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Tom Sturak collection on Horace McCoy, 1918-1976
1995
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Title: Tom Sturak collection on Horace McCoy
Collection number: 1995
Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
5.8 linear ft.
(11 document boxes, 1 flat box, and 1 record carton)
Date (inclusive): 1918-1976
Abstract: Tom Sturak was an English Department doctoral candidate and, later, professor at UCLA, whose dissertation on the life and
work of ‘hardboiled’ fiction author Horace McCoy was published in 1966. This collection encompasses the materials collected
by Sturak for his research, as well as his correspondence, drafts, and a completed copy of his dissertation. Collected materials
include McCoy’s manuscripts, published articles, screenplays, personal and professional correspondence, and personal records
and ephemera. They focus primarily on Horace McCoy’s work as a screenwriter and novelist while living in Los Angeles.
Language of Materials: Materials are in English. Some books are in French, Italian, Portuguese, Norwegian, Danish, and Bosnian.
Physical Location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library Special
Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Creator:
Sturak, John Thomas, 1931-
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Library Special
Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright
and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
[Identification of item], Tom Sturak Collection on Horace McCoy (Collection 1995). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles
E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
UCLA Catalog Record ID:
7356575
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Donated by Jacqueline Hansen on August 13, 2012.
Processed by Lori Dedeyan in 2014 in the
Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT) with assistance from Jillian Cuellar.
The processing of this collection was generously supported by
Arcadia
funds.
HORACE McCOY
Horace McCoy was a writer of ‘hardboiled’ fiction, best known for his 1935 novel
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? McCoy was born in Tennessee on April 14, 1897 and later moved with his family to Dallas, where, after his service in the
Air Force during WWI, he began his professional writing career. He was the sports editor for the
Dallas Journal and for a time worked as editor on his own publication,
The Dallasite. He also performed as an amateur actor in the Dallas Little Theater. Towards the end of this period, he began publishing
stories in the famous ‘pulp’ magazine The Black Mask, which featured other ‘hardboiled’ writers such as Raymond Chandler and
Dashiell Hammett. In 1931, he followed Little Theater director Oliver Hinsdell to Los Angeles, and began the work for which
he is best known. Over the next two decades, he developed and wrote screenplays for various studios. His novel
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? was published in 1935 and was followed by
No Pockets in a Shroud and
I Should Have Stayed Home, in 1938. McCoy continued to work primarily as a screenwriter and did not publish another novel until 1948’s
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye. As an author, he enjoyed much wider success abroad, particularly in France, where his works found critical acclaim. His
final novel,
Scalpel, was published in 1952. He died of a heart attack in his home in Beverly Hills on December 15, 1955. During that year, he
had also submitted fifty pages of a new novel, which was developed into
Corruption City and published posthumously in 1959.
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? was adapted into a 1969 film featuring Jane Fonda.
TOM STURAK (John Thomas Sturak)
Tom Sturak (b. June 29, 1931) was a track and field runner, sports journalist and agent, and literature professor. Sturak
began his career as a runner at Point Loma High School and continued at San Diego State University, where he edited the college
newspaper and graduated with a degree in Journalism. After two years in the Navy during the Korean War, Sturak pursued his
postgraduate degree in English at UCLA. His dissertation, entitled
The Life and Writings of Horace McCoy, 1897-1955, was submitted and approved in 1966. He was considered an authority on Horace McCoy and did on-set consulting for the 1969
film adaptation of McCoy’s novel
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Sturak worked as chief editor of the computer sciences department at the Rand Corporation until 1970 and taught technical
writing and literature at Santa Monica College, California State University, Los Angeles, and UCLA. In 1977, Sturak began
working for Nike, where he served as the Director of Running Promotions from 1980-1983. After this, Sturak worked with athletes
through Reebok and as an independent sports agent until retirement. Sturak died of Alzheimer’s disease in April 29, 2011,
at the age of 79.
Materials collected and generated by UCLA English Department PhD candidate Tom Sturak for his 1966 dissertation on the life
and work of fiction writer Horace McCoy. The collection includes notes, correspondence, and research that informed his dissertation
work, as well as drafts and a final version of the dissertation. There are also primary materials belonging to Horace McCoy,
such as personal and business correspondence, personal ephemera, official records, scrap books, photographs, and press clippings.
This collection has been arranged in the following series and subseries:
- Series 1: Horace McCoy Materials, 1919-1976
- Subseries 1.1: Drafts and Writings, 1930s-1955
- Subseries 1.2: Professional Career, 1920s-1976
- Subseries 1.3: Personal Materials, 1918-1955
- Series 2: Tom Sturak Materials, 1959-1971
- Subseries 2.1: Drafts and Writings, 1959-1966
- Subseries 2.2: Professional Career, 1959-1971
Horace McCoy Papers (Collection 794). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
Sturak’s dissertation,
The Life and Writings of Horace McCoy, 1897-1955,
is available at the Young Research Library. Call Number: LD791.9.E5 S935
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Sturak, John Thomas, 1931---Archives.
McCoy, Horace, 1897-1955--Archives.
University of California, Los Angeles. Department of English--Faculty--Archives.
Authors, American--20th century--Archives.
manuscripts for publication.