Table of Contents
- Collection Summary
- Biographical Note
- Scope and Content Note
- Subject Headings
- Administrative Information
- Access and Use
- Encoding Information
- Series List
- Container List
Collection Summary
| Repository: | Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries |
|---|---|
| Creator: | Hamlin, Mary P. |
| Title: | Mary Parmele Hamlin Papers |
| Dates: | 1915-1958 |
| Quantity: | 5 cubic feet (10 boxes) |
| Abstract: | Papers relating to her play Alexander Hamilton, 1915-1958, include her manuscript, contracts, correspondence with George Arliss (1868-1946) who collaborated with her on rewriting it and played the lead on Broadway and in the film version, 1917-1931, Hamlin's letters to her husband while the play was in rehearsal and on tour, 1917, and other correspondence concerning movie rights and reviews. Other items include manuscripts of other plays, essays, and a novel; and clippings, letters, programs, and photographs (some arranged in scrapbooks) concerning her plays, 1917-1931. |
Biographical Note
Mary Ida Parmele was born Sept. 30, 1871, in West Bloomfield, N.Y., and grew up in Canandaigua, where she lived for the rest of her life. She spent two and a half years at Vassar from 1892-1895. In 1902 she married George Wright Hamlin, a banker, and might never have been known outside her community had it not been for her writing. She was especially interested in writing plays and ventured to send a script of a historical drama on the life of Alexander Hamilton to George Arliss. He agreed to collaborate with her on rewriting it and acted the lead in the Broadway production of Hamilton in 1917, and in 1918, when the play was on tour. In his autobiography Arliss wrote: "Mrs. Hamlin is probably the only woman alive who is a good wife, a good mother, a good housekeeper, a good friend, and a good playwright all in one." Her family concerns made it difficult for her to stay in touch with the theatrical world, and she turned to writing plays for amateurs - especially religious drama. Mrs. Hamlin was a Congregationalist and for twenty-five years taught a Bible class which had been started by her mother-in-law. Hamlin died in 1964.
TopScope and Content Note
Papers relating to her play Alexander Hamilton, 1915-1958, include her manuscript, contracts, correspondence with George Arliss (1868-1946) who collaborated with her on rewriting it and played the lead on Broadway and in the film version, 1917-1931, Hamlin's letters to her husband while the play was in rehearsal and on tour, 1917, and other correspondence concerning movie rights and reviews. Other items include manuscripts of other plays, essays, and a novel; and clippings, letters, programs, and photographs (some arranged in scrapbooks) concerning her plays, 1917-1931.
TopAccess and Use
Access
This collection is open for research according to the regulations of the Vassar College Archives and Special Collections Library without any additional restrictions.
Restrictions on Use
Permission to quote (publish) from unpublished or previously published material must be obtained as described in the regulations of the Vassar College Archives and Special Collections Library.
Subject Headings
Names:
- Arliss, George, 1868-1946
Subjects:
- Actors--New York (N.Y.)
- Amateur theater
- Performing arts--New York (N.Y.)
- Theater--New York (N.Y.)
- Theater--Production and direction
- Women dramatists, American
Document Types:
- Photographs
- Scrapbooks
VCL Categories
- Theater, Drama and Film
Encoding Information
Encoded by Elizabeth Clarke, December 2006. Updated by Mark Seidl, September 2019.
TopAdministrative Information
Preferred Citation
Mary Parmele Hamlin Papers, Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries.
Processing Information
Original processing date unknown.
Series List
Series I. Manuscripts (Boxes 1-7) |
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Series II. Other Materials (Boxes 8-10) |
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Container List
Return to the Table of Contents
Details
Papers relating to her play , 1915-1958, include her manuscript, contracts, correspondence with George Arliss (1868-1946) who collaborated with her on rewriting it and played the lead on Broadway and in the film version, 1917-1931, Hamlin's letters to her husband while the play was in rehearsal and on tour, 1917, and other correspondence concerning movie rights and reviews. Other items include manuscripts of other plays, essays, and a novel; and clippings, letters, programs, and photographs (some arranged in scrapbooks) concerning her plays, 1917-1931.
