THE JOHN O'HARA SOCIETY celebrates the life and works of John O'Hara, Pennsylvania's pre-eminent contemporary author and America's greatest short-story writer. The JOHS studies, publishes, and diffuses works by and about the author. Membership is free. For details, contact the JOHS's Corresponding Secretary, Richard Carreño, via Philabooks@yahoo.com. © MMXXIV John O'Hara Society.
John O'Hara's Pennsylvania Historical Marker in Pottsville
Wednesday, November 4, 2020
John O'Hara, Pottsville, Schuylkill County
Before I get started with the latest post, I wanted to offer a small shout-out
to the women of the Herstory Club! This internet collective is made up entirely
of women of all ages who focus on the study of history, and I was recently
welcomed into the ranks. I'm very excited to be in the club
and appreciate the kind greetings I've received, so thank you!
November is here and I hope you are all well! At this time last year
Writer Search
PUBLISHER REQUEST
Hello,
My company is preparing an entry on John O’Hara for Literature Criticism, a reference series published by Gale-Cengage. We rely on scholars to shape these entries, and we have had a difficult time finding a scholar to advise us on this entry. I wonder if anyone at the Society might be interested?
The scholar would be credited as an academic advisor to the volume and we offer a small honorarium. I’d be happy to explain more about the job and send sample entries should anyone come to mind.
I look forward to your response.
Best regards,
Hollis
Hollis Beach
Senior Editor
Layman Poupard
843.568.6437
ANOTHER LOOK
Hail O'Hara—Again!
By Samuel Goldman
John O’Hara’s novels and stories are one of those fashions, like wing collars or Bermuda shorts, that never quite come around again. Prominent between roughly World War II and the Great Society, O’Hara’s enormous output of fiction, which literary critics never really liked, almost immediately sank into obscurity. Every few decades, one of O’Hara’s admirers, usually a literary miner of the same sociological vein, tries to revive the writer’s reputation with biographies, glossy new editions, or appreciative essays. None of these efforts has succeeded. O’Hara’s name usually draws a blank among even well-read people younger than 60 or so.
The obstacle probably isn’t the material per se. Though he enjoyed his biggest sales in the Eisenhower era, much of O’Hara’s work is set in the 1920s. Associations with the Lost Generation, Prohibition, and the New York nightclub scene have done little to undermine, say, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s status. And while O’Hara never reaches Fitzgerald’s heights of lyricism, his characters, their actions, and their speech are more plausible than the laconic caricatures and contrived plots of Ernest Hemingway’s mid-career.
Request from John Murphy
Wright On!
Carol Ritter Wright
BOOKS FOR SALE
Frank Van Eck
Dear Sir, or Madam,
We possess a collection of 1st edition John O’Hara books.
Would you be interested in purchasing them?
We could send you a listing with bibliographical details.
Looking forward to the pleasure of hearing from you,
Yours sincerely,
Frank P. van Eck
********************
VAN ECK VERLAG
Haldenweg 8
FL-9495 Triesen
00423-392 30 00
O'HARA WALKING TOUR
The Schuylkill County Historical Society will present a John O’Hara walking tour on Saturday, Sept. 18.
Participants will meet at the O’Hara statue on Centre Street between Howard Avenue and Mahantongo Street. Fees are $10 for Society members and $15 for the general public.
GENERATION GAP?
UVA Professor's Students Disagree with