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From a humble beginning in New York, Clare Boothe Luce rose to prominent and varied careers, including an advocate for the women's movement, managing editor of Vanity Fair, a satirist and playwright, Life magazine correspondent in Europe during World War II, Republican legislator in the U.S. House of Representatives for Connecticut, and ambassador to Italy. She was known for her scathing wit. Her husband after a remarriage was Henry R. Luce, who was president of Time magazine, and his death in 1964 allowed her to retire to Hawaii, but she remained active in Republican politics. She converted to Catholicism in 1944 after the death of her only daughter. Henry Luce donated the land that made Mepkin Abbey possible in Conyers, Georgia. Clare Boothe Luce writes to Merton in 1948 to thank him for his books. (Source: "Luce, Clare Boothe." World Authors 1900-1950 (1996). Online. H.W. Wilson. Bellarmine University Library, Louisville, KY. 16 September 2005. ‹http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com›.)
Please click here for general restrictions concerning Merton's correspondence.
See also Cold War Letters #17 published in Witness to Freedom, pp. 26-27.
If the person in correspondence with Merton has full text records in the Merton Center Digital Collections, there will be a numeric link to them below.
This Record Sub-Group is not divided into Series and is arranged chronologically.
Click icons for links: ✓="Published | Library Record", ✉="Scanned" | 🗷="Scanned, Viewable Only at Merton Center"
| # | Date | From/To | First Lines | Pub ✓ | Notes |
| | y/m/d | Merton | | Scan ✉ | |
| 1. |
1948/08/23 |
TLS[x] from Merton |
At last I have a moment to answer your beautiful letter of St Clare's day. |
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[replying to letter from Luce of August 11, 1948 (Feast of St. Clare)] response to Luce's words of affection for Dom Frederic Dunne and news of the election of Dom James Fox / reading of Luce's book of essays about her conversion to Catholicism, The "Real" Reason - Luce reading proofs of The Seven Storey Mountain / philosophy paper of Luce's daughter Ann, "Zen buddhsim and St. John of the Cross" / ideas about plans for the new foundation in South Carolina [Mepkin] / Gregorian chant / Bob Giroux / asking for photographs of the destruction of Monte Cassino from WWII
«detailed view» |
| 2. |
1948/09/08 |
HLS[x] from Merton |
Today being a feast I was reading out under the trees and had almost decided not to come over to the |
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telegram from Luce's secretary telling of the death of Luce's brother [David Franklin Boothe] and Merton's promise of prayers from the Gethsemani community / news of the death of a brother of Fr. Joachim, prior of the Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Conyers, Georgia
«detailed view» |
| 3. |
1948/09/15 |
TLS[x] from Merton |
First, I must apologize for the behavior of this typewriter. It is just about ready for the dry-dock |
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thanking Luce for gift of a new record player and records of Gregorian chant / ideas about plans for the new foundation in South Carolina [Mepkin]
«detailed view» |
| 4. |
1948/09/23 |
TLS[x] from Merton |
If you or I or anybody else had nothing but our own merits to offer to Jesus for souls we would have |
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spiritual poverty - offerings for the soul of her brother David [David Franklin Boothe] / Gregorian chant recordings
«detailed view» |
| 5. |
1948/10/23 |
TAL[c] to Merton |
I have wanted to write to you for a long time now. After Dom Frederic sent me your last two books, |
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remembering Dom Frederic Dunne's character and holiness / describing the part of the plantation in South Carolina donated by the Luce's to Bishop Walsh for the founding of a Trappist monastery (Mepkin Abbey) and her hopes that Merton would go there / Merton's poems and Seven Storey Mountain
«detailed view» |
| 6. |
1949/08/15 |
TALS to Merton |
Your letter, and several from the Abbot arrived on my feast day. Your and one of his told me |
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[dated: "Feast of the Assumption of the BV 1949"]
«detailed view» |
| 7. |
1949/no/no? |
HNS to Merton |
This is the poem that built a Trappist monastery. I first read it twenty years ago. |
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[long note inside an edition of The Marshes of Glynn, poem by Sidney Lanier with photographs by Mose Daniels] poem by Sidney Lanier as an inspiration for the donation of the land that the Luce family gave for the establishment of Mepkin Abbey
«detailed view» |
| 8. |
1962/01/no? |
transcript from Merton |
What can I say about those three utterly magnificent books. Especially the Giotto. |
✓ |
[Cold War Letters #17 - copy from bound set of letters]
«detailed view» |
| 9. |
1968/06/10 |
TLS from Farmer, Dorothy (Luce's secretary) / to Merton |
Mrs. Luce asked me to tell you that Volume XV of the Encyclopedia of World Art will be |
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«detailed view» |
| 10. |
1968/06/19 |
TL[c] from Merton |
Yesterday I got a note from Dorothy saying that the final volume of the Encyclopedia of World |
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«detailed view» |
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