Molnár, Ferenc

Description

Mostly in German, but with publishing instructions in English and numerous English words in the text (i.e. “Denglish”). Together, a wonderful visual & language cacophony of the creative process in exile.

The collection is part manuscript and part detailed instructions sent by Molnár to June Barrow Mussey, who was Molnár’s translator into English. It comprises a substantial rewrite of Molnár’s autobiography Companion in Exile / Notes for an Autobiography, which was published in New York by Gaer Associates, 1950.

Together with a First Edition of Companion in Exile that bears the bookplate and signature of Tad Mosel (1922-2008), a Pulitzer Prize winning American playwright. A comparison to the book reveals that almost all Molnár’s extensive rewriting and edits were incorporated in the publication. Manuscript Very Good; box with bumped corners and partially fading cloth. Book Very Good with fading spine light damage to top of spine.

Ferenc Molnár (1878–1952), often known as Franz Molnar, was Hungary’s most famous and financially successful playwright of the 20th century. he was born to German-Jewish parents in Budapest and wrote his drafts in longhand German. It is speculated that in the 1920s and 1930s his annual income exceeded a million dollars—a phenomenal sum at the time. No doubt, Molnár was one of, if not the, most famous Central European writer of the 1920s.

EXILE: To escape the persecution of Hungarian Jews during World War II, Molnár relocated to America on January 12, 1940. There, he spent the final 12 years of his life living in Room 835 at New York’s Plaza Hotel.

Molnár brought his secretary and devoted companion Wanda Bartha with him to the United States. In 1947, Bartha committed suicide. Although the relationship was platonic, there is no doubt Molnár loved Bartha deeply. After her death he sunk into depression from which he never fully recovered. Companion in Exile is an autobiography and homage to Bartha. It is a compelling story of love, grief, and loss in a foreign land.

The documents on offer were sent by Molnár to June Barrow Mussey (1910–1985), who wrote under the pen name Henry Hay. Mussey was a well-known translator for exile authors including Lion Feuchtwanger. This collection shows the creative process of publishing a manuscript written in a hodge-podge of German and English for an American audience.

Molnár’s literary archive is at NYPL.

Bibliography: Széchenyi; Molnár.