Keillor on leaving home, mementos, and Updike

Keillor at the 2016 Updike conference with society president James Plath

The New Hampshire Union Leader recently published “Garrison Keillor: The art of leaving home.” Keillor, who was the keynote speaker at the 4th Biennial John Updike Society Conference in Columbia, S.C., wrote, “The pleasure of moving is the excavation of the past. I open a box and here’s a photo of my fifth-grade class, the eager neatly-combed-and-dressed boy with glassing sitting behind John Poate is me. I am still that eager boy, heavier but anxious to do well.”

Keillor wrote that he kept “artifacts of a long life. . . . I kept all these and other souvenirs. I never listened to the show [A Prairie Home Companion] myself and I have no memorabilia from it. It would only give me remorse that the show wasn’t better than it was. John Updike told me once that he rather enjoyed reading his early work but then he was a naturally cheerful man, rare for an author. Critics resented him for that and gave him grudging reviews; they preferred writers who had suffered, been imprisoned, exiled, or at least had abusive fathers. John was too American. There wasn’t much Russian or Spanish about him. He wrote because he was good at it and he knew it.

“And now in my old age I’ve found useful work as a stand-up cheerleader for adult cheerfulness, the basic goodness of life, a counter-voice to the diversity cops and agony aunts who’ve taken over publishing, journalism, public radio and TV, and much of academia. DeSantis’s anti-woke campaign is stupidity on toast; the real problem with MacWoke is its penchant for dismal pessimism, its humorlessness. I grew up with fundamentalists who looked forward to the end of the world and now progressives do too.”

In a March 13, 2024 column for the New Hampshire Union Leader, “Mature man available for speaking, easy terms,” Keillor cited Updike again:  “And my hero John Updike, back in the days of White Male Authorship, got me into the American Academy of Arts and Letters, one of only three humorists in the club, which looks darned good on my résumé. People from my hometown of Anoka, Minnesota, look at that and think, ‘Him? He didn’t even make National Honor Society in high school. He got a B minus in English and even that was generous.'”

Society honors The Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation

At the closing dinner of the Fourth Biennial John Updike Society Conference, the society honored The Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation with its Distinguished Service Award.

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-8-27-35-amThe award is small, a token but heartfelt appreciation; the service is huge. The Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation gave the society the money to purchase The John Updike Childhood Home at 117 Philadelphia Ave. in Shillington, Pa., where Updike said his “artistic eggs were hatched.” Since then, foundation donations have enabled the society to hire a historic restoration specialist and to restore the interior and exterior of the house to pre-1945, when young Updike famously saw it recede as he looked out of the car window en route to the family’s new home at the Plowville farm—a move that took him away from classmates and the house he loved. Because of the tremendous generosity and support of The Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation, significant changes have been made to return the house to the way it once was. Updike’s bedroom has been reconfigured to its original size, with “The Black Room” (which he talks about in the short story by that name) next to it. The upstairs hallway now extends all the way to the front of the house, as it did during Updike’s time, and the living room and parlor are separated by columnar dividers, as they were when young Updike lived in the house. And the Victorian spindlework whose removal he mourned has been reinstated.

The John Updike Childhood Home is an important literary site and museum-in-progress that will become every bit as much of a part of America’s cultural history as the Mark Twain homes in Missouri, New York, and Connecticut, the Fitzgerald home in Alabama, and the Hemingway homes in Florida, Illinois, and Idaho. The society is grateful to The Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation for playing such a large part in establishing this cultural monument. Pictured is society vice-president James Schiff, accepting the award on behalf of his family foundation from society president James Plath. Also receiving plaques at the dinner were Thomas F. McNally and Elizabeth Sudduth, in gratitude for going above and beyond the call of duty in hosting the conference, and Don Greiner, for serving as director.

Fourth Biennial JUS Conference deadline approaching; schedule updated

The deadline to register for the 4th Biennial John Updike Society Conference in Columbia, South Carolina, October 12-15, 2016, is fast approaching. Registration is $150 and increases to $185 after September 1, but members and others are encouraged to make that deadline to enable conference director Don Greiner and host University of South Carolina Libraries to finalize conference plans.

