Finding Aid for the Joseph T. Shaw Papers, 1936-1952
Processed by Charlotte Payne, 1975, Additions by Lilace Hatayama, 1985; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé
and edited by Caroline Cubé and Josh Fiala.
UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections
Manuscripts Division
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
Email: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
URL: http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/special/scweb/
© 2006
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: Joseph T. Shaw Papers
Date (inclusive): 1936-1952
Collection number: 2052
Creator: Shaw, Joseph T. (Joseph Thompson), b. 1874
Extent:
6 boxes (2.5 linear ft.)
1 oversize box
Abstract: Captain Joseph T. Shaw (1874-1952) edited the detective fiction magazine,
Black mask (founded by H.L. Mencken and George Jean Nathan in 1920), from 1926-36. He later worked as literary agent for the Sydney
A. Sanders Agency and his own Joseph T. Shaw Associates, His published works include
Derelict (c1930),
Danger ahead (c1932), and
Blood on the curb (c1936). The collection consists of correspondence of Shaw with authors represented by the Sydney A. Sanders Agency (1949-50)
and Joseph T. Shaw Associates (1951-52), photographs, ephemera relating to Shaw Associates, and material relating to his work
as editor of
A hard-boiled omnibus: early stories from Black mask (1946).
Language:
English
Repository:
University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Department of Special Collections.
Los Angeles, California 90095-1575
Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library, Department
of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Administrative Information
Restrictions on Access
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Library, Department
of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library,
Department of Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of
the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the
copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC
Regents do not hold the copyright.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
- Gift of Mrs. Joseph T. Shaw.
- Gift of Joseph T. Shaw, 1985.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Joseph T. Shaw Papers (Collection 2052). Department of Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research
Library, UCLA.
UCLA Catalog Record ID
Biography
Captain Joseph T. Shaw was born in 1874; he edited the detective fiction magazine,
Black mask (founded by H.L. Mencken and George Jean Nathan in 1920), from 1926-36; he later worked as literary agent for the Sydney
A. Sanders Agency and his own Joseph T. Shaw Associates; published works include
Derelict (c1930),
Danger ahead (c1932), and
Blood on the curb (c1936); he died on August 1, 1952.
Scope and Content
Collection consists of correspondence of Shaw with authors represented by the Sydney A. Sanders Agency (1949-50) and Joseph
T. Shaw Associates (1951-52), photographs, ephemera relating to Shaw Associates, and material relating to his work as editor
of
A hard-boiled omnibus: early stories from Black mask (1946). Material includes drafts of material, correspondence with contributors, and mock-up of anthology. Correspondents
include Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett. Photographs include a large framed black and white photograph mounted on linen
tablecloth of the first west coast
Black mask get-together on January 11, 1936, featuring and autographed by Raymond Jae Moffatt, Raymond Chandler, Herbert Stinson, Dwight
Babcock, Eric Taylor, Dashiell Hammett, Arthur Barnes, John K. Butler, Todhunter Ballard, Horace McCoy, and Norbert Davis.
Organization and Arrangement
Arranged in the following series:
- Correspondence (Boxes 1-4).
- Ephemera (Box 5).
-
The hard-boiled omnibus: early stories from Black mask (Box 7).
- Signed group photograph of writers mounted on linen tablecloth (Oversize box 6).
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Subjects
Shaw, Joseph T. (Joseph Thompson), b. 1874--Archives.
Shaw, Joseph T. (Joseph Thompson), b. 1874--
Hard-boiled omnibus.
Literary agents--United States--Archival resources.
Periodical editors--United States.
Index to Prominent Correspondents
Bellem, Robert Leslie
Box 1
2 items
Booth, Charles G.
Box 5, folder 8
3 items
Chandler, Raymond
Box 5, folder 8
2 items
Chidsey, Donald B.
Box 5, folder 8
1 item
Cox, William R.
Box 1
146 items
Coxe, George Harmon.
Box 5, folder 8
4 items
Dannay, Frederick
See “Queen, Ellery”
Fox, Norman A.
