de Grummond Collection

McCain Library and Archives
University Libraries
University of Southern Mississippi



LEE KINGMAN PAPERS

Collection Number
Collection Dates
Collection Volume
DG0553
1961-1979
.90 cu.ft. (3 boxes)

Biographical Sketch | Scope & Content | Related Collections | Series & Subseries | Box Inventory


Provenance
Material was donated by Lee Kingman from 1966 to 1988.

Restrictions
Noncirculating; available for research.

Copyright
The collection is protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U. S. Code). Reproductions can be made only if they are to be used for "private study, scholarship, or research." It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials, other than that noted above.

Biographical Sketch
Lee Kingman was born on October 6, 1919 in Reading, Massachusetts. She began writing stories at the age of six and poetry in junior high. By the time she started high school she knew that writing was her chosen career. She attended Colby Junior College and graduated from Smith College in 1940. That same year, she won an essay contest sponsored by Vogue for a piece entitled "Pamela's Socks and the Roman Emperors," about her teacher Mary Ellen Chase. Although she had plans to write, her father sent her to secretarial school in Cambridge. After finishing the eight week course, she got a job working for an insurance company. In her spare time she wrote children's plays for Plays Magazine.

In 1942, Ms. Kingman joined Houghton Mifflin as an assistant children's editor and two years later, became the children's book editor. In addition to editing books for others, Kingman started writing her own books. Her first book, Pierre Pidgeon, was published in 1943. Since that time, Kingman has written over 30 books, including both picture books and young adult stories. In 1945, she married Robert Natti and had two children, Susanna and Peter. Many of her stories are based on her family's experiences. Her husband's large Finnish family inspired many of her early stories including The Best Christmas (1949) and The Quarry Adventure (1951). When her son Peter became paralyzed after a car accident, she decided to write Head Over Wheels (1979). Her daughter Susanna's interest in school plays and women's rights led to Break A Leg, Betsy Maybe! (1976) and Georgina and the Dragon (1972) In addition to writing, Kingman also uses linoleum cuts to make printed fabric designs.

Source:

Related Collection
The Susanna Natti Papers (DG0727) are also held by the de Grummond Collection.

Scope and Content
The collection contains typescripts, galleys, and proofs for 6 titles. The materials are arranged alphabetically by title. Within each title the materials are arranged in the probable order in which they were created.

Two of the titles in the collection are about Teddy Tibbetts and "The Saturday Gang." In The Saturday Gang (1961) Teddy and the other members help solve a local robbery while trying to get parts in a TV series being filmed in their town. There is a layout for chapter 3 of this title. In the sequel, Private Eyes (1964) Teddy and "The Saturday Gang" hear mysterious voices when the Russell family build a new marina. There is also a manuscript and a typescript for this title.

In Georgina and the Dragon (1972), a 10 year old girl, named for her suffragette grandmother, tries to find a job in a "man's world" so that she can fly to see her grandmother's commemorative in Idaho. There is a manuscript, a typescript, and galleys for this title.

Head Over Wheels (1978) is the story of twins who are in a car accident, leaving one a quadriplegic. The story is based on the experience of Kingman's son Peter. According to Kingman, at the time of accident, not much was written on the subject and she felt she needed to write a story to help others who might face this type of crisis. It took her four years to write the story and her son helped with the editing. There is correspondence and typescripts for this title.

Series and Subseries

A. Correspondence

B. Books

C. Articles Published in North Shore Newspaper

D. Autobiographical Articles


Box Inventory


Box/Folder 

A. Correspondence

     1/1       Correspondence, 1963-1969, 8 items.

B. Books

     Georgina and the Dragon by Lee Kingman, illustrated by Leonard
     Shortall (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1972).

     1/2       Manuscript, "draft #1," pp. 1-35.

     1/3       Typescript, "draft #2," pp. 1-53. (pp. 36-53 are handwritten)

     1/4       Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks, pp. 1-53.

     1/5       Galleys, minor corrections, pp. 1-50.

     Head Over Wheels by Lee Kingman (Boston: Houghton Mifflin,
     1978).

     1/6       Correspondence, 1978-1979, 6 items.
               
               Related materials, 3 items.

     1/7-1/9   Typescript, "combination of first draft handwritten, second draft,
               typed, and third draft, inked with corrections," 

     1/7            Chapters 1-4, pp. 1-61G.

     1/8            Chapters 5-9, pp. 62-143.

     1/9            Chapters 10-15, pp. 133(?)-136, and 144-215.

     2/1-2/4   Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks, 

     2/1            Chapters 1-3, pp. 1-56.


     2/2            Chapters 4-7, pp. 57-108.

     2/3            Chapters 8-11, pp. 109-162.

     2/4            Chapters 12-15, pp. 163-219.

     Peter's Pony by Lee Kingman, pictures by Fen Lasell (Garden City,
     New York: Doubleday, 1963).

     2/5       Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks, pp. 1-13.

     2/6       Proofs, minor corrections, 24 July 1962 and 9 November 1962, 2
               sets.

     Private Eyes; Adventures with the Saturday Gang by Lee Kingman,
     illustrated by Burt Silverman (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1964).

     2/7-2/8   Manuscript, "original," 

     2/7            Chapters 1-5, pp. 1-87.

     2/8            Chapters 6-12, pp. 88-191.

     2/9-3/2   Typescript, "second revision," edited with typesetter's marks, 

     2/9            Chapters 1-4, pp. 1-63.

     3/1            Chapters 5-8, pp. 64-121.

     3/2            Chapters 9-12, pp. 122-195.

     The Saturday Gang by Lee Kingman, illustrated by Burt Silverman
     (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1961).

     3/3       Layout for chapter 3, 1 item.

     The Year of the Raccoon by Lee Kingman (Boston: Houghton
     Mifflin, 1966).

     3/4-3/6   Typescript, edited,

     3/4            Chapters 1-3, pp. 1-77.

     3/5            Chapters 4-6, pp. 78-176.

     3/6            Chapters 7-9, pp. 177-242.

     3/7       Galley, chapters 1-9, 88 pp.

C. Columns Published in North Shore Newspapers

      3/8       Children's book review columns, 1971-1972, 10 items.

D. Autobiographical Articles 

     3/9       Articles about Kingman, 2 articles.     

               Something About the Author Autobiography Series,
               vol. 3, pp. 97-113.

               Feature Parade, Worcester Sunday Telegram,
               December 2, 1962, pp. 15-19.
     
Processed: May 13, 1998

Biographical Sketch | Scope & Content | Related Collections | Series & Subseries | Box Inventory
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The de Grummond Children's Literature Collection

The University of Southern Mississippi
118 College Drive, #5148
Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001
(601) 266-4349
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