Collection Guide
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Kim (Ronyoung) and Richard Hahn papers
3010
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
USC Libraries East Asian Library
Title: Ronyoung Kim and Richard Hahn papers
Creator:
Kim, Ronyoung
Creator:
Hahn, Richard
Identifier/Call Number: 3010
Identifier/Call Number: 952
Physical Description:
21 Linear Feet
19 boxes
Date (inclusive): 1914-2000
Abstract: Ronyoung Kim was a Korean American author, best known for her novel "Clay Walls." Her husband, Richard Hahn, was a doctor
and writer as well. This collection comprises primarily biographical materials, writings, academic papers, printed materials,
photographs, and correspondence created and collected by both Ronyoung Kim and Richard Hahn, documenting Kim's personal life
and professional career. It also contains correspondence and printed materials by and about Richard Hahn.
Language of Material:
English
, Korean
.
The collection is organized into the following six series: Biographical materials, Correspondence and letters, Writings and
notes, Academic essays and materials, Printed materials, and Photographs. Arrangement within each series is chronological.
The Ronyoung Kim and Richard Hahn papers, 1914-2000, consist of biographical materials, correspondence, short stories, poems,
notes, academic essays, school materials, printed articles, newspaper clippings and photographs created and collected by Ronyoung
Kim during her life and Richard S. Hahn after her death.
The majority of the material is comprised of numerous drafts, manuscripts, and two published editions of the novel "Clay Walls",
correspondence to and from publishing houses, editors, and literary agents regarding the publication of "Clay Walls" and other
short stories, as well as the evolution of Kim's writing process. Included among these materials are research notes, drafts
and typescripts of essays (both personal and academic), short stories, poems and plays by Kim as well as writings by other
individuals whom influenced her work.
The collection also includes papers pertaining to Richard Hahn's medical career and Gloria Hahn's academic and museum docent
work, as well as personal correspondence, family photographs, and a small series of biographical materials featuring resumes,
awards, and other personal documents.
Born Gloria Jane Kim on March 28, 1926 in Los Angeles, Kim was the daughter of Korean immigrants and a Korean American writer;
she married Richard S. Hahn, a heart surgeon, at the age of age 19. The two lived in Belvedere and had four children.
After her children graduated from college, Kim went back to school where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Far Eastern Art
and Culture at San Francisco State University. Additionally, she was a docent at the Asian Museum of Art in San Francisco.
Throughout her life, Kim wrote many poems, short stories and essays. Her first and only novel, "Clay Walls", was the first
major novel focusing on the experiences of Korean immigrants and Korean Americans in the United States. It was published by
Second Chance Press: The Permanent Press in 1987, shortly before her death. Kim passed away on February 3, 1987, at the age
of 60, after a lengthy battle with breast cancer.
Richard Hahn was retired as a thoracic surgeon prior to Kim's death. After her passing, Hahn continued with correspondence
regarding his wife's writings as well as the collecting of articles relating to her life and works. In 1993, he began writing
his own novels; one of these was a sequel to "Clay Walls".
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE. Advance notice required for access.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Department of the East
Asian Library at eal@usc.edu. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the East Asian Library as the owner of the
physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
[Box/Folder# or Item name]. Ronyoung Kim and Richard Hahn papers, Collection no. 3010, Korean Heritage Library, USC Libraries,
University of Southern California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Richard Hahn.
Related materials pertaining to Ronyoung Kim can be found within USC's Korean-American Digital Archive in the form of oral
histories, as part of the Korean American Museum Oral History Series subcollection. http://libguides.usc.edu/KADA
The majority of materials were originally housed in numbered binders. The individual documents were removed from these binders,
placed in folders, and given supplied titles and series by a prior archivist. It also appears some of the photographs were
separated from their respective correspondence and placed in their own folders. Additionally, it is possible the prior Archivist
combined the papers of Richard Hahn with Ronyoung Kim's.
Upon further review by the current archivist, it was noted that although the majority of the materials lacked original order
by the creator(s), some items were initially grouped together chronologically. With this in mind, the collection was then
rearranged chronologically with intellectual and physical order imposed (in the form of reorganizing into more clearly defined
series and folder titles as well as the combining of like materials).
The chronological arrangement of each series shows both the writing process and professional career progression of Ronyoung
Kim, as well as the span of her and Richard Hahn's personal life.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Asian American men -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources
Asian American women authors -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources
Asian American women -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources
Korean American men -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources
Korean American physicians -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources
Korean American women authors -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources
Korean American women -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival resources
Literature, Modern -- 20th century -- Archival resources
Correspondence
Essays
Photographs
Slides (photographs)
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco -- Archives
Hahn, Richard -- Archives
Kim, Ronyoung -- Archives