Katherine Anne Porter (149 page)

1941

Story “The Source” appears in
Accent
. Inducted as member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters. Purchases
house at Ballston Spa, near Saratoga Springs; names it “South Hill” and begins extensive remodeling while continuing to live at Yaddo. In June signs contracts with Doubleday, Doran for a biography of Erasmus and an account of a murder trial in 15th-century France, neither ever realized, and an abridged version of
The Itching Parrot.
Friendship with Eudora Welty, a summer resident at Yaddo, deepens. Becomes mentor to nephew Paul, an aspiring writer, and artistic patron of niece Ann, a professional ballet dancer. Writes introductions to
The Itching Parrot
and to Welty’s debut collection,
A Curtain of Green
. Story “The Leaning Tower” published in
The Southern Review
.

1942

Father dies, January 23. At Erskine’s request, takes the six weeks’ residency in Nevada required to obtain a Reno divorce; marriage dissolved on June 19. Interviewed by F.B.I. agent about anti-American activities of friends and possibly herself. Participates in writing conference at Indiana University; meets Dr. Alfred Kinsey, who interviews her as part of his research for
Sexual Behavior in the Human Female
(1953).
The Itching Parrot
published by Doubleday, Doran. “Affectation of Praehiminincies,” a chapter of the Cotton Mather biography, published in two installments in
Accent
. Attends Rocky Mountain Writers’ Conference in Boulder, Colorado. Lives at Yaddo in July and August while remodeling of South Hill is completed. Lonely and miserable during fall and harsh winter. Worries about nephew Paul, who is stationed with the U.S. Army in Europe.

1943

Resigns from the National Institute of Arts and Letters to protest its practice of identifying certain candidates as “Negro.” (Will resume membership when practice is dropped.) With the financial support of friends Glenway Wescott and Barbara Harrison, secludes herself at Harbor Hill Inn near West Point to work on “No Safe Harbor” and other books-in-progress.

1944

Accepts appointment at the Library of Congress as Fellow of Regional American Literature; boards with portrait painter Marcella Comés Winslow in her house on P Street in Georgetown. “Portrait: Old South” published in
Mademoiselle
. Begins yearlong love affair with painter Charles Shannon, an Army corporal stationed near Washington.
The Leaning Tower and Other Stories
(“The Source,” “The Witness,” “The Circus,” “The Old Order” [“The Journey”], “The Last Leaf,” “The Grave,” “The Downward Path to Wisdom,” “A Day’s Work,” “The Leaning Tower”) published by Harcourt, Brace. Returns to Yaddo. Excerpt from “No Safe Harbor” published in
The Sewanee Review
. As vice president of the National Women’s Committee, makes re-election speeches endorsing President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Hospitalized in Saratoga Springs with pneumonia.

1945

Signs contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to work as scriptwriter at $1,500 a week; relocates to Santa Monica. Meets Charlie Chaplin, Judy Garland, and playwright Clifford Odets. Signs contract with Paramount Pictures to write screen adaptation of Victorien Sardou’s
Madame Sans-Gêne
at $2,000 a week. Excerpt from “No Safe Harbor” appears in
Partisan Review
.

1946

Sells South Hill to friends George and Toni Willison. Buys, then relinquishes, 80 acres of mountain property in High Mojave Desert. Welcomes nephew Paul, who visits California after tour of duty in France. Excerpt from “No Safe Harbor” published in
Accent
. Memoir “A Christmas Story” appears in
Mademoiselle
. In desperate financial straits due to unwise management, moves into guest wing of Hollywood house of George Platt Lynes.

1947

Works briefly for Columbia Pictures on adaptation of Chekhov’s story “La Cigale.” Excerpt from “No Safe Harbor” appears in
The Sewanee Review
. Meets Christopher Isherwood and Texas novelist William Goyen. Negative critical essay on the life and work of Gertrude Stein (“The Wooden Umbrella”) published in
Harper’s
.

1948

Friendship with Josephine Herbst suffers final rupture when Herbst publishes an attack, “Miss Porter and Miss Stein,” in
Partisan Review
, and
Somewhere the Tempest Fell
, a novel featuring barely disguised, unflattering portraits of Glenway Wescott, Monroe Wheeler, George Platt Lynes, and Porter. Speaks at the University of Kansas; meets Isabel Bayley, who will become a lifelong friend. Begins yearlong appointment at Stanford, and is insulted and angry that her classes will carry no credit; becomes friends with faculty members Richard and Ann Scowcroft,
Janet Lewis, and Yvor Winters. “Love and Hate” (“The Necessary Enemy”) appears in
Mademoiselle
.

