Browne Popular Culture Library

Introduction | Biographical Sketch | Scope and Content | Series Description | Inventory |

Introduction

The correspondence, literary manuscripts, and other non-book material in the Guymon Detective Ficton Collection provide revealing insights into the life and career of E. T. (Ned) Guymon, Jr., the man generally acknowledged to be the world's leading collector of mystery and detective fiction books. Spanning the years 1930 to 1983, the letters, photographs, and other memorabilia reflect Guymon's wide acquaintance with and patronage of the leading authors, collectors, and dealers in the mystery field.

A collection of over 3,000 books amassed by Guymon during the later years of his life is also housed in the Browne Popular Culture Library. The approximately 15,000 titles previously collected by him were donated to the library of his alma mater, Occidental College, Los Angeles in the late 1960s.

Both the book and manuscript collection were donated to Bowling Green State University by Kathryn Guymon, widow of Ned Guymon. This register was prepared by Nancy Steen in November 1985. The collection is open for use by researchers. Standard copyright restrictions are in effect for all unpublished manuscripts.

Biographical Sketch

Edward Tyndal Guymon, Jr. (1900-1983) was born in Kansas, graduated from Occidental College, and lived for the rest of his life in southern California. He began collecting first editions in the 1920s but soon realized that he should narrow his collecting scope. In the mid-1930s, he acquired A Study in Scarlet, the first Sherlock Holmes title, and from that time on, he concentrated on detective fiction. During the next fifty years, his collection became known to authors, bookmen, and other collectors all over the world. The collection led to the formation of lasting friendships with many of the most important names in the field, including Raymond Chandler, Fred Dannay ("Ellery Queen"), Vincent Starrett, August Derleth, Craig Rice, and David Randall.

Guymon was a member of the Baker Street Irregulars and the Mystery Writers of America. He was the recipient of the MWA's Raven Award in 1952 for his non-creative contribution to mystery writing. Guymon was also a prominent businessman with diverse interests.

Scope and Content

The voluminous correspondence between Guymon and numerous authors, dealers, and collectors, from 1930 to 1983, forms the basis of the Guymon Collection. In addition, there are a number of literary manuscripts; hundreds of dealers' invoices; and large files of materials pertaining to the Baker Street Irregulars; the Mystery Writers of America (including a long run of MWA's The Third Degree); and the Mystery Library.

Also included in the Collection of numerous catalogs, lists, reviews, programs, scrapbooks and photographs. Of special interest are the informal pictures of the famous authors in attendance at social functions at the Guymon home and elsewhere. Guymon's wide-ranging interests are attested to by the large number of Charles Wakefield Cadman's musical scores (1904-1945), most of which are inscribed by the composer to Guymon, his friend and patron.

Series Description

Correspondence

Correspondence with Authors

1899-1983, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by author (several important authors at beginning of alphabet)

Includes personal and professional letters, sent and received, from Fred Dannay, Vincent Starrett, Craig Rice, Stu Palmer, and many others. Also includes photocopies of Basil Rathbone's letters to Starrett.

Correspondence with Book dealers/Publishers

1924-1980, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by dealer/publisher (several important dealers at beginning of alphabet)

Includes both business and personal correspondence with many American and British dealers including Jim Keddie, David Randall, George Bates, and Arthur Lovell.

Correspondence with Other Collectors

1928-1981, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by collector (several important collectors at beginning of alphabet)

Letters illustrating Guymon's long and mutually beneficial relationships with such collectors as P. M. ("Perk") Stone, Nathan Bengis, and Al Hubin. Includes Stone's correspondence with others.

Miscellaneous Correspondence

1893-1980, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by writer

Includes correspondence with composer Charles Wakefield Cadman, a close Guymon friend. (Many of Cadman's musical scores are included in Printed Material and Music Manuscripts, below.)

Unidentified Correspondence

1902-1977, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Signatures missing, incomplete, illegible or unidentified.

Compilation of Extracts

1934-1935

Pertinent portions of letters, telegrams, and telephone calls between Guymon, Barbieri and Price, Ltd., Vincent Starrett, P. M. Stone, and David Randall dealing with the value and Guymon's purchase of A Study in Scarlet.

Subject Files

Artemisia Bookshop

1944-1946, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Correspondence, legal and financial documents dealing with the San Diego bookshop whose owner granted Guymon power of attorney in 1944.

