Frank Gelett Burgess (January 30, 1866 – September 18, 1951) was an American artist, art critic, poet, author and humorist. An important figure in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

literary renaissance of the 1890s, particularly through his iconoclastic

little magazine In the United States, a little magazine is a magazine genre consisting of "artistic work which for reasons of commercial expediency is not acceptable to the money-minded periodicals or presses", according to a 1942 study by Frederick J. Hoffman, ...

, ''The Lark'', he is best known as a writer of

nonsense verse Nonsense verse is a form of nonsense literature usually employing strong prosodic elements like rhythm and rhyme. It is often whimsical and humorous in tone and employs some of the techniques of nonsense literature. Limericks are probably the b ...

, such as " The Purple Cow," and for introducing French

modern art Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...

to the United States in an essay titled "The Wild Men of Paris." He was the author of the popular

Goops The ''Goops'' books, originally published between 1900 and 1950, were created by the artist, art critic, poet, author and humorist Gelett Burgess. The characters debuted, conceptually, in the illustrations of Burgess' publication ''The Lark'', in ...

books, and he coined the term "

blurb A blurb is a short promotional piece accompanying a piece of creative work. It may be written by the author or publisher or quote praise from others. Blurbs were originally printed on the back or rear dust jacket of a book, and are now also fou ...

Early life

Born in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Burgess was "raised among staid, conservative New England gentry". He attended the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

, graduating with a B.S. in 1887. After graduation, Burgess fled conservative Boston for the livelier

bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

of San Francisco, where he worked as a draftsman for the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

. In 1891, he was hired by the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant univ ...

as an instructor of topographical drawing.

Cogswell fountain incident

In 1894, Burgess lost his job at Berkeley as a result of his involvement in an attack on one of San Francisco's three Cogswell fountains, free water fountains named after the pro-temperance advocate Henry Cogswell who had donated them to the city in 1883. As ''The San Francisco Call'' noted a year before the incident, Cogswell's message, combined with his enormous image, irritated many:

It is supposed to convey a lesson on temperance, as the doctor stands proudly on the pedestal, with his whiskers flung to the rippling breezes. In his right hand he holds a temperance pledge rolled up like a sausage, and the other used to contain a goblet overflowing with heaven's own nectar. But wicked boys shattered the emblem of teetotalism with their pea-shooters and now the doctor's heart is heavy within him.

In response, numerous acts of minor vandalism had been inflicted upon the fountain.

Four iron posts with ornate lamps at the top originally graced the corners of this gurgling example of temperance, but now they lean and lurch and pitch like a drunken quadrille. Beer wagons heavy laden humped into the posts, shattered the stained-glass lamps and destroyed their equilibrium. Some of the lamps are canted over like a tipsy man's hat, and the whole group presents a most convivial aspect.

Cogswell fountain incident, San Francisco Call

The toppling incident took place in the early hours of January 1, 1894. As the ''Call'' reported,

Some iconoclastic spirits, probably made bold by too freely indulging in the convivialities of New Year's day, found vent for their destructive proclivities in the small hours of the morning yesterday. With the greatest deliberation, apparently, a rope was coiled around the mock presentment of Dr. Cogswell and with a strong pull, and all together, he was toppled from his fountain pedestal at the Junction of California and Market streets.

The newspaper noted that "no one professes to have knowledge of the perpetrators of the outrage," and no arrests had been, or were, made. However, Burgess's involvement was suspected and is generally viewed as the reason for his resignation from the university, reported by the ''Call'' on March 10, 1894, with the note that the resignation was "to take effect with the close of the year." Burgess is now held in high regard at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

as a former professor and literary talent. A selection of his original works and his papers are housed in the

Bancroft Library The Bancroft Library in the center of the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, is the university's primary special-collections library. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retai ...

on the Berkeley campus.

''The Lark'' and its descendants

Burgess's departure from the university became an opportunity to reconsider his professional aspirations. With a group of like-minded associates, he founded in 1895 a humorous

entitled ''The Lark''. "The double meaning of its name was intended. While it would sing at heaven's gate, it would do so as a merry adventure and have fun with the little-magazine movement." ''The Lark'' was more successful than its makers intended, eventually reaching a circulation of over 3,000. Before the official publication date, local publisher/bookseller William Doxey, intrigued by the first number, agreed to act as official publisher of the venture. Volume 1, number 1 of the 16-page monthly appeared on May Day: May 1, 1895. Burgess-cow

I never saw a purple cow I never hope to see one; But I can tell you, anyhow, I'd rather see than be one!

