American Writers - The Spoken Word

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This three CD set includes recordings of 27 celebrated American writers, starting from the earliest generation whose voices survive. The majority of the recordings derive from BBC radio broadcasts, in which the writers talk about their careers, their art and their politics. From historic recordings of Gertrude Stein, Eugene O’Neill and F Scott Fitzgerald to more recent interviews with James Michener, Arthur Miller and Toni Morrison, this compilation covers novelists and playwrights at the forefront of literature in the 20th century. Most of the recordings are being published here for the first time.

Listen to sample tracks using Windows Media Player:
Eugene O'Neill reads an extract from his play 'Long Day's Journey into Night'

F Scott Fitzgerald reads an extract from Shakespeare's 'Othello', recorded in 1939

Thornton Wilder talks about the roots of American culture

John Steinbeck talks about the origin of his book 'The Grapes of Wrath', recorded on 31 January 1952

Lillian Hellman talks about her career as a playwright, broadcast 8 February 1979

Ralph Ellison talks about the beginning of his career as a writer, recorded 22 February 1969

Arthur Miller talks about his marriage to Marilyn Monroe, broadcast 26 April 1984

Track listing
DISC ONE

1. Gertrude Stein [1874-1946]
American Points of View

2. Sinclair Lewis [1885-1951]
Address from the 1940 Writers’ Committee for Roosevelt Conference

3. Anita Loos [1888–1981]
Interview with Anita Loos

4. Raymond Chandler [1888-1959]
Playback Dr No

5. Eugene O’Neill [1888-1953]
Extract from O’Neill: Long Day’s Journey into Night

6. Henry Miller [1891-1980]
Bookshelf

7. Pearl Buck [1892-1973]
Speech at Gallaudet College

8. James Thurber [1894-1961]
Interview with James Thurber

9. F Scott Fitzgerald [1896-1940]
Shakespeare: Othello [extract]

10. Thornton Wilder [1897-1975]
Talk on Gertrude Stein and Emily Dickinson

11. Vladimir Nabokov [1899-1977]
Interview with Vladimir Nabokov

DISC TWO
1. John Steinbeck [1902-1968]
Interview with John Steinbeck

2. Isaac Bashevis Singer [1904-91]
A Story No-one Else can Tell

3. Lillian Hellman [1905-84]
Omnibus: Lillian Hellman

4. James A Michener [1907-97]
Bookshelf

5. Eudora Welty [1909-2001]
A Curtain of Green

6. Tennessee Williams [1911-83]
Frankly Speaking

7. Mary McCarthy [1912-1989]
Monitor

8. William S Burroughs [1914-97]
Interview with William S Burroughs

DISC THREE

1. Ralph Ellison [1914-1994]
Interview with Ralph Ellison

2. Saul Bellow [1915-2005]
The Arts in Scotland

3. Arthur Miller [1915-2005]
Kaleidoscope

4. Patricia Highsmith [1921-1995]
Kaleidoscope

5. James Baldwin [1924-1987]
The World of Books

6. William Styron [1925-2006]
Styron’s Choice

7. Gore Vidal [born 1925]
Kaleidoscope

8. Toni Morrison [born 1931]
Interview with Toni Morrison