State House

Here is the registration form: THE 4TH BIENNIAL JOHN UPDIKE SOCIETY CONFERENCE

It’s all very convenient and compact, with the conference held on the campus of the University of South Carolina, the Inn at the University of South Carolina serving as the official conference hotel, and the bar of that hotel open for conference attendees Thursday through Saturday.

Here is the updated conference schedule, including paper titles and names of presenters:  4th JUS Conference Schedule (updated)

Conference highlights:

• Keynote address by Garrison Keillor, of A Prairie Home Companion fame (Mr. Keillor says he’s eager to hear what Updike scholars have to say)
• Inaugural Rabbit Open golf tournament (optional/all skill levels welcome)
• Book-length catalogue of the Don and Ellen Greiner Updike Collection (free to all attendees)
• Broadside featuring a comment about Updike by Keillor, suitable for framing (and autographing)
• Major Updike exhibit (16 cases) of typescripts, inscriptions, broadsides, limited editions, two love poems Updike wrote at age 10, etc.
• Special presentation by two of Updike’s children, Miranda and David Updike
• Opportunity to examine rare and seldom displayed 19th and 20th century American literature artifacts and literary items (Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, Hawthorne, Melville, Howells, Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Faulkner, Joyce, Heller, etc.)
• Plenary talk on Updike collections by Leslie Morris (Houghton Library) and Elizabeth Sudduth (USC Libraries)
• DVD presentation of Updike delivering his controversial talk “On Literary Biography” at USC
• Tour of Civil War sites like the State House (pictured above) and the USC “Horseshoe,” which Gen. Sherman spared on his march through the South because the campus buildings were being used as a hospital for both sides; the South Caroliniana Library (pictured below), on the Horseshoe, was built in 1840 and was the first freestanding college library in the nation.
• Slideshow presentation on the location of the 5th John Updike Society Biennial Conference in June 2018, with keynote speaker also announced.

Though attendees must be members of the society, all are welcome to join and experience this celebration of manuscripts, research, and special collections, with a focus on John Updike.

south-carolina-library

 

 

Registration now open for 4th Biennial John Updike Society Conference

State HouseRegistration is now open for the 4th Biennial John Updike Society Conference October 12-15, 2016, celebrating manuscripts, research, and special collections and hosted by the University of South Carolina Libraries in  Columbia, S.C. It will be the first chance that society members have to see the Don and Ellen Greiner Updike Collection. Greiner is serving as conference director, and the conference hotel is The Inn at USC Wyndham Garden, right on USC’s campus.

Conference highlights:

  • Keynote address by Garrison Keillor, of A Prairie Home Companion fame
  • Inaugural Rabbit Open golf tournament (optional/all skill levels welcome)
  • Book-length catalogue of the Don and Ellen Greiner Updike Collection (free to all attendees)
  • Broadside featuring a comment about Updike by Keillor, suitable for framing (and autographing)
  • Major Updike exhibit (16 cases) of typescripts, inscriptions, broadsides, limited editions, two love poems Updike wrote at age 10, etc.
  • Special presentation by two of Updike’s children, Miranda and David Updike
  • Opportunity to examine rare and seldom displayed 19th and 20th century American literature artifacts and literary items (Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, Hawthorne, Melville, Howells, Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Faulkner, Joyce, Heller, etc.)
  • Plenary talk on Updike collections by Leslie Morris (Houghton Library) and Elizabeth Sudduth (USC Libraries)
  • DVD presentation of Updike delivering his controversial talk “On Literary Biography” at USC
  • Tour of Civil War sites like the State House (pictured above) and the USC “Horseshoe,” which Gen. Sherman spared on his march through the South because the campus buildings were being used as a hospital for both sides; the South Caroliniana Library (pictured below), on the Horseshoe, was built in 1840 and was the first freestanding college library in the nation

Though attendees must be members of the society, all are welcome to join and experience this celebration of manuscripts, research, and special collections, with a focus on John Updike.  Click on the link below to download a draft of the program and all registration and hotel information:

THE 4TH BIENNIAL JOHN UPDIKE SOCIETY CONFERENCE

 

south-carolina-library

Call for Papers: 4th Biennial JUS Conference

The John Updike Society is now accepting proposals for papers to be presented at the Fourth Biennial John Updike Society Conference at the University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, October 12-15, 2016.

