Sheridan de Raismes Gibney (AC 1925) Papers
Scope and Contents
The bulk of the Papers consists of play scripts and dramatic treatments written by Gibney for stage and television, 1925-1980; personal and professional correspondence, 1920-1962; the manuscript of an unpublished novel, Flatbush Man, ca. 1979-1985; and various papers related to his undergraduate years at Amherst College and his receipt of an honorary degree in 1939.
Dates
- Creation: 1920-1992
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1922-1985
Creator
- Gibney, Sheridan (AC 1925) (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
There is no restriction on access to the Sheridan Gibney Papers for research use. Particularly fragile items are restricted for preservation purposes.
Conditions Governing Use
Requests for permission to publish material from the Papers should be directed to the Archives and Special Collections. It is the responsibility of the researcher to identify and satisfy the holders of all copyrights.
Biographical / Historical
Sheridan de Raismes Gibney (AC 1925), a popular playwright and screenwriter, was born in New York City on June 11, 1903. He attended Phillips Exeter Academy before entering Amherst College. After Amherst and from 1926 to 1929 he worked as an instructor at Hobart College, Geneva, N.Y. In the 1920s Gibney wrote several plays, including Sunshine, Penelope's Web, Letter to a Lover, Calico Wedding, Encore, Merry Madness, and The Wiser They Are. In the 1930s as a chief contract writer with Warner Brothers, he got his first movie credits with I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang. He collaborated on the House on West 56th Street and, with Marc Connelly, Green Pastures. His screenplay for Anthony Adverse resulted in a big hit in 1936. In that same year he won two Oscars for the original story and screenplay for The Story of Louis Pasteur. Amherst College awarded him an honorary M.A. in 1939.
With the arrival of television, Gibney wrote episodes or stories for Bachelor Father, Thriller, Fair Exchange, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., The Six Million Dollar Man and Police Woman. He was a charter member of the Screen Writers Guild and served as its president from 1939-1941 and 1947-1948.
In 1931 Gibney married Mildred McCoy; he was married again in 1952 to Katrin Janecke in Hollywood, California. Sheridan Gibney died on April 12, 1988.
Extent
3.25 Linear feet (2 records storage boxes, 2 archives boxes, 1 half archives box)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The bulk of the Papers consists of play scripts and dramatic treatments written by Gibney for stage and television, 1925-1980; personal and professional correspondence, 1920-1962; the manuscript of an unpublished novel, Flatbush Man, ca. 1979-1985; and various papers related to his undergraduate years at Amherst College and his receipt of an honorary degree in 1939.
Arrangement
This collection is organized into eight series:
- Series 1: Produced Plays, 1929-1979
- Series 2: Unproduced Plays, 1925-1937
- Series 3: Produced Screenplays, 1935-1946
- Series 4: Unproduced Screenplays, 1936-1980
- Series 5: Treatments, 1934, undated
- Series 6: Novels and Poems, 1979-1985, undated
- Series 7: Amherst College Papers, 1922-1938
- Series 8: Biographical Materials, 1992, undated
Processing Information
- Processed:
- 1991
- Finding Aid:
- Revised November 2001
Subject
- Gibney, Sheridan (AC 1925) (Person)
- Status
- Completed
- Date
- 2002
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Sponsor
- Encoding funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Repository Details
Part of the Amherst College Archives and Special Collections Repository
Amherst College Archives & Special Collections
Robert Frost Library
61 Quadrangle Drive
Amherst MA 01002-5000
(413) 542-2299
archives@amherst.edu