Elmer Gertz Papers [Finding Aid]. Library Of
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Elmer Gertz Papers A Finding Aid to the Collection in the Library of Congress Manuscript Division, Library of Congress Washington, D.C. 2001 Revised 2010 March Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact Additional search options available at: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms997015 LC Online Catalog record: http://lccn.loc.gov/mm82022665 Prepared by Connie L. Cartledge with the assistance of Allyson H. Jackson, Sherralyn McCoy, and Susie H. Moody Revised and expanded by Connie L. Cartledge Collection Summary Title: Elmer Gertz Papers Span Dates: 1789-1997 Bulk Dates: (bulk 1926-1988) ID No.: MSS22665 Creator: Gertz, Elmer, 1906-2000 Extent: 168,725 items ; 484 containers plus 4 oversize ; 193 linear feet ; 1 microfilm reel Language: Collection material in English Location: Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Summary: Lawyer, author, and manuscript collector. Correspondence, memoranda, family papers, legal files, subject files, speeches, writings, manuscripts collected by Gertz, newspaper clippings, and printed matter relating primarily to Gertz’s career as a lawyer. Selected Search Terms The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically therein. People Adamic, Louis, 1899-1951--Correspondence. Anastaplo, George, 1925- --Correspondence. Baldwin, James, 1924-1987. Crandall, Allen, 1896-1973--Correspondence. Crump, Paul--Correspondence. Daley, Richard J., 1902-1976--Correspondence. Daley, Richard M. (Richard Michael), 1942- --Correspondence. Darrow, Clarence, 1857-1938. Douglas, Alfred Bruce, Lord, 1870-1945--Correspondence. Douglas, Paul H. (Paul Howard), 1892-1976--Correspondence. Einstein, Albert, 1879-1955--Correspondence. Eisenschiml, Otto, 1880-1963--Correspondence. Fink, Eli E., 1907-1979--Correspondence. Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939--Correspondence. Gertz, Elmer, 1906-2000. Gertz, Elmer, 1906-2000. Frank Harris: a study in black and white. 1931. Gertz, Elmer, 1906-2000. Odyssey of a barbarian: the biography of George Sylvester Viereck. 1979. Gertz, Theodore G.--Correspondence. Giampietro, Wayne B. (Wayne Bruce), 1942- --Correspondence. Goldberg, Arthur J.--Correspondence. Harris, Frank, 1856-1931--Correspondence. Harris, Frank, 1856-1931. Hechtman, Margery A.--Correspondence. Herman, Samuel G.--Correspondence. Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963--Correspondence. Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963. Leopold, Nathan Freudenthal, 1904-1971--Correspondence. Leopold, Nathan Freudenthal, 1904-1971. Levin, Meyer, 1905-1981. Lovitz, Gene--Correspondence. McWilliams, Carey, 1905-1980--Correspondence. Meyer, Russ, 1922- --Correspondence. Miller, Henry, 1891-1980--Correspondence. Pearson, Hesketh, 1887-1964--Correspondence. Elmer Gertz Papers 2 Peters, Muriel--Correspondence. Pollack, Peter, 1909-1978--Correspondence. Rosten, Leo, 1908-1997--Correspondence. Ruby, Jack--Correspondence. Ruby, Jack. Ryan, William F., 1922-1972--Correspondence. Sandburg, Carl, 1878-1967--Correspondence. Sandburg, Carl, 1878-1967. Schwartz, Edward P.--Correspondence. Shaw, Bernard, 1856-1950. Sinclair, Upton, 1878-1968--Correspondence. Stephens, Kate, 1853-1938--Correspondence. Tobin, A. I.--Correspondence. Truman, Harry S., 1884-1972. Viereck, George Sylvester, 1884-1962--Correspondence. Viereck, Peter, 1916-2006--Correspondence. Witherspoon, William W.--Correspondence. Organizations Blind Service Association. Caxton Club. Chicago Bar Association. Chicago Citizens Commission to Study the Disorders of Convention Week. Decalogue Society of Lawyers. Democratic National Convention (1968 : Chicago, Ill.) Illinois Coalition Against the Death Penalty. Illinois. Constitutional Convention (1969-1970) Robert Welch, Inc.--Trials, litigation, etc. Subjects American literature--20th century. Capital punishment. Censorship. Copyright. Housing. Libel and slander. Obscenity (Law) Practice of law--Illinois--Chicago. Occupations Authors. Lawyers. Administrative Information Provenance The papers of Elmer Gertz, lawyer, author, and manuscript collector, were given to the Library of Congress between 1966 and 1997 Processing History A preliminary list of the Elmer Gertz Papers was compiled for the early accessions of material received between 1966 and January 1968. Subsequent installments from June 1968 to July 1978 were described briefly and listed in the order of their arrival. The collection consisting of accessions from 1966 through 1992 was arranged and described in 1993. Material received between 1993 and 1997 was processed as an addition in 2001. Elmer Gertz Papers 3 Transfers Items have been transferred