Collections

This collection contains research materials used by Martin Dyckman for his 2006 book about former Governor Leroy Collins titled Floridian of His Century. Research materials include speeches from Leroy Collins before he became governor; an interview transcript with Premier Khrushchev during Collins' trip to the Soviet Union; newspaper columns written by Collins for the St. Peterburg Times and transcripts and audio recordings of interviews conducted by Dyckman.

The papers of the National Commission to Prevent Infant Mortality consist of documents, photographs, and other materials detailing the formation and work of the Commission, established and chaired by U.S. Senator Lawton Chiles (D-FL, 1971-1988). The Commission was developed to find ways to reduce the high infant mortality rates of U.S. infants in the early 1980s, especially in southern states. The bulk of the collection concerns national hearings and meetings in which various high-profile organizations and individuals met to address governmental and private roles regarding the delivery of services associated with preventing infant mortality, as well as to recommend actions designed to change and improve the nation's comprehensive approach to this problem.

The New Republic/Jorge Mas Canosa Collection in Special Collections in the Green Library at Florida International University consists of materials gathered by legal counsel retained by the New Republic magazine as part of trial preparation in a libel suit filed against the magazine by Mr. Mas Canosa, Chairman of the Cuban American National Foundation. The suit stemmed from an article that ran in the October 3, 1994 edition of the New Republic written by Anne Louise Bardach (pp. 20-25).

This collection consists of correspondence and official records related to the service of Theodore Oxman in the Army Air Force in World War II. As part of the collection there is a sixty-fifth anniversary booklet of the Cornell University's Class of 1948 where alumni recount their World War II experiences in the different branches of the armed services. The collection also contains two photographs of Oxman and a book documenting the personnel and mission of the Grenada Army Air Field in Grenada, Mississippi.

Florida Atlantic University Libraries is the designated repository of the personal papers and manuscript archives of Florida author Theodore Pratt. The collection includes the author's personal copies of first and foreign editions of his works, original typescripts of his fiction and screenplays, correspondence, research notes, illustrative artwork for dustcovers and paperbacks, in addition to personal mementos and photographs. In 1934, Theodore Pratt and his wife Belle Jacqueline Jacques moved to Lake Worth, Florida and made it their home until his death in 1969. He published 35 novels, including four mysteries under the pseudonym of "Timothy Brace," two collections of short stories, two plays (adapted from his novels), and numerous short stories and articles. Pratt used a second pseudonym, "Peter Steel" for an adult novel titled The Amulet. Of the 35 novels, 14 of Pratt's novels and many of his short stories are set in Florida. His trilogy, consisting of The Barefoot Mailman, The Flame Tree, and The Big Bubble (reprinted as My Bride in the Storm), tell the story of the state between 1880 and 1924 and resulted in the author being dubbed "the literary laureate of Florida." Four of his novels and one article were adapted to screenplays and became feature films. His Florida novels were thoroughly researched and scrupulously portrayed the history of Florida people, institutions and events. He also kept detailed documentation on the practical and tedious aspects of making a living as a writer. His correspondence and photographs illustrate his unique character and provides a glimpse into the old Florida lifestyle. In 1950, Pratt began to publish most of his work in paperback as he wanted to address sexual themes which most serious publishers would not consider. Pratt's interest in sexology or the scientific study of human sexual behavior can be seen in his novels, The Tormented (1950), The Lovers of Pompeii (1961), and Without Consent (1962). The Tormented is a study of nymphomania that was rejected by thirty-four publishers. Once published, it sold more than a million copies. Because of the paperback format and mass market appeal of his books, critics paid little attention to most of his work.