CHICAGO

DETROIT

GARY

ST. LOUIS

EAST ST. LOUIS

PARKER HOUSE SAUSAGE COMPANY

J. H. PARKER, President

MAIN OFFICE & FACTORY
4605-11 S. State Street
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
KEnwood 8-1112, 3

Department of Publicity
A. L. FOSTER, DIRECTOR
1900 Central Avenue,
East St. Louis, Ill.

2-23-50

Mr. Langston Hughes,
c/o Chicago Defender,
3435 South Indiana Avenue,
Chicago, Illinois.

Dear Langston:

We are sponsoring a series of radio broadcasts of "educational value and social significance" - rather high-brow stuff, if you ask me. They're clicking too. We are getting all sort of fan mail. I am the narrator and am enjoying myself hugely.

On Mondays, we summarize news regarding Negro progress; on Wednesdays, "This is Your Heritage" - a series of thumb-nail sketches of famous Negroes and on Fridays - Parker House Variety Time - a sort of pot pourri. Our Wednesday scripts are being written by a New York gal who does a darn good job.

Well, last night we paid a tribute to Langston Hughes and today - all day - we have been getting telephone calls commending us (and a few gals asking if you are actually still unmarried). Are you ? A Mrs. Australia Roberts - local poetess and reader of at least local fame, assisted by interpreted three of your peoms and she did a swell job. We all enjoyed the whole business and a lot of radio listeners apparently enjoyed it too.

As I related your experiences, I couldn't help but think of the similarities of our experiences. My middle name is also Langston (that's what the "L" stands for) and I was named for your distinguished Uncle with whom my father enjoyed a fine friendship. Like you I was born in Missouri (Springfield) and had my earlier education in Kansas (Wichita). I also had a wanderlust but didn't gratify it until many years later when I did visit eight European countries including Russia - and was impressed just as you were. And I love to rewrite and like many others think that had I followed my "natural bent" I'd now be a writer of some sorts. I do do articles now and then for Color magazine and columns for Claude Barnett and various papers.

March 17, 1950

Mr. Al.L. Foster,
1900 Central Avenue,
East St. Louis, Illinois.

It was certainly nice to get your letter and to know where you
are again. And it will be a pleasure to see you when I come to
St. Louis on the 24th. I've written Miss Garvin that I'd like
to come over to East St. Louis on Saturday morning before making
a late afternoon train, as I've never visited that little city
before.....I was most interested to hear about your radio program
and, of course, delighte1 that you've paid attention to my work.
Do you, by any chance, have a list of Negro sponsored radio pro-
grams in the country (with their addresses)? If you, I'd appre-
ciated it immensely if you could send it to me as Simon And Shuster
would like to send them next week an advance copy of my new book,
SIMPLE SPEAKS HIS MIND---yourself included.....I'll wait till I
see you to tell you all the news. Have to go out of town tonight,
as this is my busy lecture season......Meanwhile, all good wishes,

Sincerely yours,

"ITS GOOD BUSINESS TO DO BUSINESS WITH THOSE WHO DO BUSINESS WITH YOU"

COSMOPOLITAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

(Originally Chicago Negro Chamber of Commerce)

Telephones: OAKland 4-4617 - 4618

417 East 47th Street - Rooms 307-309
CHICAGO 53, ILLINOIS

August 2, 1960

Mr. Lansgton Hughes,
New York, N. Y.

Dear Mr. Hughes:

My daughter-in-law, Gloria Foster, is playing the
role of Jocasta in Oedipus Rex in the University of Chicago
Court Theatre with some distinction.

She is a graduate of the Goodman School of the Dra-
ma and previously has played Hecuba in The Women of Troy and Me-
dia and other leads with all white casts.

Gloria and her husband will be in New York later
on and I am eager for them to meet you. If you are willing and
will send me your telephone number I will suggest that they call
you when they have gotten settled. They expect to be in New York
for about a week.

