Keith Laumer Papers

Collection

Identifier: MS-0130

Staff Only

Collection Overview

Abstract

The Keith Laumer Papers consist of manuscript materials, correspondence, and other materials related to Laumer's literary career.

Dates

Creation: 1941-1993, undated

Extent

27 Cubic Feet (22 archives boxes)

Creator

Laumer, Keith, 1925-1993 (Person)

Scope and Contents

The Keith Laumer Papers include correspondence, manuscripts in various stages of completion, and other documents relating to Mr. Laumer's life. This collection will be of interest to those interested in studying the process of a prolific mid-20th century science fiction writer. Of additional interest may be Keith Laumer's correspondence with his brothers Frank and March, both writers in their own regard.

This collection is minimally processed. This preliminary inventory was compiled when the initial donation was received; information about the contents of the boxes/folders is incomplete. There appear to be unprocessed boxes that are not accounted for in the preliminary inventory. This collection is available to researchers upon request.

Biographical / Historical

John Keith Laumer (1925-1993) was a prolific American science fiction writer. He is best known for his characters Bolo (a self-aware tank) and Reteif, a spacefaring diplomat. Laumer drew heavily on his time as a diplomat in the US Foreign Service for his writing, especially for the Reteif character.

Laumer wrote several books based on the British TV series The Avengers and The Invaders, as well as non-fiction works on model airplane building, a hobby of his.

Keith Laumer had a stroke in 1971 which kept him from writing for several years. When he did return to writing, his work was often retreads of stories he had written during his heyday. He passed away in 1993 due to complications from another stroke.

Conditions Governing Access

No known access restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright and other restrictions may apply to the materials in this collection. Researchers using this collection assume full responsibility for conforming to the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright, and are responsible for securing permissions necessary for publication or reproduction.

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Separated Materials

The following published books were separated from Keith Laumer's archival collection and catalogued in the monograph collection at the Browne Popular Culture Library:

De andere hemel; The Big Show; The Breaking Earth; La cage infinie; Catastrophe Planet; Il Clandestino dei Mondi; The Day Before Forever and Thunderhead; Dinochroom; Earthblood (2 copies); Envoy to New Worlds; How to Design and Build [Flying] Models; How to Design and Build Flying Models, Revised Edition; From Cult to Cosmos: Can Jesus Be Saved; Galactic Diplomat; Galactic Odyssey; The Glory Game; The Great Time Machine Hoax; The House in November (2 copies); The Infinite Cage; The Long Twilight (2 copies); It's a Mad, Mad, Mad Galaxy; I Mondi Dell'Impero; The Monitors; Once There Was a Giant (1 hardbound copy, 1 paperback copy); The Other Side of Time; A Plague of Demons; Retief of the CDT; Retief's War; Ruimte-Odyssee Dinosaurusstrand; The Shape Changer ( 1 hardbound copy, 1 paperback copy); In strijd met de chaos; Time Trap; Worlds of the Imperium; The Ultimax Man (2 copies)

The following Japanese paperback books were separated from Keith Laumer's archival collection and catalogued in the monograph collection at the Browne Popular Culture Library:

The Great Time Machine Hoax; SF no. 167; SF no. 180; SF no. 293 (2 copies); SF no. 366 (3 copies)

The following periodicals were separated from Keith Laumer's archival collection and catalogued in the pulp magazine collection at the Browne Popular Culture Library:

The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, July 1967 (2 copies); Fantastic Stories of Imagination, July 1963, March 1961 (2 copies); If (August 1964, May 1962)

The following comic books were separated from Keith Laumer's archival collection and catalogued in the comic book collection at the Browne Popular Culture Library:

Keith Laumer's Retief, no. 1; Keith Laumer's Retief, no. 2 (2 copies); Keith Laumer's Retief, no. 5 (2 copies); Retief, no. 4 (2 copies); Retief: Diplomatic Immunity, no. 1 (3 copies) Retief: Diplomatic Immunity, no. 2 (2 copies); Retie£: The Garbage Invasion, no. 1 (2 copies); Retie£: Giant Killer, no. 1 (3 copies); Retief: Grime and Punishment, no. 1 (3 copies); Retief and the Warlords, no. 1 (2 copies); Retie£ and the Warlords, no. 2; Retief and the Warlords, no. 3 (2 copies); Retie£ and the Warlords, no. 4 (2 copies); Retie£ of the CDT, no. 1 (2 copies)

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The materials in this collection were transferred to the Browne Popular Culture Library by March Laumer in 1993 and 1994.

Processing Information

A preliminary inventory was drafted by an unknown archival processor in January 1994. This preliminary inventory was revised and input into ArchivesSpace by Tyne Lowe, Manuscripts Archivist, in March 2024.