401:
372:, echoed these words in a eulogy for Waldron on November 15, 1980, stating, "What wrote gleamed, and gleams brighter with the passage of time." Shawn also stated, quite simply, that Waldron was "an original, an innovator," and "a writer of immense talent who wrote far too little, perhaps because the standards he set for himself were so high that even he could rarely reach them."
412:
and deal with the themes of love, sex, nature, the individual, politics, power, religion, spirituality, and the cosmos with concision, wit, and humor. Motifs include trees, birds, eyes, faces, and signs. A recurrent feature in the drawings is the profile of a long-nosed man, who could be said to represent the artist, observing.
33:
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Eli
Waldron's drawings, dating from the 1950s to 1980, were less known than his literary work, with only one published during his lifetime. Nonetheless, they represent an important part of his oeuvre. In these drawings, words and images coalesce to create a literary form of art. Many are captioned
201:
Waldron consistently questioned what he perceived to be the status quo and championed those who may have been viewed as "outsiders" by people in authority or by members of society's "mainstream." This outlook and approach may be seen vividly in such fiction pieces as "The
Beekeeper" (published in
352:, describe as bouts of writer's block, depression, and alcoholism, he wrote and published until his death in 1980, producing masterful works of literary fiction, striking journalism, irreverent travelogues, satirical flights of fancy, lively verse and even lyrics, as well as drawings. In his 1967
200:
Much of
Waldron's fiction and non-fiction reveals a strong interest in the "underdog" and the marginalized, disenfranchised individual, as well as a belief in the possibility of triumph over (often seemingly great) adversity. Making repeated use of satire and often introducing surprise endings,
415:
The body of the works include single drawings, groups of related drawings, collections, such as "Varieties of
Religious Experience," (undated), and illustrated books, such as "Presto," 1973, that combine drawings with prose or poetry. Some works, such as the collection "Ipglok," ca. 1973, are
250:
in 1916 in Oconto Falls, Wisc. where he grew up. He was the youngest of his parents Rose
Cleveland and Jonathan Witcher Waldron's seven children. His mother was an amateur poet, and his brother Jonathan Gilbert Waldron (1910–1974) was an advertising manager and writer, whose short stories and
258:, for example, remarked, in 1943, that Waldron possessed "the spark" and that his work was able to reveal the "deeper stratum of human suffering." He attracted the attention of future literary agent, Donald Congdon in New York, who began representing him in 1943 on behalf of
266:
for the completion of a novel. His resulting novella, "The Low Dark Road" received strong responses of praise as well as criticism from the firm's editors, and ultimately was not published. He did not rise to the same heights of fame as such contemporaries as
301:, Salinger wrote his reviewer a warm note of thanks, adding: "I hope one day somebody writes with that much perception and feeling about a book of yours." Waldron continued publishing short stories in
262:'s literary agency, and soon he was considered one of the most promising young writers in the United States. In 1945, he received a literary prize, the "Participation Award," from the publishing firm,
121:(January 25, 1916 to June 9, 1980) was an American writer and journalist whose primary work consisted of short stories, essays, and poetry. His writings were published in literary journals (such as
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felt tip pens in drawing pads, 12 x 18 in., 8 1/2 x 11 in. or smaller sheets of paper. He also made paintings on 12 x 16 in. canvas panels. Some of
Waldron's correspondence includes his drawings.
734:
Waldron, Eli. "'The
Catcher in the Rye': J. D. Salinger's Novel of a Lonely, Confused Boy of 16 Has Qualities of Lardner and Twain." "Milwaukee Journal," "Books of the Week," July 15, 1951, p.4.
224:
Despite his literary achievement, he did not see a book published in his lifetime, nor has one appeared since. Nonetheless, his work continues to gain attention and recognition. In 2013,
230:, published his story "Do Birds Like Television?" along with six of his drawings featuring birds. His story, "The Death of Hank Williams" (1955) was included in excerpted form in
169:, and in the 1960s and 1970s, a number of his poems and experimental fiction works appeared in underground, alternative, and "counter-culture" publications, such as
900:
358:
article, entitled, "Eli
Waldron, Where Are You Now?," Gehman remarked that the suddenly difficult to locate Waldron, who had been part of Gehman's own
388:
Waldron died in a car crash on Monday, June 9, 1980, on Route 15 in
Gordonsville, Virginia, while visiting novelist Christian Gehman, the son of
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420:", in which words themselves, in unusual spellings and arrangements, are the subject of the work. Most are in a linear style, favored by
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literary circle in the 1940s and 1950s, was "one of the best, and perhaps least appreciated, writers of my time." Longtime
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Waldron was married four times. His third marriage to painter
Phyllis Floyd in 1960 produced two daughters, Zoe and Eve.
885:
307:
through the early 1950s. He went on to develop his career as a magazine journalist, publishing articles and stories in
279:. Waldron moved to Charlton Street in New York City in 1947 and became part of a literary circle that included
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Mitcham, Howard. "Hot Flashbacks and Cool Cookies: Reminiscences of Greenwich Village in the 40s and 50s,"
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Shawn, William. Eulogy for Eli Waldron. Read at St. Marks Church-In-The-Bowery, November 15, 1980.
