by Mark Dery
Research of this breadth and depth lies behind every chapter. In the seven years it took to write the story of Gorey’s life, I conducted more than seventy-eight in-depth interviews with people who’d known Gorey, each of which was recorded and transcribed to ensure accuracy. All direct quotations without citations are taken from these interviews. In addition, I tracked down the addresses Gorey called home during his Chicago boyhood, made pilgrimages to his Harvard dorms, and visited his former apartments and homes in Cambridge, Manhattan, and Cape Cod. I pored over correspondence, photographs, and unpublished art and writings at the Edward Gorey House, in private collections, and in university archives.
Among the latter, I drew on the Alison Lurie Papers in the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections at the Cornell University Library; the Andrew Alpern collection of Gorey publications and ephemera as well as the Barney Rosset Papers in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Columbia University; the Edward Gorey Collection at the Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas at Austin; the Felicia Lamport Papers at the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe (and Lamport’s correspondence with her publisher and Gorey in the archives of the Houghton Mifflin Company at the Houghton Library, Harvard); yearbooks, school newspapers, and student literary publications at the Francis W. Parker School; Gorey’s student records in the office of the registrar at Harvard; the archives of the Poets’ Theatre at the Houghton Library; the Merrill Moore Papers in the Library of Congress; the Edward Gorey Collection, as well as the Edward Gorey Personal Library, in the Special Collections of the San Diego State University Library; and the bequest of original Gorey art, illustrated envelopes, and ephemera to the Art Institute of Chicago by Gorey’s Parker friend Sylvia Sights (née Simons).
A Gorey Bibliography
As noted early on, quotations from titles written by Gorey aren’t cited in endnotes because virtually all his books are unpaginated. More to the point, few of them run longer than thirty pages, most of which are sparsely populated with text; readers curious to track down quotations shouldn’t have much difficulty doing so.
Here, in the order of their publication, is a list of the Gorey books referred to in these pages. A complete list of Gorey’s works up to 1996 can be found in Henry Toledano’s Goreyography (San Francisco: Word Play Publications, 1996), the only comprehensive Gorey bibliography to date. (Edward Bradford’s F Is for Fantods, a brief “bibliographic checklist” published in 2008 by the Edward Gorey House, is devoted exclusively to Gorey’s Fantod titles.)
Publication information for titles illustrated but not written by Gorey is given in the text, at first mention.
The Unstrung Harp; or, Mr Earbrass Writes a Novel (New York and Boston: Duell, Sloan and Pearce/Little, Brown, 1953)
The Listing Attic (New York and Boston: Duell, Sloan and Pearce/Little, Brown, 1954)
The Doubtful Guest (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1957)
The Object-Lesson (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1958)
The Bug Book (New York: Looking Glass Library, 1959)
The Fatal Lozenge: An Alphabet (New York: Ivan Obolensky, 1960)
The Curious Sofa: A Pornographic Work by Ogdred Weary (New York: Ivan Obolensky, 1961)
The Hapless Child (New York: Ivan Obolensky, 1961)
The Beastly Baby by Ogdred Weary (New York: Fantod Press, 1962)
The Willowdale Handcar; or, The Return of the Black Doll (Indianapolis and New York: Bobbs-Merrill, 1962)
The Vinegar Works: Three Volumes of Moral Instruction
The Gashlycrumb Tinies; or, After the Outing (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1963)
The Insect God (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1963)
The West Wing (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1963)
The Wuggly Ump (Philadelphia and New York: J. B. Lippincott, 1963)
The Nursery Frieze (New York: Fantod Press, 1964)
The Sinking Spell (New York: Ivan Obolensky, 1964)
The Remembered Visit: A Story Taken from Life (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1965)
The Gilded Bat (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1966)
Three Books from the Fantod Press [I]
The Evil Garden: Eduard Blutig’s Der Böse Garten in a translation by Mrs Regera Dowdy with the Original Pictures of O. Müde (New York: Fantod Press, 1966)
The Inanimate Tragedy (New York: Fantod Press, 1966)
The Pious Infant by Mrs Regera Dowdy (New York: Fantod Press, 1966)
Fletcher and Zenobia, based on a story line by Victoria Chess and illustrated by Chess (New York: Meredith Press, 1967)
The Utter Zoo (New York: Meredith Press, 1967)
The Blue Aspic (New York: Meredith Press, 1968)
The Other Statue (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1968)
The Epiplectic Bicycle (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1969)
The Iron Tonic; or, a Winter Afternoon in Lonely Valley (New York: Albondocani, 1969)
Three Books from the Fantod Press [II]
The Chinese Obelisks: Fourth Alphabet (New York: Fantod Press, 1970)
Donald Has a Difficulty by Edward Gorey and Peter F. Neumeyer (New York: Fantod Press, 1970)
The Osbick Bird (New York: Fantod Press, 1970)
The Sopping Thursday (New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1970)
Why We Have Day and Night by Edward Gorey and Peter F. Neumeyer (New York: Young Scott Books, 1970)
Three Books from the Fantod Press [III]
The Deranged Cousins; or, Whatever (New York: Fantod Press, 1971)
The Eleventh Episode by Raddory Gewe, drawings by Om (New York: Fantod Press, 1971)
[The Untitled Book] (New York: Fantod Press, 1971)
Fletcher and Zenobia Save the Circus, illustrated by Victoria Chess (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1971)
Story for Sara: What Happened to a Little Girl by Alphonse Allais, put into English and with drawings by Edward Gorey (New York: Albondocani, 1971). Henry Toledano notes, “This is a virtual rewrite and consequently a primary work,” meaning he regards it as written by Gorey.