"The

Purple Cow "Purple Cow" is a short nonsense poem by American writer Gelett Burgess. It was first published in 1895. Poem I never saw a Purple Cow, I never hope to see one; But I can tell you, anyhow, I'd rather see than be one. Publication history Th ...

" (the full title was "The Purple Cow: Reflections on a Mythic Beast Who's Quite Remarkable, at Least"), an illustrated four-line poem that appeared in the first number of ''The Lark'', was to remain the ''ne plus ultra'' of

that Burgess would spend his life unsuccessfully attempting to surpass. At first, the magazine was edited and written primarily by Burgess, who took great delight in creating pseudonyms for himself. For example, in volume 1, four of the other "authors" are Burgess writing under different names. The magazine soon attracted an eclectic group of contributors who hung out at the

Montgomery Block The Montgomery Block, also known as Monkey Block and Halleck's Folly, was a historic building active from 1853 to 1959, and was located in San Francisco, California. It was San Francisco's first fireproof and earthquake resistant building. It came ...

building, who became known as "Les Jeunes" (English: ''the youth''). Burgess was initially assisted by writer-artist

Bruce Porter Bruce Porter (23 February 1865, San Francisco – 25 November 1953, San Francisco) was an American painter, sculptor, stained-glass designer, writer, muralist, landscape designer, and art critic. Biography Porter was raised in the East Bay town ...

. These included

Porter Garnett Porter Garnett (March 12, 1871 – March 21, 1951) was a playwright, critic, editor, librarian, teacher, and printer. Biography Porter Garnett was born in 1871 in San Francisco. He was an active member in San Francisco's literary scene and a ...

(who also took on editorial responsibilities),

Carolyn Wells Carolyn Wells (June 18, 1862 — March 26, 1942) was an American mystery author. Life and career Born in Rahway, New Jersey, she was the daughter of William E. and Anna Wells. After finishing school she worked as a librarian for the Rahway Li ...

Willis Polk Willis Jefferson Polk (October 3, 1867 – September 10, 1924) was an American architect, best known for his work in San Francisco, California. For ten years, he was the West Coast representative of D.H. Burnham & Company. In 1915, Polk oversaw t ...

Yone Noguchi was an influential Japanese writer of poetry, fiction, essays and literary criticism in both English and Japanese. He is known in the west as Yone Noguchi. He was the father of noted sculptor Isamu Noguchi. Biography Early life in Japan Nogu ...

, and others. Local artists, including

Ernest Peixotto Ernest Clifford Peixotto (1869–1940) was an American artist, illustrator, and author. Although he was known mainly for his murals and his travel literature, his artwork also regularly appeared in ''Scribner's Magazine''. His 1916 work ''Our His ...

, Florence Lundborg and

Maynard Dixon Maynard Dixon (January 24, 1875 – November 11, 1946) was an American artist. He was known for his paintings, and his body of work focused on the American West. Dixon is considered one of the finest artists having dedicated most of their art ...

, contributed illustrations and cover designs. Le petit refusess red cover

Number 24 of ''The Lark'' (April 1897) was declared to be the last, but a final issue, number 25 entitled ''The Epi-Lark'', was published May 1, 1897. By this point, Burgess had become thoroughly sick of "The Purple Cow," and wrote the following "Confession: and a Portrait Too, Upon a Background that I Rue" in ''The Lark'', number 24 (April 1, 1897).

Ah, yes, I wrote the "Purple Cow"— I'm Sorry, now, I wrote it; But I can tell you Anyhow I'll Kill you if you Quote it!

" has been used as a brand name. Subsequently, Burgess and publisher William Doxey recycled Burgess's contributions in such productions as ''The Purple Cow'' (1899) and ''The Lark Almanack (1899). Another ''Lark'' spinoff, created by Burgess and friends one night in 1896, is '' Le Petit Journal des Refusées''. Purporting to be composed of material written by women and rejected by other magazines, ''Le Petit Journal des Refusées'' was printed on wallpaper and cut to an irregular shape. It was announced with a mock call for submissions in the sixth issue of ''The Lark''.

New York, France, later life

Burgess moved to New York City, where he wrote several books and articles for magazines including

The Smart Set ''The Smart Set'' was an American literary magazine, founded by Colonel William d'Alton Mann and published from March 1900 to June 1930. Its headquarters was in New York City. During its Jazz Age heyday under the editorship of H. L. Mencken and G ...

Collier's ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Collie ...

