Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
Sorrentino (Gilbert) papers
M0835
View entire collection guide
Search this collection
Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
Title: Gilbert Sorrentino Papers
Identifier/Call Number: M0835
Physical Description:
66 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1950-2004
Abstract: The Gilbert Sorrentino Papers feature
the materials of literary production of Sorrentino's creative career into 1999, including
manuscripts, personal notebooks, and correspondence. Also present is a comprehensive
collection of his papers and teaching materials from classes taught at Stanford.
Access restricted until processing is completed. Please check with the department.
Collection purchased, 1999.
Gilbert Sorrentino was born in Brooklyn, New York on April 27, 1929. His education at
Brooklyn College was interrupted in 1951 by his service in the U. S. Army Medical Corps. In
1955 he returned to Brooklyn college, where he founded the magazine Neon with college
friends, notably Hubert Selby Jr., Fielding Dawson, and Leroi Jones. He also served as
editor for Kulchur magazine and worked at Grove Press from 1965 - 70. He published his first
book of poems, The Darkness Surrounds Us in 1960, which was followed by Black and White
(1964) In 1965, he released his first novel, The Sky Changes (1966), and began his teaching
career with a course at Columbia University. Although highly regarded by critics,
Sorrentino's work has always been experimental and avant-garde and gained popular attention
late, with the publication of Mulligan Stew (1979). In 1982 he joined the faculty of
Stanford University, teaching creative writing until his retirement in 1999. He is the
recipient of numerous awards including Guggenheim Fellow in Fiction (1973, 1987), John Dos
Passos Prize for Literature (1981), Mildred and Harold Strauss Livings of the American
Academy of Arts and Letters (1982), American Academy of Arts and Letters Award for
Literature (1985), and the Lannan Literary Award for Fiction (1992).
Originally on deposit from Gilbert Sorrentino, 1985, 1990, 1993, 1996, and 1998; entire
collection purchased, 1999.
Gilbert Sorrentino Papers. M0835. Dept. of Special Collections, Stanford University
Libraries, Stanford, Calif.
Property rights reside with the repository. Literary rights reside with the creators of the
documents or their heirs. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the
Public Services Librarian of the Dept. of Special Collections.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
American literature -- 20th century.
American poetry -- 20th century.
American literature -- Study and teaching.
Levertov, Denise, 1923-1997
Stephens, Michael
Selby, Hubert
Sorrentino, Gilbert
O'Brien, Jack
Creeley, Robert, 1926-2005
Bronk, William
Eigner, Larry, 1927-1996
Dowell, Coleman