(see page 62, Jet magazine, July 28, 1960)

Mr. Langston Hughes
20 East 127th Street
New York, New York

April 8, 1964

Miss Yvonne Foster
116 Thompson Street
New York 12, New York

Dear Miss Foster:

Mr. Hughes has just left on a lecture tour and has asked me to write you that he has written to John Killens about you, so that when you write him regarding the writer's group, he will know something of you.

Mr. Killens address is 1392 Union Street, Brooklyn 13, New York.

Mr. Hughes also told me to tell you that he had a pleasant talk with your father recently at Lincoln University and that he gave Mr. Hughes a copy of the beautiful guide book on Florence of which you are co-editor.

RA:1

September 26, 1946

Miss Anna Jean Foston
1060 W. Greene Street
Piqua, Ohio

Dear Miss Foston:

Thank you very much for your kind letter. I hope very much that I shall be able to come to Piqua for your League this season. However, I am only devoting one month, that of January, to lectures this winter, as I shall be in the South the rest of the time. I am coming to the Middle West in January and it is very possible that my lecture agency could arrange a date for you.

I am booked through:

W. Colston Leigh, Inc.
521 Fifth Avenue
New York 17, New York

You write to Miss Beatrice Rothschild at that address. Explain the financial situation of your organization to her so that she will give you the most considerate fee possible. Since I have an agreement with this agency I cannot take lectures on my own, and all public appearances must be booked through their office.

With all good wishes to you,

Sincerely,

LH:HHS

Enclosure

January 8, 1947

Miss Anna J. Foston
1060 West Greene Street
Piqua, Ohio

Dear Miss Foston:

I am looking forward with pleasure to coming to Piqua on January 22. Unfortunately, because of my lecture schedule, I cannot arrive in Piqua until the day of my lecture and I am very sorry that this will not conform with your social program planned for the day previous. However, the reception after the lecture is quite all right with me. I shall arrive in Piqua the afternoon of January 22.

I am asking my publishers to send ahead in my name a small package of my various books, as there are usually persons at the program who wish to secure autographed copies. Would you be so kind as to request someone to place these books on display for me and to take charge of them? The prices are just inside the covers. If you wish, the package may be opened before my arrival for display or sale.

Thanking you for this courtesy and looking forward to meeting you, I am

Ruth Allen Fouché
5044 South Parkway,
Chicago, 15, Illinois.

THE FOUNDATION FOR ECONOMIC EDUCATION, INC.

IRVINGTON-ON-HUDSON, NEW YORK

April 25, 1955

Mr. Langston Hughes
Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
501 Madison Avenue
New York 22, New York

Dear Mr. Hughes:

Dr. Harper is presently on the West Coast, therefore I wish to acknowledge and thank you for your letter to him of the 22nd.

I also want to thank you for sending me a copy of the letter and the attached hearing transcript. It is a very interesting story and my puzzlement on some of the details is now entirely cleared up.

I, for one, have no doubt as to the sincerity of your present views and wish you good fortune in all your undertakings.

May 20, 1954

Mr. Donald Davis
Foundation for Youth
and Student Affairs
22 West 43rd Street
New York, New York

Dear Mr. Davis:

This is a copy of the pertinent portions of the let-
ter to me from Miss Mavis M. Kwankwa, of Johannesburg,
South Africa, who wishes to go to England to study.
I have contacted some half dozen foundations here with-
out achieving any very helpful results, so any informa-
tion which you might post to her which she could follow
up herself would, I am sure, be very greatly appreci-
ated on her part.

Mr. Emory Ross, who is to deliver the Handley Memorial
Address, at the South African Institute on Race Rela-
tions in Johannesburg in August, has been kind enough to
say that he will try to see Miss Kwankwa while he is
there, and give her whatever advice he can, too, although
his organization is in no position to be of any direct
help to her at the moment.

I receive a great many letters from African students
and writers appealing for help of one sort or another.
This young lady's abilities seem to me unusual, and so
I have devoted more time to her request than I am cus-
tomarily able to give, since I know about a half mil-
lion people here in our U.S.A. who have problems, too.
Unfortunately, I have them also—which somewhat cur-
tails my helping others as much as I wish I were able
to do. Anyhow, I am deeply grateful to you.