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Shawn, William. Eulogy for Eli Waldron. Read at St. Marks Church-In-The-Bowery, November 15, 1980
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Waldron's first literary efforts in the early 1940s resulted in some critical praise. Author
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Salinger, Jerry. Letter to Eli Waldron. July 30, 1951. Eli Waldron Papers, New York.
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331:. His last piece for a major periodical, a profile of the artist
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articles were published in popular periodicals during the 1950s.
163:). From the 1950s to 1970s he contributed stories and essays to
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Fiction, poetry, non-fiction, journalism, drawing, humor, satire
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699:. Appleton, Wisc.: Miller Electric Mfg. Co., circa 1974.
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Cross Section 1945: A Collection of New American Writing
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Cross Section 1945: A Collection of New American Writing
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Gehman, Richard. "Eli Waldron, Where are You Now?,"
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Gehman, Richard. "Eli Waldron, Where are You Now?,"
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Waldron, Eli. Papers. Private collection. New York.
802:, "Books Today," Sunday, July 2, 1967, p. 3.
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678:, ed. Edwin Seaver New York: L.B. Fisher, 1945.)
805:Hutchens, John K. "People Who Read and Write,"
721:Hutchens, John K. "People Who Read and Write,"
215:, 1955) and "The Lonely Lady of Union Square" (
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450:"Ah Me, Ah the Bum, Ah Flo, Ah Mr. Saroyan" (
769:, "Books Today," Sunday, July 2, 1967, p. 3.
712:. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 1980.
445:Published and unanthologized short stories
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901:20th-century American non-fiction writers
809:, "Book Review," March 17, 1946, p. BR13.
725:, "Book Review," March 17, 1946, p. BR13.
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658:"Do Birds Like Television?" (ca. 1973,
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708:Bayley, Isabel, selector and editor.
523:"The Beautiful Burial of Uncle Joe" (
468:, July–August 1940); Crooks, Glenn C.
454:, March–April 1940); Crooks, Glenn C.
595:"Mr. Morrisey the Amiable Printer" (
205:in 1943) and "Zawicki the Chicken" (
906:People from Oconto Falls, Wisconsin
826:Abstracts of articles published in
461:, March–April 1940); Waldron, G. C.
139:) and popular periodicals (such as
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911:20th-century American male writers
695:"In Memoriam J.G. 'Gib' Waldron."
631:"The Really True Secret of Life" (
478:"Don't You See, Can't You Tell?" (
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891:20th-century American journalists
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896:Road incident deaths in Virginia
710:Letters of Katherine Anne Porter
640:"Are You Tired, Mr. Millikan?" (
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517:The Saturday Evening Post
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674:"Zawicki, The Chicken" (
514:"Nooley and the Flute" (
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248:Gerald Cleveland Waldron
232:The Hank Williams Reader
37:Eli Waldron, circa 1940s
649:"The Copper Mountain" (
466:Decade of Short Stories
459:Decade of Short Stories
452:Decade of Short Stories
236:Oxford University Press
56:Oconto Falls, Wisconsin
791:Eli Waldron obituary,
464:"How I Met a Writer" (
428:, and are executed in
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298:The Catcher in the Rye
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322:Saturday Evening Post
256:Katherine Anne Porter
178:Rat Subterranean News
172:The Illustrated Paper
160:Saturday Evening Post
109:Participation Award,
842:Eli Waldron—Word Art
457:"It Was Wonderful" (
264:Simon & Schuster
111:Simon & Schuster
840:Online Exhibition,
613:"The False Heart" (
604:"The Spankferkel" (
586:"The Happy Haunt" (
376:Marriage and family
194:The Woodstock Times
99:A Carnival of Frogs
16:American journalist
860:The New York Times
854:The New York Times
577:"Elmira Forever" (
541:"Bodney, Bodney" (
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260:Lurton Blassingame
661:The Kenyon Review
598:The Kenyon Review
589:American Magazine
562:Good Housekeeping
544:American Magazine
508:The Kenyon Review
496:"The Beekeeper" (
407:February 5, 1975.
360:Greenwich Village
338:Publishers Weekly
246:Waldron was born
227:The Kenyon Review
188:The Village Voice
124:The Kenyon Review
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505:"Come Hercule" (
481:Prairie Schooner
341:on May 7, 1973.
285:Josephine Herbst
203:Prairie Schooner
130:Prairie Schooner
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335:, appeared in
333:Saul Steinberg
328:The New Yorker
293:J. D. Salinger
289:S. J. Perelman
273:J. D. Salinger
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218:The New Yorker
166:The New Yorker
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405:Fast Nichts
277:Herman Wouk
183:Underground
119:Eli Waldron
25:Eli Waldron
870:Categories
852:Obituary,
697:Memco News
683:References
365:New Yorker
234:issued by
75:Occupation
49:1916-01-25
754:Pulpsmith
652:Collier's
643:Collier's
634:Collier's
625:Collier's
616:Collier's
580:Collier's
571:Collier's
553:Collier's
535:Collier's
526:Collier's
304:Collier's
242:Biography
238:in 2014.
221:, 1955).
142:Collier's
418:word art
396:Drawings
368:editor,
97:(1955),
786:Sources
426:Picasso
310:Holiday
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473:Matrix
348:, and
325:, and
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101:(1953)
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