, and Century. He made several trips to France and was evidently fluent in French. Eventually he returned to California, where he died in

Carmel-by-the-Sea Carmel-by-the-Sea (), often simply called Carmel, is a city in Monterey County, California, United States, founded in 1902 and incorporated on October 31, 1916. Situated on the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel is known for its natural scenery and ric ...

in 1951. In 1919,

Rollin Lynde Hartt Rollin Lynde Hartt (1869–1946) was an early 20th-century journalist and congregational minister. His reporting and views on the Fundamentalist–Modernist Controversy were known nationally and mentioned in ''Time Magazine''. His 1909 articles ...

published an article about Burgess as one of "the funniest men who ever lived," which appeared in newspapers nationwide. Burgess married Estelle Loomis at a Unitarian church in New York City in June 1914, and they were honeymooning in France when World War I broke out. A writer in her own right, Estelle Loomis worked on a number of literary projects throughout her marriage with Burgess, the two conferring together on each other's work. She was also an actress and a beauty contest winner. She was photographed shortly before their marriage by

Arnold Genthe Arnold Genthe (8 January 1869 – 9 August 1942) was a German-American photographer, best known for his photographs of San Francisco's Chinatown, the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and his portraits of noted people, from politicians and socialite ...

. Burgess and Loomis remained married until her death in 1947; however, she frequently suffered from illness and fatigue. They remained childless.

''The Wild Men of Paris''

Leading up to 1910, one year before the scandalous group exhibiting that brought "

Cubism Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture. In Cubist artwork, objects are analyzed, broken up and reassemble ...

" to the attention of the general public, Burgess wrote an influential article titled, ''The Wild Men of Paris''. This illustrated text introduced Proto-Cubist art in the United States for the first time. It included the first reproduction of

Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

's ''

Les Demoiselles d'Avignon ''Les Demoiselles d'Avignon'' (''The Young Ladies of Avignon'', originally titled ''The Brothel of Avignon'') is a large oil painting created in 1907 by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. The work, part of the permanent collection of the Museum o ...

''. Written after his visit to the 1910

Salon des Indépendants Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...

—the well-established anti-establishment art exhibition in Paris—the article drew from interviews with

Henri Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but is known prima ...

Georges Braque Georges Braque ( , ; 13 May 1882 – 31 August 1963) was a major 20th-century List of French artists, French painter, Collage, collagist, Drawing, draughtsman, printmaker and sculpture, sculptor. His most notable contributions were in his all ...

André Derain André Derain (, ; 10 June 1880 – 8 September 1954) was a French artist, painter, sculptor and co-founder of Fauvism with Henri Matisse. Biography Early years Derain was born in 1880 in Chatou, Yvelines, Île-de-France, just outside Paris. I ...

Othon Friesz Achille-Émile Othon Friesz (6 February 1879 – 10 January 1949), who later called himself Othon Friesz, a native of Le Havre, was a French artist of the Fauvist movement. Biography Othon Friesz was born in Le Havre, the son of a long line of s ...

Jean Metzinger Jean Dominique Antony Metzinger (; 24 June 1883 – 3 November 1956) was a major 20th-century French painter, theorist, writer, critic and poet, who along with Albert Gleizes wrote the first theoretical work on Cubism. His earliest works, from 1 ...

Auguste Herbin Auguste Herbin (29 April 1882 – 31 January 1960) was a French Painting, painter of modern art. He is best known for his Cubism, Cubist and abstract art, abstract paintings consisting of colorful Geometry, geometric figures. He co-founded the gr ...

and

Béla Czóbel Béla Czóbel (4 September 1883 – 30 January 1976) was a Hungarian people, Hungarian Painting, painter, known for his association with The Eight (Nyolcak), The Eight in the early 20th century in Budapest. They were known for introducing Post-Im ...

. ''The Wild Men of Paris'' was partly humorous but partly serious. Burgess wrote of Matisse's 1907 painting ''

Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra) ''Blue Nude (Souvenir of Biskra)'' ("Nu bleu, Souvenir de Biskra"), an early 1907 oil painting on canvas by Henri Matisse, is located at the Baltimore Museum of Art as part of the Cone sisters#Cone Collection, Cone Collection. Matisse painted ...