Amphigorey (New York: Putnam, 1972)
The Awdrey-Gore Legacy by D. Awdrey-Gore (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1972)
Leaves from a Mislaid Album (New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1972)
The Black Doll: A Silent Film (New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1973)
Categor y: Fifty Drawings (New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1973)
The Lavender Leotard; or, Going a Lot to the New York City Ballet (New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1973)
A Limerick (Dennis, MA: Salt-Works, 1973)
Three Books from the Fantod Press [IV]
The Abandoned Sock (New York: Fantod Press, 1973)
The Disrespectful Summons (New York: Fantod Press, 1973)
The Lost Lions (New York: Fantod Press, 1973)
Amphigorey Too (New York: Putnam, 1975)
The Glorious Nosebleed: Fifth Alphabet (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1975)
L’Heure Bleue (New York: Fantod Press, 1975)
The Broken Spoke (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1976)
Les Passementeries Horribles (New York: Albondocani, 1976)
Scènes de Ballet (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1976)
The Loathsome Couple (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1977)
Alms for Oblivion Series: Dogear Wryde Postcards (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1978)
The Green Beads (New York: Albondocani, 1978)
Dracula: A Toy Theatre (New York: Scribner, 1979)
Gorey Posters (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1979)
Interpretive Series: Dogear Wryde Postcards (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1979)
Les Urnes Utiles (Cambridge, MA: Halty-Ferguson, 1980)
Mélange Funeste (New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1981)
The Dwindling Party (New York: Random House, 1982)
The Water Flowers (New York: Congdon & Weed, 1982)
Amphigorey Also (New York: Congdon & Weed, 1983)
The Eclectic Abecedarium (Boston: Anne & David Bromer, 1983)
E. D. Ward, a Mercurial Bear by Dogear Wryde (New York: Gotha
m Book Mart, 1983)
The Prune People (New York: Albondocani, 1983)
The Tunnel Calamity (New York: Putnam, 1984)
Les Échanges Malandreux (Worcester, MA: Metacom Press, 1984)
The Prune People II (New York: Albondocani, 1985)
The Improvable Landscape (New York: Albondocani, 1986)
The Raging Tide; or, The Black Doll’s Imbroglio (New York: Beaufort Books [Peter Weed]), 1987)
The Dripping Faucet (Worcester, MA: Metacom Press, 1989).
The Helpless Doorknob: A Shuffled Story (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1989)
Tragédies Topiares: Dogear Wryde Postcards (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1989)
Q.R.V. (Boston: Anne & David Bromer, 1989)
Q.R.V. The Universal Solvent (Yarmouth Port, MA: Fantod Press, 1990)
La Balade Troublante (Yarmouth Port, MA: Fantod Press, 1991)
The Betrayed Confidence (Orleans, MA: Parnassus, 1992)
The Doleful Domesticity (Yarmouth Port, MA: Fantod Press, 1992)
The Grand Passion (Yarmouth Port, MA: Fantod Press, 1992)
The Dancing Rock by Ogdred Weary (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1993)
The Floating Elephant by Dogear Wryde (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1993)
The Pointless Book; or, Nature & Art by Garrod Weedy (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1993)
The Retrieved Locket (Yarmouth Port, MA: Fantod Press, 1994)
The Fantod Pack (New York: Gotham Book Mart, 1995)
Q.R.V. Unwmkd. Imperf. (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1996)
Q.R.V. Hikuptah (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1996)
Thoughtful Alphabets (n.p.: no publisher indicated, 1996)
The Just Dessert (Yarmouth Port, MA: Fantod Press, 1997)
The Haunted Tea-Cosy: A Dispirited and Distasteful Diversion for Christmas (New York: Harcourt Brace, 1997)
The Headless Bust: A Melancholy Meditation on the False Millennium (New York: Harcourt Brace, 1999)
Thoughtful Alphabet VIII (The Morning After Christmas, 4 AM) (New York: Gotham Book Mart, 2001)
Amphigorey Again (New York: Harcourt, 2006)
Saint Melissa the Mottled (New York: Bloomsbury, 2012)
Notes
A Note on Notes
In order to beat back the kudzulike overgrowth of endnotes, I’ve employed the following convention: the first time a source is quoted in any given paragraph, the quoted matter is accompanied by an endnote. If the next quotation in that paragraph is from the same page of the same source, no endnote is used. Only when a quotation from a new page or source appears in that paragraph is a new endnote introduced. In those instances where confusion is likely to arise from the appearance in a single paragraph of quotations from a single author but different sources—say, a lecture by Alison Lurie and my unpublished interview with her—I’ve broken my rule of not citing interview quotations.
