Children's Literature Research Collection
113 Elmer L. Andersen Library
University of Minnesota
222 21st Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Children's Literature
Research Collection
113 Elmer L. Andersen Library
University of Minnesota
222 21st Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Summary Information
Collection Number: CLRC-201
Collection Size: Ca. 0.6 linear ft. (Manuscripts and related material)
Abstract/Notes: Gene Zion's papers focus on his work as an author of children's books. The collection contains production material for nine titles published between 1956 and 1965. Production materials consist mainly of manuscripts, including typescripts and carbon typescripts, a dummy, and some marked copies for various editions. The collection also contains some correspondence to Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham, his former wife and frequent collaborator, some correspondence and artwork from children, and a one page autobiographical sketch by Gene Zion.
Gene Zion's family gave this collection to the University of Minnesota in 1979.
Collection is non-circulating, in-house use only.
This collection is protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code). It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all the necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials.
Prepared by Christina Cowan, February 1999,
This collection was processed with financial assistance from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Biographical/Historical Notes
Gene [Eugene] Zion was born October 5, 1913 in New York, New York. He graduated from the Pratt Institute and worked for Esquire Publications and CBS, and worked as a free lance writer and designer from 1949 to 1975. Gene Zion published his first book, All Falling Down, in 1951. His wife Margaret Bloy Graham (married 1948, divorced in 1968) illustrated the book. Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham collaborated on many works, including the popular "Harry the dog" books beginning with Harry the Dirty Dog in 1956. Critics praised Gene Zion's "charming" texts and his unique talent for envisioning the "story through the eyes of a child." Gene Zion's depiction of Harry's personality was also noted by critics who called Harry "a timeless personality inviting warmth, involvement and understanding." Gene Zion's stories and characters dealt with some of the "universal" problems children encounter and readers emphasized with the characters' plights. His books were also notable for their zany humor especially The Plant Sitter (1959), whose plot critics called a "happy blend of unanswerable logic and wild improbability." Gene Zion died on December 5, 1975.
Scope and Content Notes
The collection contains production material for nine titles published between 1956 and 1965. Production materials consist mainly of manuscripts, including holographs, corrected typescripts and carbon typescripts, a dummy, and some marked copies for various editions. The collection also contains some correspondence to Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham, his former wife and frequent collaborator, from their editors, including Ursula Nordstrom, and publishers as well as a copy of a paper done on Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham. There is also correspondence and artwork from children dated from 1963 to 1980, and a one page autobiographical sketch by Gene Zion. The materials are arranged by title with folder and box level control.
See attached inventory for folder and box contents.
Collection Inventory
Correspondence
-Correspondence and artwork from children,
221 p.
(M.F. 870a, folders 1-4)
-Correspondence with editors and others,
64 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-"Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham" a paper by Gayle Sommer, Typescript,
12 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
Dear Garbage Man, 1957
-Holograph and corrected typescript,
5 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
18 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
11 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
8 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
5 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
4 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
5 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
5 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 3)
-Typescript, photostat,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 3)
-Dummy,
32 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 3)
Harry and the Lady Next Door, 1960
-Typescript,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
12 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
7 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, carbon,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
11 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
10 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
10 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
7 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Correspondence,
2 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
Harry by the Sea, 1965
-Typescript, corrected,
6 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
5 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
6 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
6 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
5 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Correspondence,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-1 corrected book, 36 p.: Harry by the sea (New York: Harper and Row, 1965)
[Note on jacket: "working copy," apparently marked for Weekly Reader Children's Book Club Edition]
Harry the Dirty Dog, 1956
-Typescript, corrected,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
Jeffie's Party, 1957
-Typescript, corrected,
6 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
The Meanest Squirrel I Ever Met, 1962
-Typescript, corrected,
37 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
37 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected partial carbon,
40 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 3)
Miscellaneous
-Autobiographical sketch dated June 7, 1971
---Typescript, carbon,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
No Roses for Harry, 1958
-Typescript,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
4 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Correspondence,
1 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
The Plant Sitter, 1959
-Typescript, corrected,
4 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
4 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-1 book,
32 p.
(New York: Harper, 1959)
The Sugar Mouse Cake, 1964
-Holograph,
9 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Holograph,
4 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Holograph and corrected typescript,
5 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Holograph and corrected typescript,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
23 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 1)
-Typescript, corrected,
6 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected,
5 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected,
3 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
-Typescript, corrected carbon,
11 p.
(M.F. 870, folder 2)
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