Box 1
Contains 55 Results:
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Los Angeles, California, to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 18 February 1933
Sinclair proposes a business arrangement. In exchange for helping locate and supply bookstores in Pittsburgh with Sinclair's books, Kress will receive a ten percent commission.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvani, 30 January 1935
Sinclair discusses his beliefs about God. He regrets he has never been able to find the time to write a book on the subject.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 16 November 1936
In a short letter, Sinclair admits "it is quite possible that I have made a mistake about [Dr. Albert] Abrams." Sinclair was an enthusiastic supporter and stauch defender of Abrams, whose first invention was a diagnosing machine called the "dynomizer." Abrams claimed he could diagnose and cure almost any disease. The American Medical Association and Scientific American deemed the machine and its creator fraudulent.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 20 December 1937
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 18 June 1938
In a brief letter, Sinclair speculates that Jack London and poet George Sterling were alcoholics.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 7 November 1938
Sinclair reflects on meeting Russian revolutionary and philosopher Peter Kropotkin in 1913.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 22 December 1938
Sinclair reflects on his financial well-being, and the swings in fortune he endured as a young author.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 27 March 1939
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 19 May 1939
Sinclair reflects on his play, Marie Antoinette, and his novel, Our Lady, and informs Kress he has contacted Helen Woodward, pioneering advertising executive and author, on Kress's behalf.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, n.p., 1 June 1939
Sinclair relays Helen Woodward's reply. "I knew she would do her best. I fear that you and I do not realize how very bad conditions are in the literary market in New York." Sinclair mentions he will send Kress's manuscript on to Helen Woodward's husband, William E. Woodward, editor, publisher, and author to see if he has can offer any suggestions.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 7 June 1939
Sinclair promises to write a letter of introduction for Kress to William E. Woodward, but admits having little "confidence that [his] opinion will count with anybody who has money to pay out under the profit system. . . ."
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, n.p., 10 July 1939
Sinclair writes that he is "delighted" Kress finds chapters 22 and 23 of World's End"interesting," but notes it will be some time before he is able to send additional chapters, as he is wanting "to stop and make a thorough study of the peace negotiations."
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California to Melville Kress, n.p., 15 December 1939
Sinclair gives literary advice to Kress about a sonnet he has written. He says, "you have something interesting and worthwhile to say, and some of your lines seem to me good," but then, with a hint of derision, questions Kress's vocabulary and concludes the entire piece "would need a lot of working over; and your last line needs another foot!"
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 22 January 1940
Sinclair writes he is working on the final revision of World's End and goes on to explain his attitude toward Russia after the invasion of Finland. He says Stalin has made a "dreadful blunder, because he has deprived the Soviet Union of what was its strong support in the eyes of liberals all over the world—the fact that it was standing for peace. . . ."
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 27 January 1940
Sinclair continues to discuss the Russian invasion of Finland. He describes the invasion as "identical with the Hitler technique" and regrets he defended Russia so "ardently," admitting his feelings mirror "the fellow whose best girl deserts him."
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, n.p., 14 March 1940
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, n.p., 5 April 1940
Sinclair agrees to "run through" Kress's manuscript and send it along to [Benjamin] Huebsch. Sinclair concludes the letter with mention that he has "happily started on Volume Two of the novel, which I am going to call Dragon's Teeth, and have about twenty-five pages. . . ." Dragon's Teeth would ultimately become the third volume in the World's Endseries, and be awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1943.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, n.p., 22 July 1940
Sinclair outlines the story of Marie, Madame de Bruyne, a character in the World's Endseries. He writes there is a "problem about the story," and requests Kress to "think this all over and tell me which seems to you the most interesting form of story."
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 5 August 1940
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 14 August 1940
Sinclair provides advice about an unspecified personal matter, saying "it made me sad because it indicated great unhappiness and more to come." His letter concludes in a humorous vein with a light-hearted account about swimming.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 19 August 1940
Sinclair writes he is pleased Kress "likes the art-buying chapters" but says he will not change his treatment of Lanny and his carefree handling of large sums of money. He goes on to explain, this is because his friend and the inspiration for Lanny, Martin Birnbaum, "described to me many such transactions and he never mentioned having any guard."
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 28 August 1940
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 4 September 1940
Sinclair thanks Kress for "calling attention" to a "slip" in the manuscript about Walter Rathanau, the German statesman who was assassinated in 1922. He goes on to address two humorous questions from Kress regarding whether he has ever made maple syrup.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 18 October 1940
This brief letter contains further discussion about the plot of Dragon's Teeth.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 1 November 1940
Sinclair discusses the plot of Between Two Worlds, sequel to World's End.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 22 November 1940
Sinclair writes he is working on the final revisions to Between Two Worlds. He goes on to discuss current events in Russia, Germany and Britain, along with his thoughts about possible conscription in the United States.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 20 January 1941
Sinclair writes he will finish the page proofs of Between Two Worlds and hopes Kress will give him advice on his third volume, Dragon's Teeth. The letter also contains further discussion of current events in Russia.
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 14 March 1941
Sinclair offers a stinging critique of Kress's manuscript. He writes, "what I thought was going to be an interesting story turned out to be just an introduction to a sermon. . . .it would seem that you have fallen between two stools."
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 21 March 1941
Letter: Upton Sinclair, Pasadena, California, to Melville Kress, Neville Island, Pennsylvania, 21 April 1941
Sinclair describes at length the plot of Dragon's Teeth.