'' in humorist fashion:

There were no limits to the audacity and the ugliness of the canvasses. Still-life sketches of round, round apples and yellow, yellow oranges, on square, square tables, seen in impossible perspective; landscapes of squirming trees, with blobs of virgin color gone wrong, fierce greens and coruscating yellows, violent purples, sickening reds and shuddering blues. But the nudes! They looked like flayed Martians, like pathological charts—hideous old women, patched with gruesome hues, lopsided, with arms like the arms of a Swastika, sprawling on vivid backgrounds, or frozen stiffly upright, glaring through misshapen eyes, with noses or fingers missing. They defied anatomy, physiology, almost geometry itself!Gelett Burgess (May 1910
"The Wild Men of Paris"
''Architectural Record'', p. 400 (PDF)

Other literary works

Burgess's completely serious writings include "War the Creator", an account of a young man he had met in Paris in July 1914, and saw again as a wounded soldier a few months later: "a boy who, in two months, became a man." Burgess wrote and illustrated several children's books about the habits of strange, baldheaded,

idiosyncratic An idiosyncrasy is an unusual feature of a person (though there are also other uses, see below). It can also mean an odd habit. The term is often used to express eccentricity or peculiarity. A synonym may be "quirk". Etymology The term "idiosyncra ...

childlike creatures he called the

. He created the syndicated

comic strip A comic strip is a sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th and into the 21st ...

''Goops'' in 1924, and worked on it to its end in 1925. His books ''The Maxims of Methuselah'' and ''The Maxims of Noah'' were illustrated by

Louis D. Fancher Louis Delton Fancher (December 25, 1884 – March 2, 1944) was an American artist and illustrator, notable for his drawings that appeared in books, in magazines, and on propaganda posters during World War I.Hughes, Edan Milton. ''Artists in Calif ...

Film adaptations

Many of Burgess's works were adapted for the screen, beginning with ''

The Persistent Mr. Prince ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'', a short film released by

Vitagraph Vitagraph Studios, also known as the Vitagraph Company of America, was a United States motion picture studio. It was founded by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897 in Brooklyn, New York, as the American Vitagraph Company. By 1907, ...

in 1914. Two films based on Burgess's stories were released in 1917, ''

The Mysterious Miss Terry ''The Mysterious Miss Terry'' is a 1917 American silent drama film produced by Famous Players-Lasky and distributed through Paramount Pictures. The film stars Billie Burke, who at the time was a famous stage actress, married to Florenz Ziegfeld, ...

'' and ''

The Countess Charming ''The Countess Charming'' is a lost 1917 American silent comedy film directed by Donald Crisp and written by Gelett Burgess, Carolyn Wells, and Gardner Hunting. The film stars Julian Eltinge, Florence Vidor, Tully Marshall, George Kuwa, Edythe C ...

''. Burgess's novel ''The White Cat'' (1907) was adapted into two films, ''

The Two-Soul Woman ''The Two-Soul Woman'' is a 1918 American silent drama film directed by Elmer Clifton and starring Priscilla Dean, Ashton Dearholt and Joseph W. Girard.Parish & Pitts p.71 Cast * Priscilla Dean as Joy Fielding / Edna * Ashton Dearholt as Chester ...

'' (1918) and ''

The Untameable ''The Untameable'' is a 1923 American silent drama film directed by Herbert Blaché and starring Gladys Walton, Malcolm McGregor and John St. Polis.Munden p.850 It is based on the 1907 novel ''The White Cat'' by Gelett Burgess. Synopsis Chester ...

'' (1923). ''

A Manhattan Knight ''A Manhattan Knight'' is a 1920 American silent mystery film directed by George Beranger and starring George Walsh, Virginia Hammond, William H. Budd, Warren Cook, Jack Hopkins, and William T. Hayes. It is based on the 1911 novel ''Find the Woma ...

'' (1920) was adapted from Burgess's novel ''Find the Woman''. ''

The Heart Line ''The Heart Line'' is a 1921 American silent drama film directed by Frederick A. Thomson and starring Leah Baird, Jerome Patrick and Frederick Vroom.Goble p.792 Cast * Leah Baird as Fancy Gray * Jerome Patrick as Francis Granthope * Frederick V ...

'' (1921) was based on Burgess's novel of the same name. '' The Caveman'' (1926) was adapted from Burgess's 1915 play. All of these were silent films. In the

sound film A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

era, ''

Two in the Dark ''Two in the Dark'' is a 1936 American mystery film directed by Benjamin Stoloff and starring Walter Abel, Margot Grahame, Wallace Ford, Gail Patrick, and Alan Hale, Sr., Alan Hale. The screenplay concerns an amnesiac suspected of murder. In 19 ...

'' (1936) was adapted from Burgess's novel ''Two O'Clock Courage''. ''

Two O'Clock Courage ''Two O'Clock Courage'' is a 1945 American film noir directed by Anthony Mann and written by Robert E. Kent, based on novel written by Gelett Burgess. The drama features Tom Conway and Ann Rutherford. It is a remake of ''Two in the Dark'' (1936). ...

'' (1945) was based upon a story by Burgess.