Box 2
263 items
Gardner, Erle Stanley
Box 5, folder 8
5 items
Hammett, Dashiell
Box 5, folder 8
7 items
Nobel, Frederick
Box 5, folder 8
3 items
“Queen, Ellery”
Box 3
4 items
Walsh, Thomas
Box 4; Box 5, folder 8
155 items
Whitfield, Raoul
Box 5, folder 8
3 items
Photographs
Coxe, George Harmon
Box 5, folder 4
1 item
MacDonald, John
Box 5, folder 4
1 item
Nobel, Frederick
(photograph by William Mortensen)
Box 5, folder 4
1 item
Thompson, Thomas
Box 5, folder 4
1 item
Whitfield, Raoul
Box 5, folder 4
1 item
Shaw, Joseph Thompson
Box 5, folder 4
1 item and photocopy
Correspondence. ca. 1949-1952
Scope and Content Note
Correspondence with authors represented by Shaw's literary agency, Joseph T. Shaw Associates (1951-1952), and through Shaw's
earlier affiliation, the Sydney A. Sanders Agency (1949-1950).
Box 1
A - E.
Physical Description: 631 items.
Box 2
F - G.
Physical Description: 695 items.
Box 3
H - R.
Physical Description: 720 items.
Box 4
S - Z.
Physical Description: 551 items.
Box 5, Folder 1
Flyers and newsclippings referring to Shaw.
Physical Description: 3 items.
Joseph T. Shaw Associates
Box 5, Folder 2
Joseph T. Shaw Associates business records.
Physical Description: 2 items.
Box 5, Folder 3
Joseph T. Shaw Associates newsletter, “De la bouche du cheval,” in folder.
Physical Description: 7 items.
Box 5, Folder 4
Photographs of writers affiliated with Shaw.
Physical Description: 11 items.
Scope and Content Note
(Includes Gil Brewer, G.H. Coxe, Dan Cushman, Richard Glendenning, William Heuman, John MacDonald, Frederick Nebel, Shaw,
Thomas Thompson and Raoul Whitfield)
Note
NOTE: Nebel's portrait is by the California Photographer, William Mortensen. [Photograph of Frederick Nebel by William Mortensen
missing 5/87.]
Master negatives on file of Nebel and Whitfield items.
Missing, May 28, 1987.
Box 6
First West Coast
Black Mask Get-together. January 11, 1936.
Physical Description: 1 photo (black and white), 18 × 23 cm. (34 × 53 cm. framed). Mounted on linen tablecloth. In black wood frame.
Scope and Content Note
Group photograph of Raymond Jae Moffatt, Raymond Chandler, Herbert Stinson, Dwight Babcock, Eric Taylor, Dashiell Hammett,
Arthur Barnes, John K. Butler, Todhunter Ballard, Horace McCoy, Norbert Davis.
The photograph is signed by the authors represented in the photograph.
Note
Gift of Joseph T. Shaw, 1985.
Box 5, Folder 5
Obituary items.
Physical Description: 2 items.
The Hard-Boiled Omnibus (Anthology)
Box 5, Folder 6
Drafts of introductory material to the anthology. n.p. n.d.
Physical Description: 32 leaves. Typescript, typescript carbon and holograph.
Scope and Content Note
Rough drafts of material to be published in
The Hard-Boiled Omnibus.
Box 5, Folder 7
Lists of contributors and selections.
Physical Description: 7 leaves. Typescript, typescript carbon.
Box 5, Folder 8
Correspondence with or relating to contributors to anthology.
Physical Description: 64 items.
Scope and Content Note
(Includes Charles Booth, Raymond Chandler, G.H. Coxe, Norbert Davis, Lester Dent, Erle Stanley Gardner, Dashiell Hammett,
Ed Lyubeck, Frederick Nebel, Forrest Rosaire, Peter Ruric, Thomas Walsh and Raoul Whitfield)
Box 7, Folders 1-2
Rough mock-up of anthology with holograph galley notations. New York.
ca. 1946
Scope and Content Note
Made up of pages from original issues of the periodical,
Black Mask. Formerly in Box 5, folder 9.
