Description
The papers of Art Hoppe, long-time political columnist and satirist for the San Francisco Chronicle.
Background
Arthur Watterson (Art) Hoppe was a political columnist and satirist for the San Francisco Chronicle for 35 years. Born in
Hawaii in 1925, Art Hoppe was raised in San Francisco and educated at Lowell High School and Harvard University. In 1949,
Hoppe began working for the Chronicle as a copy boy and shortly thereafter became a reporter. For his first major story, published
in 1952, Hoppe and photographer Ken McLaughlin became the first newsmen on the scence when they skied to the streamliner City
of San Francisco, which was snowbound in the High Sierra for three days. Other early articles included a 1956 series on Skid
Row in San Francisco and a 1959 series on African-American crime in San Francisco. In 1960, Hoppe was chosen to write a humorous
column on city hall politics. Eventually, his column broadened to deal also with state and national politics and even to encompass
social satire. Hoppe published eight books, including three anthologies of his columns, four novels, and a memoir. He also
wrote numerous short stories and articles that appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, and other publications, as
well as a few plays, some ow which were staged in San Francisco and Marin County. Hoppe was an avid yachtsmen and wrote many
articles on the subject, including a 1948 account of ordering a 25-foot boat by mail from Japan (published in the New Yorker).
Art Hoppe married Gloria Nichols in 1946. Together they had four children, Leslie, Andrea, Arthur, and Prentiss. He was the
recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Society of Newspaper Columnists.
Extent
Number of containers: 17 cartons, 3 boxes, 2 oversize boxes, 1 cardfile box, 1 volume
(linear feet: 24.25)
Restrictions
All requests to reproduce, publish, quote from or otherwise use collection materials must be submitted in writing to the Head
of Public Services, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 94720-6000. Consent is given on behalf of The
Bancroft Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission from the copyright
owner. Such permission must be obtained from the copyright owner. See: http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/reference/permissions.html.
Availability
Collection is open for research.