Legacy

The word "

", meaning a short description of a book, film, or other product written for promotional purposes, was coined by Burgess in 1907, in attributing the cover copy of his book, ''Are You a

Bromide A bromide ion is the negatively charged form (Br−) of the element bromine, a member of the halogens group on the periodic table. Most bromides are colorless. Bromides have many practical roles, being found in anticonvulsants, flame-retardant ...

?'', to a Miss Belinda Blurb. His definition of "

" is "a flamboyant advertisement; an inspired testimonial". In that book "Are You a Bromide?" and related essay "The Sulphitic Theory", Burgess is credited for coining the usage of the word "

bromide A bromide ion is the negatively charged form (Br−) of the element bromine, a member of the halogens group on the periodic table. Most bromides are colorless. Bromides have many practical roles, being found in anticonvulsants, flame-retardant ...

" as a personification of a sedate, dull person who said boring things. Bromide meant either the boring person himself or the trite statement of that person. He also coined the phrase, "Love is only chatter; friends are all that matter." The Gelett Burgess Center for Creative Expression was formed in Burgess's name in December 2011 to promote "family-friendly books" to parents and educators. Annually, the

Gelett Burgess Children's Book Award The Gelett Burgess Children's Book Award is an annual award presented by the Gelett Burgess Center for Creative Expression. Named for Gelett Burgess, an artist and writer famous for his humorous Goops series (1900-1950), this award recognizes out ...

is given in his honor to the top children's books of the year. Burgess founded the San Francisco Boys' Club Association, now the Boys & Girls Clubs of San Francisco, in 1891 and became its first president. The club was the first of its kind west of the Mississippi River. Burgess was a friend of the British writer

Oliver Onions George Oliver Onions (13 November 1873 – 9 April 1961), who published under the name Oliver Onions, was an English writer of short stories and novels. He wrote in various genres, but is perhaps best remembered for his ghost stories, notably t ...

, and encouraged Onions to write fiction."Oliver Onions" in Kunitz, Stanley J.; Haycraft, Howard, eds. (1950). ''Twentieth Century Authors: A Biographical Dictionary of Modern Literature'' (3rd ed.). New York: H. W. Wilson. pp. 1051–52

Works

*"Vivette" (1897); novelette *''The Lively City O'Ligg'' (1899); juvenile *''Goops, and How to be Them'' (1900); juvenile *''A Gage of Youth'' (1901); poems, chiefly from ''The Lark'' *''The Burgess Nonsense Book'' (1901); prose and verse *''The Romance of the Commonplace'' (1901) *''More Goops, and How Not to Be Them'' (1903); juvenile *''The Reign of Queen Isyl'' (1903); short stories in collaboration with Will Irwin *''The Picaroons'' (1904); short stories in collaboration with Will Irwin *''The Rubaiyat of Omar Cayenne'' (1904); satire *''Goop Tales'' (1904); juvenile *''A Little Sister of Destiny'' (1904); short stories *''Are You a Bromide?'' (1906); short book
Open source e-book (California Digital Library)
*''The White Cat'' (1907); novel *''The Heart Line'' (1907); novel
e-book (Internet Archive)
*''The Maxims of Methuselah'' (1907); satire *''Blue Goops and Red'' (1909); juvenile *''Lady Mechante'' (1909); novel *''Find the Woman'' (1911); novel *''The Master of Mysteries'' (1912) *''The Maxims of Noah'' (1913) *"War, the Creator" (magazine essay 1915, book 1916) *''Mrs. Hope's Husband'' (1917) *''The Goop Encyclopedia: Containing Every Child's Every Fault'' (1916); juvenile *''Have You an Educated Heart?'' (1923) *''Ain't Angie Awful'' (1923) *''Why Men Hate Women'' (1927) *

(1934) *''Look Eleven Years Younger'' (1937)

Notes

References

External links

U of Toronto Representative Poetry Online: Gelett Burgess
* * *
Guide to the Gelett Burgess Papers
at

The Bancroft Library The Bancroft Library in the center of the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, is the university's primary special-collections library. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retai ...

Burgess's "The Ghost-Extinguisher" read in Mister Ron's Basement
Podcast
''The Lively City O'Ligg'' (1899)
openly available in the

University of Florida Digital Collections The University of Florida Digital Collections (UFDC) are supported by the University of Florida Digital Library Center in the George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida. The University of Florida Digital Collections (UFDC) comprise a ...

Music set to Burgess poems "The Knave of Hearts", "The Purple Cow", and more

“The Master of Mysteries,” Latest in Library’s Crime Classics Series
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burgess, Gelett 1866 births 1951 deaths American humorists Artists from Boston Artists from the San Francisco Bay Area Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni People from Carmel-by-the-Sea, California Writers from Boston Writers from the San Francisco Bay Area