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2

Liberty BOOK CLUB · INC.
1123 BROADWAY, NEW YORK 10, N. Y.

Telephone: WATKINS 4-2706

July 6, 1950

Mr. Langston Hughes
c/o Simon & Schuster Inc.
1230 Sixth Avenue
New York, N. Y.

Dear Mr. Hughes:

As we approach the second anniversary of Liberty Book Club we are preparing a special mailing piece to our members about the function Liberty Book Club performs in the domain of progressive literature.

As an author of a book selected and distributed by Liberty Book Club, we would be grateful if you will send us a quotable paragraph about Liberty Book Club.

SAR/jk
uopwa

UOPWA

33

July 25, 1950

Mr. S. A. Russell
Liberty Book Club, Inc.
1123 Broadway
New York 10, New York

Dear Mr. Russell:

Mr. Hughes has asked me to tell you how sorry he is that he has
personally been unable to answer your letter of July 6th regarding
a quote concerning the Liberty Book Club.

This has been, without a doubt, the busiest year of his career,
with a book, SIMPLE SPEAKS HIS MIND, three libretoes, an anthology,
a weekly column for the CHICAGO DEFENDER, lectures, and hundreds of
other engagements of varying degree. A few days ago he came home
from the country where he had been working on a new opera libretto
and plunged into the last-minute revisions of a musical show which
is being done in Maine this summer. As a matter of fact, he left
for Maine this morning and we don't expect him home for at least
three weeks. He has also just completed the last revisions on his
opera, THE BARRIER, which is scheduled to open on Broadway at the
Mansfield Theatre in September. The score for this one is by Jan
Meyerowitz, with Mriel Rahn in the leading role.

However, he has asked me to say that he will try to comply with your
request as soon as he returns—if this is not too late for your
purposes. Oh, yes, he wants you to know that he is delighted to hear
that one of his books has been placed on the distribution list of your
club.