gallery view

Robert Penn Warren Oral History Project

Project Summary

Robert Penn Warren (1905--1989), a native of Guthrie, became the first official poet laureate of the United States in 1986. He won the Pulitzer Prize three times: for his novel All the King's Men in 1947, for Promises: Poems 1954-1956 in 1957, and for Now and Then: Poems 1976-1978 in 1979. He taught at several universities, including Yale, Louisiana State, and the University of Minnesota, and was an essayist, editor, and critic. This project contains interviews with Warren and his friends, relatives, and colleagues, including Saul Bellow, Cleanth Brooks, James Dickey, and William Styron. They discuss Warren family history; Guthrie at the turn of the century; Warren's childhood; his educational experiences; his early interest in writing; his writing style; the intellectual development of his writing; the influence of William Wordsworth, William Blake, Thomas Hardy, and other writers; the Southern Review; the Fugitives; Eleanor Warren; Sergeant York; Warren's suicide attempt; and many of Warren's works, such as All the King's Men, Selected Poems, Brother to Dragons, At Heaven's Gate, The Cave, Billy Potts, Promises, Audubon, Night Rider, and World Enough and Time.

Project Code

rpw

Project LC Subject

Authors   Blake, William, 1757-1827   Clark, Eleanor, 1913-1996   Criticism   Critics   Essay   Fiction   Fugitives (Group)   Guthrie (Ky.)   Hardy, Thomas, 1840-1928   Literature   Novelists   Poetry   Poets.   Prose literature   Southern review (Baton Rouge, La.)   Warren family   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. All the king's men   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. At heaven's gate   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. Audubon, a vision   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. Brother to dragons   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. Night rider   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. Poems. Selections   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. Promises   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. The ballad of Billie Potts   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. The cave   Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-1989. World enough and time   Wordsworth, William, 1770-1850   York, Alvin Cullum, 1887-1964


Interviews in this Project (43 Total):

Interview Accession Number: 1977oh075_rpw001
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1977oh106_rpw002
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh003_rpw003
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh004_rpw004
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh013_rpw005
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh014_rpw006
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh015_rpw007
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh016_rpw008
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh017_rpw009
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh034_rpw010
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh062_rpw011
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh117_rpw012
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh118_rpw013
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh161_rpw014
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1978oh172_rpw015
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1979oh058_rpw016
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1979oh059_rpw017
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1979oh231_rpw018
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1979oh247_rpw019
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1979oh268_rpw020
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh028_rpw021
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh045_rpw022
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh066_rpw023
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh067_rpw024
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh068_rpw025
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh115_rpw026
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh123_rpw027
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh183_rpw029
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh184_rpw030
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh198_rpw031
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh199_rpw032
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1980oh200_rpw033
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh004_rpw034
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh005_rpw035
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh007_rpw036
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh026_rpw037
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh027_rpw038
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh028_rpw039
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh055_rpw040
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh056_rpw041
Interviewer: Susan E. Allen
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh067_rpw042
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh068_rpw043
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access:

Interview Accession Number: 1981oh069_rpw044
Interviewer: David Farrell
Restrictions: No Restrictions
Access: