Lot 973
Steinbeck, John. Autograph letter signed, one page, on Hotel Lancaster stationery, 7¼ x 5¼ ", Paris, Nov. 14, 1961. To French novelist (winner of the Prix Goncourt in 1933), art historian, and statesman André Malraux (1901-76), who was French Minister of Cultural Affairs (1958-1969). In part: "I was deeply sorry not to keep an appointment last friday. An infection of the inner ear made it impossible for me to walk. I kept hoping I could get there….A rather stiff treatment with antibiotics has removed the difficulty and I find I must leave Paris. I have my two sons with me and a tutor so that we travel in a squad. I had wanted to thank you again and in person for your kindness in the matter of professor Vinaver. He was greatly moved and pleased. Again my regrets, my thanks, and my homage. John Steinbeck." La Condition humaine (1933) is considered his masterpiece. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy described Malraux as "the most fascinating man I've ever talked to."
Professor Eugene Vinaver (1899-1979), to whom Steinbeck refers, was a Russian-born literary scholar best known for his edition of the works of Sir Thomas Malory. He emigrated to France in 1919, then to England in the late 1920s. He was appointed Professor of French Language and Literature at the University of Manchester and received his doctorate from Oxford University in 1950.
Estimated Value $1,500 - 2,000.
Mel Smith Collection, ex Remember When Auctions, 1993.
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| Realized $1,138 |
