Document Type
Article
Date
Spring 1974
Keywords
Syracuse University Special Collections, Samuel Hopkins Adams Papers, Warren G. Harding, American political history, muckraking, novelists, Teapot Dome scandal
Language
English
Disciplines
American Literature | American Studies | Arts and Humanities
Description/Abstract
In November 1926, Samuel Hopkins Adams's novel of Washington politics, Revelry, appeared. Since its central character is an American President easily identifiable as the late Warren G. Harding, it created a great stir. Adams's characterization of Harding was sympathetic, but also uncomplimentary, suggesting several negative personal attributes. A controversy over the appropriateness of Adams's behavior ensued. In the press, Adams was either lauded for telling the truth about Harding or condemned for his bad taste in maligning the President, who died in 1923.
Papers of Samuel Hopkins Adams preserved in the Bird Library of Syracuse University, reveal that the author and his publisher made careful plans to launch the book and relished the resulting controversy. The papers illuminate the processes involved in a book's production, publication, and promotion.
Recommended Citation
Coren, Robert W. "Samuel Hopkins Adams, his Novel, Revelry, and the Reputation of Warren G. Harding." The Courier 11.2 (1974): 3-10.
Source
local input