Introduction: A Good Mystery
1 Edmund Wilson, “The Albums of Edward Gorey,” in The Bit Between My Teeth (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1965), 479.
2 Neil Gaiman, e-mail message to the author, January 26, 2011.
3 Entry for “Girl Anachronism,” Dresden Dolls Wiki, http://dresdendolls.wikia.com/wiki/Girl_Anachronism.
4 “Allow Us to Explain…,” Edwardian Ball website, https://www.edwardianball.com/about-the-ball.
5 Richard Dyer, “The Poison Penman,” in Ascending Peculiarity: Edward Gorey on Edward Gorey, ed. Karen Wilkin (New York: Harcourt, 2001), 123.
6 Alison Bechdel, “My 10 Favorite Books: Alison Bechdel,” New York Times, February 5, 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/05/t-magazine/entertainment/my-10-favorite-books-alison-bechdel.html.
7 Maria Russodec, “A Book That Started with Its Pictures: Ransom Riggs Is Inspired by Vintage Snapshots,” New York Times, December 30, 2013, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/31/books/ransom-riggs-is-inspired-by-vintage-snapshots.html.
8 Deborah Netburn, “Found Photography Drives ‘Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children,’” Los Angeles Times, May 17, 2011, http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/2011/05/miss-peregrines-home-for-peculiar-children-ransom-riggs.html.
9 Stephen Schiff, “Edward Gorey and the Tao of Nonsense,” in Ascending Peculiarity, 152.
10 Daniel Grant, “Illustrators Risk the Stigma of ‘Second-Class’ Artists,” Christian Science Monitor, October 10, 1989, https://www.csmonitor.com/1989/1010/umag.html.
11 Tobi Tobias, “Balletgorey,” in Ascending Peculiarity, 23.
12 Lisa Solod, “Edward Gorey: The Boston Magazine Interview,” Boston, September 1980, 90.
13 Stephen Schiff, “Edward Gorey and the Tao of Nonsense,” New Yorker, November 9, 1992, 84.
14 Thomas Curwen, “Light from a Dark Star: Before the Current Rise of Graphic Novels, There Was Edward Gorey, Whose Tales and Drawings Still Baffle—and Attract—New Fans,” Los Angeles Times, July 18, 2004, http://articles.latimes.com/2004/jul/18/entertainment/ca-curwen18/3.
15 Solod, “Edward Gorey,” 86.
16 Mark Dery, “Self-Dissection: A Conversation with Satirical English Author Will Self,” Boing Boing, January 21, 2015, http://boingboing.net/2015/01/21/self-dissection-a-conversatio.html.
17 Edward Gorey, The Listing Attic, in Amphigorey: Fifteen Books (New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1972), n.p.
18 “Classical Japanese literature”: Alexander Theroux, The Strange Case of Edward Gorey (Seattle: Fantagraphics Books, 2000), 26. “To work in that way”: Tobias, “Balletgorey,” 23.
19 Edward Gorey, “Miscellaneous Quotes,” in Ascending Peculiarity, 239.
20 Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching: A New English Version, trans. Stephen Mitchell (New York: Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2006), 1.
21 Robert Dahlin, “Conversations with Writers: Edward Gorey,” in Ascending Peculiarity, 35.
22 Ibid.
23 Dyer, “Poison Penman,” 110.
24 Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, quoted in Alan Watts, What Is Tao? (Novato, CA: New World Library, 2000), 22.
