Finding Aid for the Zoë Akins Papers, 1915-1958
Processed by PB, March 1970 with additions by Lilace Hatayama, January 2000; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline
Cubé
UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections
Manuscripts Division
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
Email: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
URL: http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/special/scweb/
© 2002
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Finding Aid for the Zoë Akins Papers, 1915-1958
Collection number: 1088
UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections
Manuscripts Division
Los Angeles, CA
Contact Information
- Manuscripts Division
- UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections
- Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
- Box 951575
- Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
- Telephone: 310/825-4988 (10:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m., Pacific
Time)
- Email: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
- URL: http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/special/scweb/
- Processed by:
- PB, March 1970
- Additions by:
- Lilace Hatayama, January 2000
- Encoded by:
- Caroline Cubé
- Online finding aid edited by:
-
- Josh Fiala, February 2002
- Amy Shung-Gee Wong, June 2004
- Caroline Cubé, August 2006
© 2002 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: Zoë Akins Papers,
Date (inclusive): 1915-1958
Collection number: 1088
Creator:
Akins, Zoë, 1886-1958
Extent:
4 boxes (2 linear ft.)
Repository:
University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Department of Special Collections.
Los Angeles, California 90095-1575
Abstract: Zoë Akins (1886-1958) was born in Missouri and relocated to California in 1928. A playwright, Akins plays enjoyed great popularity
in the 1920s and 1930s on Broadway and in screen adaptations. The collection consists of Zoë Akins's literary manuscripts
of plays, screenplays, and stories. Also includes bibliographical material and a report of the Zoë Akins Collection at the
Huntington Library.
Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library, Department
of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Language:
English.
Administrative Information
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library,
Department of 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.
Restrictions on Access
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Advance notice required for access.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Gift of Dorothy Arzner, 1970.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Zoë Akins Papers (Collection 1088). Department of Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research
Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
Biography
Akins was born on October 30, 1886 in Humansville, Missouri; early poetry published in the St. Louis Mirror; her first play
produced in New York was
The Magical City (1919); Akins was made famous by her theatrical piece,
D?lass?, starring Ethel Barrymore; her plays enjoyed great popularity in the 1920s and 1930s; she moved to California in 1928; her
Broadway hit,
The Greeks Had a Word for It (1930) was filmed by Samuel Goldwyn in 1932; won the Pulitzer Prize with her 1935 stage adaptation of Edith Wharton's novel,
The Old Maid; collaborated with George Cukor on film,
Camille (1936), which starred Greta Garbo and Robert Taylor; died on October 29, 1958 in Los Angeles.
Scope and Content
Collection consists of the literary manuscripts of Zoë Akins, including plays, screenplays, and stories. Also includes bibliographical
material and a report of the Zoë Akins Collection at the Huntington Library (1951). Also contains one piece of correspondence.
Organization and Arrangement
Arranged in the following series:
- Bibliographical material, 1 letter, report of Akins holding at the Huntington Library (Box 1).
- Literary manuscripts arranged alphabetically by title (Boxes 1-4).
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Subjects
Akins, Zoë, 1886-1958--Archives.
Screenwriters--United States--Archival resources.
Authors, American--20th century--Archival resources.
Dramatists, American--20th century--Archival resources.
Related Material
Container List
Box 1
Biographical material.
Physical Description: 1 folder.
Box 1
Report of Zoë Akins Collection in the Huntington Library, San Marino, California, 1951.
Box 1
Correspondence.
Physical Description: 1 piece.
Box 1
Another Darling.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 1
An Attic in Paris.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Scope and Content Note
(
First Love) Adapted by Zoë Akins from the French play
Pile On Face, by Louis Verneuil.
Box 1
Babylonian Lullaby.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 1
The Bed.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: Manuscript story.
Box 1
Blood and Ink. An interview of Zoë Akins for radio broadcast.
Box 1
A Bruised Reed.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: Typescript story.
