Audiovisual Materials

The John D. MacDonald Collection is comprised of manuscripts of the author's novels and other writings, personal and professional correspondence, screenplays and adaptations, reviews, family papers, photographs, audiovisual recordings, ephemera, financial records and business correspondence. The oldest items in the collection, particularly family photographs, date from the early 1800s, and the most recent items are from the late 1990s. However, the bulk of the materials date from 1916 to 1986, spanning MacDonald's life.

MacDonald was a prolific letter writer and his correspondents include Dan Rowan, editor Knox Burger, agent Max Wilkinson, and authors such as Richard Glendinning, Stephen King, John Jakes, Walter and Jean Shine, and Kurt Vonnegut. The collection also includes a large amount of fan mail and correspondence with his publishers at Fawcett, Doubleday, Harper and Row, and Lippincott, among others.

Throughout this collection description, MacDonald's name is abbreviated as JDM and his wife, Dorothy Prentiss MacDonald, is frequently abbreviated as DPM. Several folder titles throughout the collection include commentaries written by MacDonald. These commentaries are included in parentheses and designated with quotation marks.

The Collection is organized in multiple groups, or series: Personal Papers; Professional Papers; Manuscripts and Publications Written by John D. MacDonald; Works by Other Authors and Secondary Sources; Audiovisual Materials; Ephemera and Memorabilia; and Financial Records. Many of these series are further subdivided into smaller logical groups:

The Personal Papers series is comprised of three groups. The Personal Correspondence includes correspondence with friends and family members, as well as some professional contacts who shared a personal relationship with the MacDonalds. The Family and Personal Papers include correspondence and biographical information about JDM's family members and military service, material pertaining to personal property (homes, boats, etc.), medical correspondence, obituaries, calendars, and address books. The Dorothy Prentiss MacDonald Papers include her personal correspondence, materials related to her paintings, and a number of notebooks and quote collections.

The Professional Papers series is comprised of ten groups. The Professional Correspondence primarily pertains to MacDonald's profession as an author, and includes correspondence with agents, publishers, editors, members of the media, and other authors. The Business Correspondence includes correspondence of a business nature unrelated to the profession of writing, such as the sale of vehicles or property, the purchase of office equipment, personal investments and finances, etc. The Academic Materials series contains materials related to MacDonald's involvement with various academic institutions such as New College, Ringling School of Art, and the University of Florida. The Movies and Television series includes correspondence, publicity and clippings about movies and television productions based on MacDonald works. The Contracts series includes legal contracts, correspondence, royalty reports, and other materials related to the publishing of specific works. The Correspondence with Authors and Artists includes letters with other authors (established and novice), artists, and actors. The Promotional Materials series includes correspondence and materials related to various promotional ventures that were not related to any specific work. The Affiliations series includes correspondence, memos, newsletters, and news clippings related to MacDonald's professional affiliations, including the Crime Writers Association, the Mystery Writers of America, the Writer's Guild of America, and the Sarasota writers' "Friday Lunch Bunch." The Civic and Political Affairs series includes correspondence, clippings, publications, and other materials related to MacDonald's various civic and political concerns, including environmental issues, political campaigns, and invitations for public appearances. The Fan Mail series includes correspondence to and from readers.

The Manuscripts and Publications series is comprised of five groups. The Novels group contains typescripts, galleys, desk notes, correspondence, publicity, and news clippings pertaining to MacDonald's published novels and unpublished works. The Short Works series includes poetry, series, anthologies, plays, television scripts by MacDonald, short stories, collective works, and special edition works. The Speeches and Interviews series includes interview questions, articles, broadcasts, speeches given and public appearances. The Articles series includes articles written by MacDonald for publication in magazines and newspapers, as well as requests for MacDonald to critique other authors and letters to the editor. The Blurbs series includes appreciations, articles that mention JDM, quotes, news clippings with published photographs of JDM, and requests for JDM's thoughts on works by other authors.

The Secondary Sources and Works by Other Authors series is comprised of seven groups: Articles and Publications by Other Authors (including items written about Travis McGee), Critical Reviews, Academic Research (e.g., theses, essays, and scholarly journal articles), Screenplays, Bibliophile and Fanzines, Publicity and Advertisements, and Reference Files.

The Audio Visual Materials series is comprised of photographs and audio and video materials in several different formats.

In addition to the series described above, note that the collection also includes an Oversize Materials group. This series contains materials that are too large for regular folders and boxes. Some materials in Oversize are magazines, newspapers, artwork created for JDM, ephemera, movie posters, photographs, etc.