We welcome one-page proposals for 15-20 minute papers on all aspects of Updike’s life and work, but especially seek:

—Proposals on humor in John Updike’s poetry and prose, since the conference keynote speaker will be noted humorist and author Garrison Keillor, host of The Writer’s Almanac and longtime host of NPR’s A Prairie Home Companion.

—Proposals on Updike works celebrating a milestone anniversary in 2016: The Music School (50th), Marry Me: A Romance (40th), Roger’s Version (30th), In the Beauty of the Lilies (20th), and Terrorist (10th).

—Proposals for essays of textual criticism that draw heavily upon original manuscripts and sources, since the conference celebrates special collections and scholarship.

Deadline:  June 15, 2016

The Fourth Biennial John Updike Society Conference celebrates the newest addition to the Ernest F. Hollings Special Collections Library: The Don and Ellen Greiner Collection of John Updike. The Hollings Library also holds major research collections on F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway (including early books signed to each other), Joseph Heller (including the typewriter he used to write Catch-22), Ralph Waldo Emerson, Walt Whitman, John Hawkes, Frederick Busch, James Elroy, James Dickey, George V. Higgins, Elmore Leonard, Pat Conroy, Robert Burns, John Milton, and Charles Darwin. It was at the University of South Carolina that Updike delivered his now-famous treatise “On Literary Biography.” Those who have papers accepted are encouraged to make time for additional onsite research. Conference highlights:

—Garrison Keillor (A Prairie Home Companion) will deliver the keynote address

—Two of Updike’s children will present slides he took of the family over several decades

—Leslie Morris (Houghton Library) and Elizabeth Sudduth (USC Libraries) will talk about their Updike collections

—Attendees will receive a copy of the book-length catalog of the Greiner JU collection

—A special video presentation of Updike’s talk on literary biography will be featured

—Attendees will tour Civil War sites like the State House and the USC “Horseshoe,” which Gen. Sherman spared on his march through the South because the campus buildings were being used as a hospital for both sides

Send proposal and a brief one- or two-paragraph bio to:  Program director Don Greiner: dgreiner@sc.rr.com

Screen Shot 2015-11-14 at 9.09.06 PMSuccessful proposals will be acknowledged within two weeks of receipt. To present a paper or moderate a panel at the conference, participants must be members of the John Updike Society and register for the conference. For membership information, see the Society’s website at https://blogs.iwu.edu/johnupdikesociety/join. Those who have papers accepted can join when they register for the conference. Registration information will be forthcoming.

The conference hotel will be the Inn at USC Wyndham Garden Columbia (pictured), an elegant boutique hotel located right on the campus of the University of South Carolina in the heart of downtown Columbia. More information is forthcoming with the registration announcement, but if you are in a hurry to book a room make sure you mention The John Updike Society to get the block discount.

Call for Papers 4

Keillor to give keynote John Updike Society address

KeillorHere’s some news that ought to make John Updike Society members and Updike fans smile and start Googling cheap flights to Columbia, South Carolina.

Garrison Keillor, best known as the longtime host of the NPR radio program A Prairie Home Companion, will be the keynote speaker for the Fourth Biennial John Updike Society Conference, hosted by the University of South Carolina and the University of South Carolina Libraries. Keillor will kick off the conference with an 8 p.m. keynote address on Wednesday, October 12, 2016.

Keillor is one of Updike’s biggest fans and has often featured poems by Updike on The Writer’s Almanac, a daily program he hosts. A literary star himself, he has also written a string of books that started back in 1985 with Lake Wobegon Days.

Keillor was born in 1942 in Anoka, Minnesota, and began his radio career as a freshman at the University of Minnesota, from which he graduated in 1966. He went to work for Minnesota Public Radio in 1969, and on July 6, 1974, he hosted the first broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion in St. Paul. Today, some 4 million listeners on more than 600 public radio stations coast to coast and beyond tune in to the show each week.

KeillorReaderKeillor has been honored with Grammy, ACE, and George Foster Peabody awards, the National Humanities Medal, and election to the American Academy of Arts and Letters—the latter two honors something he has in common with Updike. His many books of humor and fiction include Lake Wobegon Days, The Book of Guys, Guy Noir and the Straight Skinny, and his latest, The Keillor Reader: Looking Back at Forty Years of Stories: Where Did They All Come From? (Viking, 2015). Keillor has also edited several anthologies of poetry, most recently, Good Poems: American Places (Viking, 2011).