Baker Street Irregulars

1934-1979, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Correspondence, constitution, newsletters, meeting minutes, invitations, flyers, songbooks, programs, financial reports, periodicals, bibliographies and other material related to this organization of Sherlock Holmes followers, followed by separate grouping relating to two local Chapters--The Speckled Band (Boston) and the Non-Canonical Calabashes (Los Angeles).
(Note: other Sherlockiana may be found in Printed Material below.)

Hammet Lawsuit

1951

Arranged chronologically

Correspondence and legal documents relating to the lawsuit filed by Warner Brothers against Dashiell Hammett and CBS charging that the latter parties appropriated Warners' rights to The Maltese Falcon. Guymon was asked to be an expert witness for the defense.

The Mystery Library

1975-1980, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Includes correspondence and publicity materials relevant to Guymon's tenure on the editorial board of this University of California-San Diego project to re-publish the world's outstanding mystery literature.

Mystery Writers of America

1948-1978, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Correspondence, announcements, programs, invitations and other materials connected with this organization of which Guymon was an affiliate member. Included also are a long run of The Third Degree, the association's newsletter and a number of issues of The March of Crime, the newsletter of the Southern California chapter.

Literary Productions

Research Notes

n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by title

Guymon's hand-written and typed notes on other authors' books and manuscripts and two typed pages of bibliographic data on two Arthur Conan Doyle titles.

Manuscripts, Literary

1905?-1984, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by author and/or title

Typed and hand-written manuscripts of books, short stories, articles, scripts, and poems by such authors as Clifford Ashdown, Raymond Chandler, Lillian de la torre, August Derleth, Norman Donaldson, William Gault, Ned Guymon, James A. Howard, John Ball, Allen Hubin, Otto Penzler, Aaron Marc Stein, Hillary Waugh, Phyllis Whitney, Craig Rice, Vincent Starrett, and Arthur Upfield.

Reminiscences

1936-1979, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by subject

Biographical essays and notes on r. Austin Freeman, Ned Guymon, Craig Rice, and others.

Speeches

1952, 1967, 1978, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by author

Hand-written and typed manuscripts of speeches by Ned Guymon, Elizabeth M. Hogan and William Lengel.

Reviews

1945-1946, 1961, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by reviewer

Typed and hand-written manuscripts of book reviews by Ned Guymon and Craig Rice.

Thesis

n.d.

Incomplete Master's thesis by James Howard.

Bibliographies

1936-1972, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Bibliographies of R. Austin Freeman compiled by the British Museum, of Sherlock Holmes materials collected by P. M. Stone; of Dorothy L. Sayers' works compiled by James Sandae; and of Bram Stoker, compiled by several students as a class assignment.

Transcriptions

1779-1978, n.d.

Arranged by format and alphabetically by author and/or title

Transcriptions of poems by thomas Bailey Adrich, Lyell Barbour, Richard Burton, and Maude Ashcraft Hanlin; from books by James Boswell, Ellery Queen, and William Rotsler; from books on the Great Southern Overland-Butterfield Stage Trail; from book inscriptoins by Stuart Palmer; from an interview with Ned Guymon and from a description of the Lilly Library copy of the Coverdale Bible.

Financial Documents

Invoices

1930-1979, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by dealer

Traces Guymon's purchases from dealers and publishers.

Literary Appraisal

1977

Michael Murphy's appraisal of guymon's material relating to Vincent Starrett.

Financial Report

1953

Report of the Bill Doll Sherlock Holmes Company, a theatrical production company in which Guymon had an interest.

Bank Check

1926

Check to Miss Beulah Hall, dated January 16, 1926 and signed “H. K. Thaw.”

Scrapbooks and Scrapbook Materials

Scrapbooks

1946-1954, n.d.

Includes scrapbooks containing pictures of numerous author friends of Guymon; invitation and replies to the Guymon's 1951 MWA party; MWA's 1953 and 1954 parties; Craig Rice's life and works; and an entire scrapbook on the famous 1946 murder case: The People of the State of California vs. Bernice Sisson (Note: see also PHOTOGRAPHIC MATERIALS below). (Oversize material located at the end of the collection.)

Maps, Charts, Diagrams, Graphs, Lists

Lists

1931-1962, n.d.

