Scope and Contents
The papers consist of the diaries of Donald Crossley Vining for the years 1932-1958 and for 1971-1985, as well as typed transcripts from his diaries for 1926-1927. The diaries provide a detailed account of the life of an intellectual, homosexual man in the 1940s and 1950s. Vining, who spent most of his adult life in New York, took a great interest in the arts, and his diaries contain descriptions of operas and plays which he attended; outlines of his current writing projects and theater activities; and details of his daily life and personal relationships. Typescripts of several one and two act plays are included in the papers.
Dates
- 1926-1997
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The materials are open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright status for collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Donald Vining, 1959-1960; gift of the Estate of Donald Vining, 1998-2000.
Arrangement
Arranged by accession.
Extent
4.38 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Abstract
The papers consist of the diaries of Donald Crossley Vining for the years 1932-1958 and for 1971-1985, as well as typed transcripts from his diaries for 1926-1927. The diaries provide a detailed account of the life of an intellectual, homosexual man in the 1940s and 1950s. Vining, who spent most of his adult life in New York, took a great interest in the arts, and his diaries contain descriptions of operas and plays which he attended; outlines of his current writing projects and theater activities; and details of his daily life and personal relationships. Typescripts of several one and two act plays are included in the papers.
Biographical / Historical
Donald Crossley Vining was born on June 20, 1917, in Benton, Pennsylvania. He was educated at West Chester State College, Pennsylvania and at the Yale University School of Drama. In the late 1940s, he published numerous one-act plays for amateurs. Vining worked in the Development Office of Teachers College, Columbia University for thirty years, retiring in 1979 to begin a private publishing company, The Pepys Press, which specialized in diaries and journals. He published the autobiographical work, A Gay Diary. After retiring from publishing, Vining did free-lance writing for gay periodicals and a monthly column for Diarist's Journal. He died on January 24, 1998, in New York City.
- Title
- Guide to the Donald Crossley Vining Papers
- Status
- Under Revision
- Author
- compiled by Manuscripts and Archives Staff
- Date
- July 1984
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)
beinecke.library@yale.edu
Location
Sterling Memorial Library
Room 147
120 High Street
New Haven, CT 06511