"What does Bill Faulkner do when he feels so low he would like to turn Nazi and burn all the books ever written"- Autograph Postcard

Amusing autograph note on a postcard from the Armenian-American writer, recipient of a Pulitzer Prize in 1940 and an Academy Award in 1943. Addressed to Harrison Smith and postmarked April 22, 1934, the note is dated April 21, 1908 (apparently as a historical reference). Text, in full: "What the hell: Easter greetings, said Willy the Kaiser to Nicky the Czar: best wishes for a pleasant 1908. Those boys. Maybe I've got the gag wrong. Anyway, it is a good line. What does Bill Faulkner do when he feels so low he would like to turn Nazi and burn all the books ever written? That's the way I feel now. Saturday night is a hell of a night in America. I'm staying out of it this night. [good wishes though.] William Saroyan." Slightly irregular toning; overall fine. 3.25 x 5.5 inches (8.3 x 14 cm).

An Armenian American, Saroyan wrote extensively about the Armenian immigrant life in California. Many of his stories and plays are set in his native Fresno. Some of his best-known works are The Time of Your Life, My Name Is Aram and My Heart's in the Highlands. He has been described in a Dickinson College news release as "one of the most prominent literary figures of the mid-20th century" and by Stephen Fry as "one of the most underrated writers of the [20th] century." Fry suggests that "he takes his place naturally alongside Hemingway, Steinbeck and Faulkner." (16215)

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Autograph Letter

Literature & Classics

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