In 2006, Keillor played himself in the movie adaptation of his show, a film directed by Robert Altman. He has two grandsons and in 2007 he opened an independent bookstore, Common Good Books, in St. Paul, the city where he and his wife and daughter make their home.

As at previous conferences, there will be books available for purchase at the event. More program and registration details will be forthcoming. Although membership is required to attend the conference, the society welcomes ALL fans of Updike and the dues ($30/year, $25/retirees, grad students) are affordable.

The John Updike Society is dedicated to awakening and sustaining reader interest in the literature and life of John Updike, promoting literature written by Updike, fostering and encouraging critical responses to Updike’s literary works, and, through The John Updike Childhood Home, preserving the history and telling the story of John Updike’s relationship with Shillington, Pa. and the influence that Berks County had on his literary works.

South Carolina announced as the 2016 John Updike Society conference site

At the membership meeting, John Updike Society president Jim Plath announced that the board had unanimously approved South Carolina as the site of the 4th Biennial John Updike Society Conference, which will be held October 13-15, 2016 in Columbia, hosted by The University of South Carolina and the University of South Carolina Libraries. All sessions will be held in the Ernest F. Hollings Special Collections Library, where the Don and Ellen Greiner Collection of John Updike will be showcased. It’s a modern state-of-the-art facility located at the center of campus, within easy walking distance from both conference hotels.

Don Greiner will serve as program director, and Ward Briggs as site director. Both are professors emeritus at USC, and have worked together on a previous conference.

Screen Shot 2014-10-08 at 6.33.40 PMFor the occasion, the Hollings Library will mount a major Updike exhibit that will include letters, typescripts, and galley proofs, as well as such rare and seldom seen items as inscribed copies of Updike’s Phi Beta Kappa poem, his lecture “The Future of the Novel,” and his lecture “Freedom and Equality.” Inscribed first editions and numerous rare broadsides as well as proof copies of limited signed editions will also be displayed in 14 cases. It’s not carved in stone, but the goal is to give each attendee a copy of a professionally produced catalogue of the extensive Donald and Ellen Greiner Collection of John Updike, as well as a limited edition broadside.

“At the first three conferences we celebrated the importance of place in John Updike’s literary world,” Plath said. “In South Carolina we’ll celebrate the manuscripts and books.”

Many in the society have published in other areas, and the rare book curators will welcome members who wish to engage in research either immediately prior to or following the conference. In addition to the Greiner collection, the Hollings Library holds major research collections on F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway (including early books signed to each other), Joseph Heller (including the typewriter he used to write Catch-22), Ralph Waldo Emerson, Walt Whitman, Joseph Heller, John Hawkes, Frederick Busch, James Elroy, James Dickey, George V. Higgins, Elmore Leonard, Pat Conroy, Robert Burns, John Milton, and Charles Darwin. For further holdings follow this link.

Though there won’t be the usual amount of Updike sites to tour, Updike did in fact visit the University of South Carolina once—to deliver his now famous treatise “On Literary Biography.” For those who enjoy Updike’s favorite sport, Columbia is a golf mecca, and member Joseph McDade will put together a Rabbit Open best-ball scramble tournament for those who arrive early.

USCThe campus dates from 1801 and has an interesting history, according to Greiner. The university buildings were the only ones spared when General Sherman burned his way south—and that was because a contingency of union soldiers rode out to tell the general that the campus buildings were being used as a hospital for both sides. Once Sherman confirmed that, he left these ante-bellum structures stand and burned everything else in town.

The USC campus is next to a vibrant restaurant, bistro, and bar area with both upscale and more moderately priced venues. The downtown area is home to the Nickelodeon Theatre, near Columbia’s historic district, and the Columbia Museum of Art. Nearby are the Riverbanks Zoo—a nationally ranked zoo and botanical garden that’s the #1 tourist attraction of its kind in the Southeast—and Congaree National Park, the largest tract of old-growth bottomland hardwood forest remaining in the U.S.

The city of Columbia is easily accessible either by direct flights from some cities or by flights to Charlotte followed by a short commuter flight (25 min.) to Columbia, or by car rental. The Charlotte airport is the destination for international flights from around the world.