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Finding Aid of the Leonard Wibberley papers
0172
0172
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Title: Leonard Wibberley papers
Collection number: 0172
Contributing Institution:
USC Libraries Special Collections
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
17.33 Linear feet
15 boxes, 1 map case file
Date (inclusive): 1953-1983
Abstract: This collection contains the papers of the author Leonard Wibberley (1915-1983). Wibberley wrote over 100 books over the course
of his career. His papers include manuscripts, galleys, and typescripts for books written by him.
creator:
Holton, Leonard, 1915-1983
creator:
O'Connor, Patrick, 1915-1983
creator:
Webb, Christopher, 1915-1983
creator:
Wibberley, Leonard, 1915-1983
The Leonard Wibberley papers were donated to USC by Leonard Wibberley in the late 1960s, by his heirs in 2002 and by the archives
of Shell Aircraft International in 2004.
[Box/folder# or item name], Leonard Wibberley papers, Collection no. 0172, Special Collections, USC Libraries, University
of Southern California.
This collection contains typescripts, manuscripts, and galleys for various works written by Leonard Wibberley. It also includes
the texts of some of his lectures and articles and some of his business correspondence. Please see the Scope and Content notes
of individual series for more information.
Leonard Wibberley was born April 9, 1915, in Dublin, Ireland. He attended schools in Ireland and England and was an apprentice
to a London publisher. At sixteen, he became a copy boy at the
Sunday Dispatch; during the Depression, he worked as street fiddler, ditch digger, dishwasher, and cook. From 1932-1936, he was a reporter
for the
London Daily Mirror and assistant London editor for the
Malayan Straits Times and the
Singapore Free Press; he then became editor of the
Trinidad Evening News in the West Indies. Wibberley worked for the Shell Oil Company in Trinidad from 1939-1941. He emigrated to the U.S. in 1943
to work for Walsh Kaiser Shipyards while also serving as cable editor for the Associated Press. He was the American correspondent
for the
London Evening News and a staff writer for
The Los Angeles Times from 1950 until his death of a heart attack on November 22, 1983, in Santa Monica, California.
Wibberley wrote more than one hundred books, including stories for children, historical novels, satires, plays, and mysteries.
Many of these were written under the pseudonyms Leonard Holton, Christopher Webb, and Patrick O'Connor. Wibberley is best
known for his five political satires
The Mouse That Roared,
Beware of the Mouse,
The Mouse on the Moon,
The Mouse on Wall Street, and
The Mouse that Saved the West; the first two were made into successful motion pictures.
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE. Advance notice required for access.
The collection contains published materials; researchers are reminded of the copyright restrictions imposed by publishers
on reusing their articles and parts of books. It is the responsibility of researchers to acquire permission from publishers
when reusing such materials. The copyright to unpublished materials belongs to the heirs of the writers. Permission to publish,
quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826 -- Fiction
Wibberley, Leonard, 1915-1983 -- Archives
Authors, Irish--California--Los Angeles--20th century--Archival resources
Children's literature--Archival resources
Correspondence
Historical fiction--Archival resources
Manuscripts
Page proofs
Screenwriters--California--Los Angeles--Archival resources
Scripts
Travel writing--Archival resources
Typescripts