Browse Items (21 total)

"The Will," published in Divine Comedies, contains the first mention of Ephraim in a poem, as well as the first time he speaks. In it, Ephraim explains why the novel draft was lost twice--implying that he was involved.

These are the only surviving remnants of James Merrill's attempted Ouija board novel, in a folder labeled "Lost 70's Novel," in Merrill's hand. After losing two different prose drafts of the novel, he decided to write a verse narrative instead, which…

Fifteen pages (out of sixty total) ofa corrected typescript draft ofAn Evening at Sandover, Merrill's first stage adaptation of the Ouija board epic, performed as part of the revived Poets' Theatre at Hasty Pudding theater at Harvard. Peter Hooten…

James Merrill and David Jackson at Ouija board in Stonington. The photo was taken by Harry Pemberton, who took a roll of the mediums in action.

Flyer for a dramatic reading of Voices from Sandover at UCLA. This was a stage adaptation of Merrill's Ouija board epic, which Hooten and Merrill toured for one-night performances in New Jersey, Los Angeles and Detroit.

Cover and first 25 pages of theVoices from Sandovervideo script, final draft, with corrections. This was an expanded version of the dramatic reading/stage version. With Hooten's connections in the film industry, it was possible for "highly talented…

James Merrill reads from his piece "The Changing Light at Sandover," a poem based on his and David Jackson's experiences with their Ouija board seances, at the first James Merrill Symposium. He is accompanied here by Peter Hooten voicing the…

Tom Vitale interviews James Merrill on the program "A Moveable Feast." In this episode, titled "Late Settings," Vitale and Merrill discuss the general themes in Merrill's poems and the emotions behind Merrill's writing process, as well as Merrill's…

Excerpt from Voices from Sandover, a play by James Merrill based on Merrill and David Jackson's Ouija board seances. The performance was staged at the Agassiz Theatre at Radcliffee College, produced by Peter Hooten, and directed by Joan Darling. The…

A homemade Ouija board, one of numerous boards James Merrill and David Jackson employed through the years for their séances. Merrill said they preferred these to the store-bought boards because they allowed for more room for clearer and faster…