Brian C. Daley papers - Scope and Content Note
The first series, Writings, contains an assortment of his drafts and manuscripts. Due to his variety of writing styles, this series is divided into four subseries which demonstrate his versatility as an author: animated series, books, radio and audio drama, and short stories. Each of these subseries include manuscripts in a variety of stages of completion, from preliminary drafts to page proofs. The majority of this series is comprised of drafts from his Black Hole Travel Agency, GammaL.A.W., and NPR Star Wars series.
The second series, Research Notes, exhibits the amount of time and effort Brian Daley put into each one of his works. This series contains notes and clippings of articles or images which would later be used in his writings. The folders are titled according to their original titles assigned by Daley. Although the folders materials are maintained in their original order, the folders were rearranged alphabetically for research purposes.
The third series, Correspondence, includes both personal and business material. The business correspondence includes his communication with such companies as Del Rey Books, Dark Horse Comics, Ballantine, and LucasArts between 1978 and 1996. The business colleagues he most often kept in contact were Ellen K. Harris, Lucy Autrey Wilson, Vladimir N. Rybakov, Lester Del Rey, Calvin A Gongwer, and James Luceno. The collection also has a large amount of personal correspondence, including communication between friends, family, fans and fellow Vietnam veterans. Throughout his career, Brian Daley received mail from his fans throughout the world. An advocate of Veteran rights, this collection contains letters which he wrote to the Army and fellow soldiers concerning issues of the day. The collection also contains correspondence with during his 1967 tour of duty in Vietnam.
The fourth series, Schoolwork, includes materials from his time attending Jersey City State College, located in New Jersey. The series is contains drafts of papers, poems and notes. There is a book titled Not an Ivory Tower: An Intimate History of Jersey City State College, which celebrated the school's 60th anniversary. Also included is a folder which contains an assortment of poems which were used in a Creative Writing Sampler class, which he took in the spring of 1971.
The fifth series, Photographs contains photos of Brian Daley, Star Wars and the U.S. Cavalry Blackhorses Regiment. The sixth series, Finances, includes tax information which he filed in 1995 and 1996. There are also the death and estate records which were issued in 1996 to Lucia St. Claire Robson, upon Daley's death.
The seventh series, Clippings & Publications, contains a combination of materials pertaining to Brian Daley's work and interests. A large of this section includes newspaper and magazine clippings about Daley's professional life, mostly focusing on his NPR Star Wars series, GammaL.A.W. series, and Del Rey Books. There are also Star Wars materials, such as comic strips and Magazines. This series also contains clippings and publications concerning Vietnam veterans.
The eighth and final series, Personal Materials, is comprised of assorted materials from Daley's personal interests and travels. A member of the 11th U.S. Cavalry Blackhorse Regiment, Brian Daley kept newsletters and materials related to the group. An avid reader and appreciator of Science Fiction, Daley made checklists concerning his fanzine and comic collections. Also included is a sketchbook and some loss drawings. These drawings pertain to Star Wars and scifi characters. As a science fiction writer, Daley attended a number of Con festivals. He attended HiroCon5 in Japan, and he kept in touch with a number of fans and saved memorabilia. This is the only material in this collection we have relating to any of the Cons he attended. This series also contains four VHS tapes, containing: Brian's talk at Jersey City State College, a home video of Brian and Lucia's trip to Japan, one of Daley and James Luceno's trip to Guatemala, and one of his Memorials.