Sincerely yours,

lh-hs

Langston Hughes

WIRE---DECEMBER 24th, 1956

Mr. Edward Fowler,
9 West 65th Street,
New York City

The loss of one so gentle and talented and beautiful leaves a void
in the world. To you and her son my deepest sympathy. I regret
missing your call but expect to be home this evening if I can be of
any help.

Langston

BEDFORD PUBLIC SCHOOLS

THE FOX LANE SCHOOL

South Bedford Road
Bedford, New York
MOunt Kisco 6-8991

Neil P. Atkins
Principal

June 2, 1964

Mr. Langston Hughes
20 East 129th Street
New York, 35, N.Y.

Dear Mr. Hughes:

Dr. Joseph Kennedy of the American Society of African Culture suggested I write you about a unique educational opportunity The Fox Lane School is offering this summer. It is an African Institute. A program which is designed to bring to secondary school students, their teachers and parents a deeper and more personal understanding of the African scene.

Each day visiting specialists -- UN members, historians, anthropologists, musicologists, Peace Corps. people, and others who are actively involved in shaping and interpreting the African scene will share with us their own special viewpoints. A partial list includes:

Dr. Joseph Kennedy, American Society of African Culture

Dr. Colin M. Turnbull, Curator African Ethnology,
Museum of Natural History

A number of African students, who will live in Bedford for the month of July, will participate daily in our seminars and further help us to understand their people and continent.

We hope you will be able to join us in this adventure. Certainly our understanding of African Literature would be greatly enhanced by your participation.

Please call me at MO 6-8991 if I can offer you additional information regarding this project. Thank you.

CVS:da

20 East 127th Street
New York 35, New York

October 8, 1948

Miss Hope Foye
1109 Franklin Avenue
Apartment #2
Bronx, New York

Dear Miss Foye!

A few months ago, along with some other material,
Mr. Langston Hughes submitted the manuscript copy of his song,
GOING MAD WITH A DIME which I believe he asked you to return when
you had finished with it. We have been trying to contact you for
some time now about the WOOLWORTH SONG. It isn't necessary to re-
turn the other material, however, we would greatly appreciate your
returning the manuscript copy of GOING MAD WITH A DIME, since it
was the only copy Mr. Hughes had in his files. Mr. Hughes hopes
that you will return the song at your earliest convenience. It the
above address.

January 10, 1949

Miss Hope Foye
1109 Franklin Avenue - Apt. #2
Bronx 56, New York

Dear Miss Foye:

Thank you very much for the return of the music,
GOING MAD WITH A DIME. It was very kind of you to have your
husband bring it around in person and I am very grateful to
you for having returned it to me. You see, I was extremely
anxious to have it back since Inga Andersen, a young British
commédienne, is interested in seeing it, and the copy I leaned
to you was the only copy of the music I had.

My best wishes to you,

July 23, 1949

Miss Hope Foye,
709 F. D. R. Drive, Apt. 11-F,
Bronx, New York.

Dear Miss Foye,

In answer to your recent letter, I am sending you under separate
cover the only songs of mine which I have on hand that might be
suitable to your use;

HEART OF HARLEM..................Duke Ellington
MERRY-GO-ROUND....................George W. Clark
BORDER LINE......................Lawrence R. Smith
AT THE FEET OF JESUS............Hall Johnson & Toy Harper
A NEW WIND A-BLOWIN'...........Elie Siegmeister
SIX SHADES OF BLUE...............Sammy Heyward
AUTUMN..........................Emerson Harper

Lawrence R. Smith, a talented young Negro composer, has done some
other songs of mine also which I imagine he would show you on re-
quest. His address is 824 Dawson Street, Bronx 59. (Lu.9-2368).

I have asked Howard Swanson, another Negro composer whose songs
have been done by various artists at Town Hall and elsewhere and
who is being published shortly by Leeds, to send you some settings
he had done to my lyrics. You should receive them in a day or two.

I am enclosing a self-addressed return envelope. Whatever material
you do not find useful, kindly return to me therein after you have
had a chance to go over it.

Lots of good wishes to you in your concert preparations.

Sincerely,