25 Dyer, “Poison Penman,” 123.
26 Solod, “Edward Gorey,” 90.
27 Ibid., 92.
28 Dyer, “Poison Penman,” 123.
29 “[The] comic macabre”: Mel Gussow, “Edward Gorey, Artist and Author Who Turned the Macabre into a Career, Dies at 75,” New York Times, April 17, 2000, http://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/17/arts/edward-gorey-artist-and-author-who-turned-the-macabre-into-a-career-dies-at-75.html. “Morbid whimsy”: Aimee Ortiz, “Edward Gorey: Writer, Artist, and a Most Puzzling Man,” Christian Science Monitor, February 22, 2013, http://www.csmonitor.com/Innovation/Horizons/2013/0222/Edward-Gorey-writer-artist-and-a-most-puzzling-man-video. “The elusive whimsy”: Michael Dirda, Classics for Pleasure (Orlando, FL: Harcourt, 2007), 33. “[The] whimsically macabre”: Robert Cooke Goolrick, “A Gorey Story,” New Times, March 19, 1976, 54.
30 Solod, “Edward Gorey,” 77.
31 Karen Wilkin, “Edward Gorey: An Introduction,” in Ascending Peculiarity, xx.
32 Edward Gorey, “The Doubtful Interview,” in Gorey Posters (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1979), 7.
33 Schiff, “Edward Gorey and the Tao of Nonsense,” New Yorker, 84.
34 Ken Morton interviewed by Christopher Seufert in “Edward Gorey Documentary Rough Cut Sample Featuring Ken Morton (His Cousin),” from Christopher Seufert, The Last Days of Edward Gorey: A Documentary by Christopher Seufert, posted on YouTube by Seufert on March 21, 2014, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqE0x8clKEA, and subsequently removed.
35 Edward Gorey interviewed by Dick Cooke on The Dick Cooke Show, a Cape Cod–based weekly public-access cable TV program, circa 1996. DVD copy of videotape provided to the author by Christopher Seufert.
36 D. Keith Mano, “Edward Gorey Inhabits an Odd World of Tiny Drawings, Fussy Cats, and ‘Doomed Enterprises,’” People 10, no. 1 (July 3, 1978), 72.
37 Claire Golding, “Edward Gorey’s Work Is No Day at the Beach,” Cape Cod Antiques & Arts, August 1993, 21.
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38 “Looking out the window”: Edward Gorey, “Edward Gorey: Proust Questionnaire,” in Ascending Peculiarity, 185. “Never could understand”: Alexander Theroux, The Strange Case of Edward Gorey, rev. ed. (Seattle: Fantagraphics Books, 2011), 157.
39 J. B. S. Haldane, Possible Worlds and Other Papers (New York: Harper & Bros., 1928), 286.
40 Myrna Oliver, “Edward Gorey: Dark-Humored Writer and Illustrator,” Los Angeles Times, April 18, 2000, http://articles.latimes.com/2000/apr/18/local/me-20939.
41 Gorey, “Miscellaneous Quotes,” 240.
42 Solod, “Edward Gorey,” 96.
43 Ibid., 95.
44 Theroux, Strange Case, 2000 ed., 27.
45 Curwen, “Light from a Dark Star,” 4.
46 Quoted ibid., 2.
Chapter 1. A Suspiciously Normal Childhood: Chicago, 1925–44
1 Jan Hodenfield, “And ‘G’ Is for Gorey Who Here Tells His Story,” in Ascending Peculiarity: Edward Gorey on Edward Gorey, ed. Karen Wilkin (New York: Harcourt, 2001), 5.
2 Karen Wilkin, “Edward Gorey: An Introduction,” in Ascending Peculiarity, ix.
3 “Did not grow up”: Hodenfield, “And ‘G’ Is for Gorey,” 5. “Happier than I imagine”: Jane Merrill Filstrup, “An Interview with Edward St. John Gorey at the Gotham Book Mart,” The Lion and the Unicorn 2, no. 1 (1978), 22.
4 Dick Cavett, “The Dick Cavett Show with Edward Gorey,” in Ascending Peculiarity, 55.
5 Edward Gorey interviewed by Faith Elliott, November 30, 1976, in Gorey’s apartment at 36 East 38th Street, New York City. Unpublished. Audio recording provided to the author.
6 Alexander Theroux, The Strange Case of Edward Gorey (Seattle: Fantagraphics Books, 2000), 7.
7 Edward Gorey interviewed by Christopher Lydon for The Connection, November 26, 1998, WBUR (Boston’s National Public Radio affiliate). Audio recording provided to the author by Christopher Seufert.
8 Filstrup, “An Interview with Edward St. John Gorey,” 76.
9 Richard Dyer, “The Poison Penman,” in Ascending Peculiarity, 125.