER, pp. 38–41.
SOME PEOPLE REVIEWS: Malcolm Cowley to JC, 10 February 1961; David Boroff, “A World Filled with Trapdoors into Chaos,” NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, 16 April 1961, p. 34; Frank J. Warnke, “Cheever’s Inferno,” NEW REPUBLIC, 15 May 1961, p. 18; JC, “Some People, Places, and Things That Will Not Appear in My Next Novel,” NEW YORKER, p. 55; JC to Frederick Bracher, summer 1962.
MAXWELL, BRACHER, CUMMINGS, O’HARA: Interview William Maxwell, 9 November 1983; Grant, “John Cheever: The Art,” pp. 53–58; JC to Frederick Bracher, 20 September 1962 and October 1962; interview Curtis Harnack and Hortense Calisher, 17 September 1984; JC to Marion Morehouse, 5 September 1962; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, pp. 61–62; JC to—, 2 May 1963.
DRINKING, FRED: Max Zimmer journal; JC, typescript 21; Paul Moor to SD, 29 October 1984; interview Nina Engel, 21 June 1984; interview Virginia Rice Kahn, 5 June 1985; interview Simon Michael Bessie, 6 June 1984; JC to Frederick Bracher, August 1964; interview MC, 26 July 1984; interview Robert Penn Warren and Eleanor Clark, 10 July 1984.
RELATIONSHIP WITH MARY: Kenneth Shelton to MC, 27 July 1982; interview Raphael Rudnik, 18 January 1985; MC to Malcolm Cowley, 2 October 1982; Samuel Coale, “John Cheever: A Portrait” (unpublished paper, 1982), p. 8; interview John and Mary Dirks, 16 July 1984; interview Edward Newhouse, 5 June 1984; interview MC, 22 October 1984; MC, “To Emily Dickinson in Heaven,” THE NEED FOR CHOCOLATE, p. 75; JC, “The Chimera,” WORLD OF APPLES, pp. 96–97; MC quoted in Alwyn Lee, “Ovid,” p. 72.
SUSAN, BEN, FEDERICO: Interview Susan Cheever, 21 September 1983; Seligson, “Portrait,” p. 2; JC to William Maxwell, 1962 and
1963 (three letters); interview Charles Shapiro, 11 April 1985; interview Ben Cheever and Janet Maslin, 19 October 1984; interviews MC, 6 June 1983 and 20 October 1984; JC, typescript 21; interview Federico and Mary Cheever, 10 February 1985.
PHOBIAS, DEPRESSION: JC, “The Angel of the Bridge,” BRIGADIER, pp. 23–35; JC, “A Vision of the World,” BRIGADIER, pp. 238–47; JC to Frederick Bracher, September 1962, 25 June 1963, and 12 January 1964; tape recording, Christopher Lehmann-Haupt interview with JC, February 1969; Grant, “John Cheever: The Art,” p. 42; JC to Robert Gottlieb, 21 August 1968; JC to Malcolm Cowley, 1964; interview Susan Cheever, 21 September 1983.
WAPSHOT SCANDAL, REVIEWS: Garrett, “The Charms of Innocence,” pp. 4, 8; Stanley Edgar Hyman, “John Cheever’s Golden Egg,” NEW LEADER, 3 February 1964, pp. 23–24; Glenway Wescott, “A Surpassing Sequel,” NEW YORK HERALD TRIBUNE BOOK REVIEW, 5 January 1964, pp. 1, 9; interview Dennis Coates, 8 October 1984; JC, notes for SCANDAL in Coates, dissertation, pp. 55, 140, 141–42; Malcolm Cowley to JC, 22 October 1963.
CONFRONTATION WITH NEW YORKER: Kornbluth, “Cheever Chronicle,” pp. 29, 102; Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, pp. 138–40; interview William Maxwell, 9 April 1985.
RUSSIA
TIME COVER STORY: “A Letter from the Publisher,” TIME, 27 March 1964, p. 11; Paul Moor to SD, 29 October 1984; Bruce McCabe, “The Inner Realm of John Cheever,” BOSTON GLOBE, 23 October 1974; JC to Malcolm Cowley, winter 1963–64; JC to Frederick Bracher, spring 1964; JC to Eleanor Clark, 1964; interview Robert Penn Warren and Eleanor Clark, 10 July 1984; JC to William Maxwell, 1964; John W. Aldridge, “John Cheever and the Soft Sell of Disaster,” TIME TO MURDER AND CREATE (New York, 1966), p. 172; JC quoted in Susan Cheever, HOME BEFORE DARK, p. 154; JC, typescript 21.
WAPSHOT FILM, HOPE LANGE: Interview Hope Lange, 24 October 1984; interview David Lange, 6 June 1985; JC, typescript 21.