Appendix IV:
Stanley Elkin Meets the Literary Guild

 

 

Elkin was notoriously annoyed by the fact that ÒpopularÓ or ÒcommercialÓ novelists like Stephen King, Ken Follett, or Tom Clancy enjoyed such robust sales whereas ÒseriousÓ or ÒliteraryÓ novelists, especially Elkin and his close friends William H. Gass and Joseph McElroy didnÕt.  He was probably pleased when the Literary Guild The magic Kingdom as an alternate.  The advertisement will provide some amusement for those familiar with the novel, and the way the commercial trade attempted to sentiment-down the novel to make it conform to popular tastes. Yet the second paragraph contains a nuanced reading of the novel. On 24 June 1985 Dutton editor Bill Whitehead wrote that he has Ôas yet no information on the Literary Gold sales of The Magic KingdomÓ (Whitehead to Elkin,  Olin Library special Collection).

 

 

Figure 1: Literary Guild Advertisement

The advertisement is contained in the Elkin Collection, Olin Library, Box 56, Folder 255.  It was cropped by the editor and is reprinted with the permission of Joan Elkin.

 

 

Also, in the fall of 1985, someone actually paid $5000 for a movie option on The Magic Kingdom.  The 30 October 1985 contract, through ElkinÕs agent Georges Borchardt, calls for a one-year option at $5000, payable against a possible purchase price, renewable at $5000 for year two and $7500 for year 3.  If a feature film had been made, Elkin would have received $100,000, or 3% of the net profits, whichever was higher.  Had a made-for-television movie been filmed, his earnings would have been $60,000. But in September 1986, BorchardtÕs office received a letter from the law firm Pryor, Cahsman, Sherman and Flynn informing them that lawyer Rodman has Òheard nothing from my client although I have notified him of the expiration of the option (Elkin Archives, Olin Library). 

 

 To date I have uncovered absolutely no suggestion of any follow-up on Darrell KreitzÕs attempts to produce a film, and IÕll be surprised if anything ever turns up.  Although many of ElkinÕs novels could be developed as very interesting movies, only one was ever made, the very forgettable Alex and the Gypsy, based on ÒThe Bailbondsman,Ó a memorable novella.  But The Magic Kingdom doesnÕt exactly lend itself to the big screen. And the contract actually provided for the possibility of a television series based on the novel.  Yeah. Right. Boilerplate language, IÕm sure.