Box 1
Cake Upon the Waters.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
Synopsis of a novel.
Box 1
Careers.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A play in three separate episodes.
Box 1
Colonel Pat.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: Typescript story.
Box 1
A Country House Idyll.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
2 versions of the story.
Box 1
Déclassé.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 1
Did It Really Happen.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
Two copies of the play, and one copy of the adaptation by Hugo Rumbold.
Box 1
The Evening Star.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: Two copies of suggested treatment for screenplay.
Box 2
The Florist's Shop.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: Typescript story.
Box 2
The Food of Love.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A Screenplay.
Box 2
The Toy Wife.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A Screenplay.
Note
[out of alpha sequence]
Box 2
The Furies.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 2
The Glare.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: Typescript story.
Box 2
The Greeks Had a Word for It.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 2
Green Mansions.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A treatment.
Box 2
Guide Posts for Screen Writers. An interview with Zoë. Akins by Russell Bledsoe.
Box 2
Hatter's Castle.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A screenplay.
Box 2
Akins, Zoë, and Rumbold, Hugo.
The Human Element. (From the short story by W. Somerset Maugham.)
Physical Description: Two versions of the play.
Box 2
I Am Different. A comedy adapted from the Hungarian of Lili Hatvany.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Box 2
I Write Good Parts.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: An article.
Box 2
Instead of Advice.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: An article.
Box 2
The Little Miracle.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 2
Lost and Found.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A synopsis and a play.
Box 2
Lallah.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 3
The Love Duel.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A synopsis and a play.
Box 3
The Love Potion.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A synopsis and a play.
Box 3
The Magical City.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: 3 copies.
Scope and Content Note
A one-act play in free verse.
Box 3
The Magnificent Mistake.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 3
Major Barbara.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A screen treatment, based on the play by Bernard Shaw.
Box 3
Miss Hargreaves.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A treatment.
Box 3
Morning Glory.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 3
New York Nocturne
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Note
(From the
Magical City, see above).
Physical Description: A play.
Box 3
New Year's Day.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
Outline for a screenplay, based on the novel by Edith Wharton.
Box 3
One Night In Turino.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: An article.
Box 3
Orchids.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 3
Paris In May.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 3
Phaëthon.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A drama in a prologue and three acts.
Box 3
Plans For Tomorrow.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 3
The Playhouse and the Playwright.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: An article.
Box 3
The Portrait of Tiero.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 3
A Preliminary Honeymoon.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: Two copies of a synopsis.
Box 3
Pride and Prejudice.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A screenplay, based on the novel by Jane Austen.
Box 4
The Promise To Caroline.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 4
The Recognition.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 4
The Romance of Robert and Clara Schumann.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A screenplay.
Box 4
A Royal Fandango.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 4
Sea-Change.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: An outline for a play.
Box 4
The Shanghai Crowd.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A synopsis of a play.
Box 4
A Secret of Sienna.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 4
The Singing Swans.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 4
A Slave Is Free.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A film treatment. Two copies.
Box 4
The Starling.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play, holograph, unfinished.
Box 4
Starvation On Red River.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 4
Such a Charming Young Man.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A one-act play.
Box 4
The Swallow's Nest.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A play, based on the novel
Return Engagement, by Gwen Davenport.
Box 4
The Texas Nightingale.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A treatment and a play.
Box 4
The Trojan Pony.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: An outline for a play and screenplay.
Box 4
The Unforgettable Red Emma.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: An article.
Box 4
The Varying Shore.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: A play.
Box 4
The Wild Goose Chase.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 4
The Woman Who Killed Her Pearls.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A story.
Box 4
Working Girls.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Scope and Content Note
A screenplay, adapted from the play
Blind Mice, by Vera Caspary and Winifred Lenihan.
Box 4
One untitled article about Irving Thalberg.
Creator/Collector: Akins, Zoë.
Physical Description: Also, three unidentified pages of typescript material.
