Christopher Isherwood Letters to Jack Rosen: Finding Aid
mssCIJR
Gayle M. Richardson
The Huntington Library
May 2023
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Business Number: (626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Christopher Isherwood letters to Jack Rosen
Creator:
Isherwood, Christopher, 1904-1986
Identifier/Call Number: mssCIJR
Physical Description:
0.02 Linear Feet
(1 folder)
Date (inclusive): 1966-1978
Abstract: Postcards and a note from Christopher
Isherwood to Jack Rosen.
Language of Material: Materials are in
English.
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at
the Huntington Library for more information.
Conditions Governing Use
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from
or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The
responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining
necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item]. Christopher Isherwood letters to Jack Rosen, The Huntington
Library, San Marino, California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Neal B. Rosen, March 2023.
Biographical / Historical
Christopher Isherwood (1904-1986) was the British American author of All the conspirators
(1928), The last of Mr. Norris (1935) and Good-bye to Berlin (1939; reissued as The Berlin
stories, 1946), Prater Violet (1945), The world in the evening (1954), Down there on a visit
(1962), A single man (1964), A meeting by the river (1967), Kathleen and Frank (1971), and
others. A close friend of W. H. Auden, Isherwood collaborated with him on the dramas The dog
beneath the skin (1935), The ascent of F6 (1936), and On the frontier (1938), as well as on
Journey to a war (1939). From 1928 to 1932, he lived in Germany, and in 1939 emigrated to
the United States. Isherwood met his partner, Don Bachardy (1934-), in 1953 and they
remained together until Isherwood's death in 1986; Don Bachardy is an artist and writer.
Isherwood is known for his advocacy of discarding the taboos against homosexuality.
Scope and Contents
The collection consists of eight postcards and one note written by Christopher Isherwood to
Jack Rosen of Portland, Oregon. The correspondence refers to Isherwood's and Don Bachardy's
creative output, and several works including A Meeting By the River, Exhumations, Cabaret,
Frankenstein: The True Story, Kathleen and Frank, My Guru and His Disciple, and others;
Isherwood also mentions his friends W. H. Auden, Igor Stravinsky, and Vera Stravinsky. The
postcards are autograph or typewritten and are all written from Santa Monica, California,
the home of Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy. The collection also includes one empty
envelope postmarked January 15, 1975.
Processing Information
Processed by Gayle M. Richardson in May 2023.
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Artists -- United States
Authors, American -- 20th century
Gay authors -- United States
Motion picture industry -- California --
Los Angeles -- History
Santa Monica (Calif.)
Letters (correspondence)
Postcards
Auden, W. H. (Wystan Hugh), 1907-1973
Bachardy, Don, 1934-
Stravinsky, Igor, 1882-1971
Stravinsky, Vera
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Postcard, typewritten
1966 June 14
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Postcard, autograph
1966 November 9
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Postcard, autograph
1967 January 30
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Postcard, autograph
approximately 1970 November 30
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Postcard, autograph
1972 February 20
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Postcard, typewritten
approximately 1974 April 9
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Postcard, autograph
1977 June 28
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Note, autograph
1977 December 17
Scope and Contents
With envelope.
Box Main file 90, Folder 7
Postcard, autograph
1978 July 31