Arranged by type of list

Consists of Guymon Collections lists, P. M. Stone Collection lists, "best book" lists, miscellaneous book lists and other lists.

Printed Material

Certificates

1944, 1946, n.d.

Arranged by type of certificates and chronologically

Includes Raymond Chandler's certificate of nomination for Best Screenplay (1944 and 1946) from the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Pamphlets

1933-1971, n.d.

Arranged by subject and chronologically

Library and exhibition catalogs, materials on Sherlock Holmes, August Derleth, and other topics.

Flyers, Advertisements

1931-1977, n.d.

Arranged by subject and chronologically

Author biographies, membership invitations, and book, music and theater materials.

Book Catalogs/Tearsheets

1933-1982, n.d.

Arranged by dealer

Catalogs from a wide range of American and British dealers with many of Guymon's purchases marked.

Reviews

1934-1981, n.d.

Literary and theatrical reviews from various American and British newspapers and periodicals (predominantly photocopies).

Bibliographies

1938-1973, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Includes Charles Bragin's Bibliography of Dime Novels, two Lilly Library catalogs, and various other bibliographies.

Clippings

1921-1981, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Numerous clippings on a variety of subjects with emphasis on author profiles with special files on Charles Wakefield Cadman and music, and on Erle Stanley Gardner (photocopies).

Broadsides/Posters

1883-1949, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Original criminal reward offer notices, comic wanted posters, advertisement for Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine and an oversize Christmas greeting.
(Note: see oversize section at end of collection for an advertising poster for a Doyle Exhibition in 1949).

Programs/Invitations

1932-1980, n.d.

Arranged chronologically

Includes varied theatrical and musical programs, and invitations to speeches, school and university convocations, conventions, and dinners.

Periodicals/Tearsheets

1800-1979, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by title

Complete issues and original and photocopied tearsheets of a variety of periodicals. Includes a set of magazine proofs of Vincent Starrett's "A Volume of Poe." Signed presentation from Starrett.

Literary Productions

1889-1975, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by author

Includes photocopy of Andrewlina, a novel by J. S. Fletcher; a tearsheet of a thumbnail sketch of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson; two poems, an article on Simenon and Spillane; and photocopy of Vincent Starrett's poem "221 B," inscribed to Ned Guymon.

Dust Jackets

n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by author

Book Plates/Bookmarks

1943, n.d.

Includes book plates of Christopher Morley and Charles Wakefield Cadman and a bookmark printed by E. B. Hill containing a poem by Vincent Starrett, initialed by Starrett.

Miscellaneous

1862-1895, n.d.

Includes illustrations, Richard Austin Freeman's birth certificate (copy), DAR application, Sherlock Holmes calendar and detective postage stamps.

Musical Scores

1900-1945

Arranged chronologically

Scores of many of the works of composer Charles Wakefield Cadman, most with signed inscriptions from the composer to Mr. and Mrs. Guymon.

Music Manuscripts

Musical Scores

1932, n.d.

Arranged alphabetically by title

Fourteen hand-written manuscripts of Charles Wakefield Cadman's compositions. Some are dedicated and/or inscribed to the Guymons.

Photographic Materials

Positive Prints

1888-1953, n.d.

Arranged by subject

Includes one early and three later portraits of Ned Guymon, twenty-three prints of Fred Dannay ("Ellery Queen"), nine rare prints of Raymond Chandler and numerous portraits and candid snapshops of many of Guymon's author friends, most taken at MWA parties. Also present are two portraits (one signed) and two candid prints (one signed) of Arthur Conan Doyle, two snapshots of Vincent Starrett, and nine photos of Craig Rice.

Negative Prints

1888-1950, n.d.

Includes MWA party photos and views of Liberal, Kansas.

Engraving

n.d.

Engraving of Edgar Allan Poe.

Original Art Works

Original Sketches

1977, n.d.

Pen and ink drawings of "Ellery Queen" (Fred Dannay) and of Rose Dannay by Craig. Pencil drawing by Richard Austin Freeman.

Audio Recordings

Wax Disc

n.d.

Columbia recording of Edgar Wallace telling his story "The Man in the Ditch."

Miscellaneous

Autographs

1976-1978, n.d.

Arranged by type

Includes Guymon's "Veiled Lodger" inscription bookplates signed by various authors and Vincent Starrett's signed bookplate.

Inventory

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