1949

Receives Litt.D. from the Woman’s College of the University of North Carolina, the first of many honorary doctorates. As a Fellow in American Letters of the Library of Congress, is member of the jury that awards Bollingen Prize to Ezra Pound. Teaches summer courses at Stanford. Returns to New York, where she shares an apartment with her niece Ann.

1950

Speaks at colleges and universities, and at the 92nd Street Y. “The Flower of Flowers” and “A Note on Pierre Joseph Redouté” appear in
Flair
. At Manhattan cocktail party encounters a drunken Dylan Thomas, who lifts her to the ceiling in apparent tribute. Three excerpts from “No Safe Harbor” published in successive issues of
Harper’s
, October through December. Becomes close friends with protégés J. F. Powers, Peter Taylor, and William Humphrey. Begins two-year term as co-vice-president of the National Institute of Arts and Letters.

1951

Begins yearlong affair with William Goyen. Signs contract with Harcourt, Brace for “The Days Before,” a selection from 30 years of essays, book reviews, and other short prose; in lieu of advance accepts in-house position as literary adviser. Speaks at Millsaps College, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and the Mississippi State College for Women. “‘Marriage Is Belonging’” appears in
Mademoiselle
.

1952

Joins American delegation in Paris for five-week International Congress for Cultural Freedom and speaks at opening session. Retreats to secluded inn in Pont-Aven to write introduction to “The Days Before” but, tired and unconfident, finds she can manage only a brief foreword. “Reflections on Willa Cather” published in
Mademoiselle.
Returns to Paris and enjoys reunions with her French translator, Marcelle Sibon, and bookseller Sylvia Beach. Returns to New York, and moves into apartment at 117 East 17th Street.
The Days Before
published by Harcourt, Brace.

1953

Speaks at several colleges and universities. Visits Ezra Pound at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington, D.C. In a talk at the Corcoran Gallery, speaks out against congressional
inquiries into communism on college campuses. Reads poetry on NBC radio network. Begins yearlong appointment as writer-in-residence at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Excerpt from “No Safe Harbor” published in
Harper’s
.

1954

Suffers attack of angina while teaching class. “A Defense of Circe” published in
Mademoiselle
. Meets and is charmed by Seymour Lawrence, editor at
The Atlantic
and The Atlantic Monthly Press, an imprint of Little, Brown. Receives Litt.D. at the University of Michigan. Begins appointment as Fulbright Fellow in Liège, Belgium. Reads “The Circus” on BBC radio. At Christmas, makes first visit to Rome.

1955

Hospitalized for three weeks with influenza; relinquishes remainder of Fulbright assignment and returns to New York in February. “Adventure in Living” (“St. Augustine and the Bullfight”) published in
Mademoiselle
. Paperback selection of previously collected material,
The Old Order: Stories of the South
, published by Harcourt, Brace. Leases secluded house on Roxbury Road in Southbury, Connecticut, to work on “No Safe Harbor.” Brother Paul dies, September 19. After death of Donald Brace, leaves Harcourt, Brace for Atlantic–Little, Brown, where Seymour Lawrence is her new editor.

1956

Changes title of “No Safe Harbor” to “Ship of Fools.” Objects to Lawrence’s calling her “woman writer” in catalog copy. Excerpts from “Ship of Fools” published in
The Atlantic Monthly
and
Mademoiselle
. Rests at Jefferson Hotel in Washington, D.C., before embarking on 15-college lecture tour. Meets Barbara Thompson, who interviews her for
The Washington Post
and becomes trusted friend. Essay “Noon Wine: The Sources” published in
The Yale Review
. Endorses Adlai Stevenson for president.

1957

With financial support from Atlantic–Little, Brown, works with few distractions on “Ship of Fools.” Reads at the 92nd Street Y, New York City.

1958

Discusses Henry James on CBS television program
Camera Three
. Receives Litt.D. from Smith College and meets commencement speaker, Massachusetts senator John F. Kennedy. Vacates Southbury house. Excerpt from “Ship of Fools” appears in
Mademoiselle
. Retreats to Outpost
Inn in Ridgefield, Connecticut, for a month’s work on “Ship of Fools.” Spends fall semester as writer-in-residence at the University of Virginia. Meets Flannery O’Connor. Speaks at Auburn University, the University of Oklahoma, and the University of Texas at Austin.

