This week we remember Horton Foote’s birthday on March 14, 1916. Foote was a Texas playwright and screenwriter, whose award-winning work includes the play A Young Man in Atlanta, and the films To Kill a Mockingbird and Tender Mercies. He is also known for his play and film, The Trip to Bountiful, which has been continually produced since the 1950s. The latest production will be directed by Michael Wilson at Ford’s Theatre in Washington D.C. this September.
Videos of Horton Foote’s various productions are available in DeGolyer Library, and represent six decades of television, film, and theater writing. A 1953 kinescope has been digitized and is available online at http://digitalcollections.smu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/hor/id/125/, complete with television commercials. This teleplay, A Young Lady of Property, features Kim Stanley and a young Joanne Woodward.
Horton Foote’s extensive papers include photographs, video, and correspondence with actors, authors, and media. Since he wrote almost every day of his life and saved all of his drafts, his papers form a complete author’s archive.
Please contact degolyer@smu.edu for assistance with this collection in DeGolyer Library.