Alfred, William, 1922-1999

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William Alfred (1922-1999) was a playwright, poet and beloved Harvard professor specializing in early English literature. He was born in Brooklyn in 1922 to working-class parents, served in the Army tank corp in World War II, and received his doctoral degree in English from Harvard in 1954 before joining the faculty, where he stayed until 1991. Alfred's works include: Hogan's Goat, Agamemnon, The Curse of an Aching Heart, and Nothing Doing. Luminaries he taught, influenced, or corresponded with include: Faye Dunaway, Tommy Lee Jones, Stockard Channing, John Lithgow, Gertrude Stein, Archibald MacLeish, and Robert Lowell. Alfred was the recipient of the New York Drama Desk Award, and served on the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award poetry panels.

From the description of William Alfred letter, 1957. (University of North Carolina at Greensboro, University Libraries). WorldCat record id: 420200899

Alfred was an American playwright and the Lawrence Lowell Professor of the Humanities at Harvard University.

From the description of Papers : concerning adaptations of Agamemnon and The scarlet letter, 1946-1947 and undated. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 78076401

Alfred was an American playwright and the Lawrence Lowell professor of the Humanities at Harvard University.

From the guide to the William Alfred papers concerning adaptations of, Agamemnon, and, The scarlet letter, 1946-1947 and undated., (Harvard Theatre Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard College Library, Harvard University)

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
referencedIn Robert Manning papers, 1938-1993. Houghton Library
creatorOf MacLeish, Archibald, 1892-1982. Miscellaneous papers [holograph, typescript and print] : 1952-1980 / Archibald MacLeish. Greenfield Community College, Nahman-Watson Library
referencedIn Miscellaneous screen, stage, and radio scripts, ca. 1859-2007. Harvard Theater Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard College Library, Harvard University
referencedIn Woodberry Poetry Room (Harvard College Library) poetry readings, 1931- (ongoing). Woodberry Poetry Room, Houghton Library, Harvard College Library, Harvard University
referencedIn Papers, 1952-2004 (inclusive), 1970-2004 (bulk). Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America‏
creatorOf William Alfred papers concerning adaptations of, Agamemnon, and, The scarlet letter, 1946-1947 and undated. Harvard Theater Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard College Library, Harvard University
creatorOf Alfred, William, 1922-1999,. Robert Lowell papers, 1964-1978 and undated. Houghton Library
creatorOf Alfred, William, 1922-1999. Papers : concerning adaptations of Agamemnon and The scarlet letter, 1946-1947 and undated. Houghton Library
creatorOf Toklas, Alice B. Letters to William Alfred, 1951-1961. Houghton Library
creatorOf Chanler, Theodore, 1902-1961. Mary lifted from the dead : hymn ; Hymn to St. Joseph / text by William Alfred ; music by Theodore Chanler. Library of Congress
referencedIn Gore Vidal papers, 1850-2020 (inclusive), 1936-2008 (bulk) Houghton Library
referencedIn Poets' Theatre (Cambridge, Mass.) records Houghton Library
creatorOf Chanler, Theodore, 1902-1961. Mary lifted from the dead : hymn / text by William Alfred ; music by Theodore Chanler ; arranged for women's voices and organ. Library of Congress
creatorOf Chanler, Theodore, 1902-1961. Benediction hymn for parochial-school children : for children's choir in four sections / text by William Alfred ; music by Theodore Chanler. Library of Congress
creatorOf Chanler, Theodore, 1902-1961. Two hymns for mixed choir / texts by William Alfred ; music by Theodore Chanler. Library of Congress
creatorOf Yablans, Frank. Frank Yablans papers concerning Mommie dearest, 1980-1981. Houghton Library
creatorOf Chanler, Theodore, 1902-1961. Benediction hymn for parochial-school children : for children's choir in four sections and organ / text by William Alfred ; music by Theodore Chanler. Library of Congress
creatorOf Hopwood Awards Collection, 1930- University of Michigan
creatorOf Miscellaneous theatrical papers Houghton Library
creatorOf Alfred, William, 1922-1999. William Alfred letter, 1957. University of North Carolina at Greensboro, University Libraries, UNCG University Libraries
creatorOf Alfred, William, 1922-1999. Papers, 1939-1979. Brooklyn College
referencedIn United States Sanitary Commission records. Army and Navy Claim Agency archives, 1861-1870 New York Public Library. Manuscripts and Archives Division
referencedIn Harvard University Archives Photograph Collection: Portraits, ca. 1852-ca. 2004 Harvard University Archives.
Role Title Holding Repository
Relation Name
associatedWith Aeschylus. person
associatedWith Aeschylus. person
correspondedWith Alfred, William, 1922- person
associatedWith Archibald MacLeish. person
associatedWith Chanler, Theodore, 1902-1961. person
associatedWith Harvard University corporateBody
associatedWith Hawthorne, Nathaniel, 1804-1864. person
associatedWith Jean Valentine person
correspondedWith Lowell, Robert, 1917-1977 person
associatedWith MacLeish, Archibald, 1892-1982. person
associatedWith Manning, Robert, 1919- person
correspondedWith Poets' Theatre (Cambridge, Mass.). corporateBody
associatedWith Toklas, Alice B. person
associatedWith United States Sanitary Commission corporateBody
associatedWith Valentine, Jean. person
associatedWith Vidal, Gore, 1925- person
associatedWith Woodberry Poetry Room (Harvard College Library). corporateBody
associatedWith Yablans, Frank. person
Place Name Admin Code Country
United States
Subject
Theater
Authors, American
Occupation
Collector
Dramatists
Activity

Person

Birth 1922-08-16

Death 1999-05-20

Americans

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SNAC ID: 43081928