1959

Spends spring semester as writer-in-residence at Washington and Lee University. Lectures on Mark Twain at the University of California, Los Angeles. Excerpt from “Ship of Fools” published in
Texas Quarterly
. Receives $26,000 grant from the Ford Foundation to complete “Ship of Fools.” Rents house at 3112 Q Street in Georgetown.

1960

Continues to work on “Ship of Fools.” Story “The Fig Tree,” written in the 1920s, published in
Harper’s
. Returns to Mexico to speak under auspices of the U.S. Department of State. Participates with Flannery O’Connor and Caroline Gordon in “Recent Southern Fiction,” a panel discussion at Wesleyan College, Macon, Georgia. “Holiday,” another story written in the 1920s, published in
The Atlantic Monthly
.

1961

Accepts invitation from President-elect John F. Kennedy to attend inauguration. Presents Regents lecture at the University of California, Riverside. Withdraws to Yankee Clipper Inn on Cape Ann, Massachusetts, to finish “Ship of Fools”; dates completed manuscript “Yaddo, August 1941-Pigeon Cove, August 1961.” Seymour Lawrence launches publicity campaign for novel by selling bookclub rights to the Book-of-the-Month Club.

1962

Ship of Fools
published by Atlantic–Little, Brown to positive reviews and great commercial success. Movie rights sold to United Artists for $400,000. Turns over literary representation and business affairs to agent Cyrilly Abels, formerly her editor at
Mademoiselle
. Takes month-long vacation in Italy and Sicily with niece Ann. Purchases designer clothes and 21-carat emerald ring encrusted with diamonds. Awarded the Emerson-Thoreau Medal by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Deposits papers temporarily at the Library of Congress. Receives Litt.D. from LaSalle College. Long negative review of
Ship of Fools
by Theodore Solotaroff appears in
Commentary
, occasioning heated debate among readers, critics, and literary journalists. Leaves for yearlong stay in Europe.

1963

In Rome collaborates with writer Abby Mann on the screenplay for
Ship of Fools
. Receives $1,000 prize from the Texas Institute of Letters. Buys lavish furnishings in Europe. Returns home in November to the shock of the Kennedy assassination. Inducted into the University of Maryland’s chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. Attends luncheon at White House hosted by President and Mrs. Johnson.

1964

After reneging on offer to purchase house in Georgetown, becomes mired in legal morass. Continues to accept speaking engagements at colleges and universities. Leases large house at 3601 49th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. Lectures at the Instituto Cultural Norteamericano in Mexico City.

1965

The Collected Stories of Katherine Anne Porter
, comprising the three earlier collections and four fugitive stories, published by Harcourt, Brace. Follows Seymour Lawrence to Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., and then to Delacorte Press. Signs contracts with Lawrence for “The Devil and Cotton Mather” and her collected essays and occasional writings. Film version of
Ship of Fools
, directed by Stanley Kramer and starring Vivien Leigh, Lee Marvin, Simone Signoret, and others, is box-office success.

1966

The Collected Stories
wins National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize. Receives honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the University of Maryland, College Park, and announces eventual donation of papers to university library. Inducted into the 50-member American Academy of Arts and Letters. Begins personal and professional association with attorney E. Barrett Prettyman Jr.

1967

Presides over first meeting of The Katherine Anne Porter Foundation, established to provide financial support to younger writers. Accepts Gold Medal in Fiction from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

1968

Spends first week of January hospitalized with influenza. At home, receives numerous visitors, whom she entertains with lavish meals and fine wine.

1969

Moves to townhouse at 5910 Westchester Park Drive, College Park. Becomes member of usage panel for
The American Heritage Dictionary
. Begins choosing and revising pieces for her collected essays. Spends four weeks in Washington Hospital Center after falling down stairs.
Editing of essay collection completed by Lawrence and literary friends. Sister Gay dies, December 28.

1970

The Collected Essays and Occasional Writings of Katherine Anne Porter
published by Seymour Lawrence–Delacorte. Falls and breaks hip; spends two months in convalescent home. Moves to double apartment on top floor of 6100 Westchester Park Drive. Meets Clark Dobson and John David (Jack) Horner, young men who escort her to area social events. Meets Kathleen Feeley and Maura Eichner, sisters of the College of Notre Dame of Maryland, who will guide her to a rite of reconciliation with the Roman Catholic Church on December 8.