from the Manuscript Division to other custodial divisions of the Library. Some photographs and drawings have been transferred to the Prints and Photographs Division. Motion picture films and sound and video recordings have been transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division. All transfers are identified in these divisions as part of the Elmer Gertz Papers. Copyright Status Copyright in the unpublished writings of Elmer Gertz in these papers and in other collections of papers in the custody of the Library of Congress has been dedicated to the public, provided due acknowledgment is made to Gertz. Access and Restrictions The papers of Elmer Gertz are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use. Microfilm A microfilm copy of Sigmund Freud’s letters and messages to George Sylvester Viereck is available on one reel for use in the Manuscript Division subject to domestic copyright laws and international treaties and conventions. The microfilm is not available for purchase and may not be borrowed on interlibrary loan. Preferred Citation Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, Elmer Gertz Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Biographical Note Date Event 1906, Sept. 14 Born, Chicago, Ill. 1928 Ph.B., University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill. 1930 J.D., University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill. 1930-1941 Associate in law firm of McInerney, Epstein & Arvey, Chicago, Ill. 1931 Married Ceretta Samuels (died 1958) Published with A. I. Tobin Frank Harris: A Study in Black and White (Chicago: Madelaine Mendelsohn. 293 pp.) 1934 Director of public relations, Illinois Police Association 1941-1973 Attorney in private practice, Chicago, Ill. 1944 Member, Executive Committee, Illinois Committee for Equal Job Opportunity Member, national and Chicago Advisory Board Commission on Law and Social Action, American Jewish Congress 1945-1947 Chairman, Veterans Housing Committee, Chicago, Ill. 1946-1948 Legislative chairman of Mayor's Emergency Housing Committee, Chicago, Ill. 1949-1951 Member, Mayor's Housing Action Committee, Chicago, Ill. Elmer Gertz Papers 4 1959 Married Mamie L. Friedman 1959-1963 President, Greater Chicago Council of the American Jewish Congress 1965 Published A Handful of Clients (Chicago: Follett Publishing Co. 379 pp.) 1965-1969 President, Adult Education Council of Greater Chicago 1968 Member, Chicago Citizens Commission to Study the Disorders of Convention Week Published Moment of Madness: The People vs. Jack Ruby (Chicago: Follett Publishing Co. 564 pp.) 1969-1970 Delegate to the sixth Illinois Constitutional Convention; chairman of its Committee on Bill of Rights 1970-circa 1997 Professor, John Marshall Law School, Chicago, Ill. 1972 Awarded the state of Israel's Prime Minister's Medal Published For the First Hours of Tomorrow: The New Illinois Bill of Rights (Urbana: University of Illinois Press. 178 pp. 1973 Became partner in law firm of Gertz and Giampietro, Chicago, Ill. 1974 Successful plaintiff in landmark libel suit Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc. Published To Life: The Story of a Chicago Lawyer (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co. 308 pp.) 1975 Editor, The Short Stories of Frank Harris: A Selection (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press. 299 pp.) 1978 Editor, Henry Miller: Years of Trial and Triumph, 1962-1964: The Correspondence of Henry Miller and Elmer Gertz (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press. 345 pp.) 1978-1980 First Amendment Lawyers Association; president, 1978-1979; chairman, 1979-1980 1979 Published Odyssey of a Barbarian: The Biography of George Sylvester Viereck (Buffalo: Prometheus Books. 305 pp.) 1980 Published Charter for a New Age: An Inside View of the Sixth Illinois Constitutional Convention (Urbana: University of Illinois Press. 378 pp.) 1983 Published A Guide to Estate Planning (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press. 179 pp.) 1984 Published Quest for a Constitution: A Man Who Wouldn't Quit: A Political Biography of Samuel Witwer of Illinois (Lanham, Md.: University Press of America. 231 pp.) 1992 Published Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc.: The Story of a Landmark Libel Case (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press. 295 pp.) 2000, Apr. 27 Died, Chicago, Ill. Elmer Gertz Papers 5 Scope and Content Note The papers of Elmer Gertz (1906-2000) span the years 1789-1997, with the majority of the papers concentrated from 1926 to 1988. The bulk of the papers documents Gertz's career as a lawyer, author, and manuscript collector. The collection consists of eight series: Family Papers, General Correspondence, Legal