Hob Broun Archive

This page contains links pertaining to the writer Hob Broun (1950-1987), his unpublished works and other ephemera. Special thanks go out to those who provided material: Freda Kerman (Broun's widow), Sam Lipsyte (who provided the cassette tapes and other material), Giuseppe Avallone (widow of Giancarlo DiTrapano, who originally had plans to publish some of these works) and David Nutt (who scanned in the journals). We'll be posting new material incrementally into 2027 so come back for updates.

• Books:

— Odditorium (originally published 1983, reissued 2025)

— Inner Tube (originally published 1985, reissued 2025)

— Cardinal Numbers (originally published 1988, reissued 2025)

— Newsreels (forthcoming 2026)

— Wild Coast (forthcoming 2027)

• 4-part taped interview (1.5 hrs, w/ transcript) by Schuyler Ingle (1985)

• Rembrance/Bio by Freda Kerman

• Remarks by Freda Kerman for Oregon Institute of Literary Arts Award

• Draft of Introduction to Cardinal Numbers by Gordon Lish
• Remembrance of Hob Broun by Sam Lipsyte (originally appeared in Egress magazine, issue #1, 2018)

• Impressions of Hob by Kevin McMahon (originally appeared in Egress magazine, issue #1, 2018)

• Hardcover Journal (46 pages)

• Softcover Journal (1971-73, 62 pages, mostly film reviews)

• Small beige notebook (mostly cross-country travel notes, 30 pages)

• Collages

• Orginal draft of "Fried Cutlets" (frm Cardinal Numbers, before edited by G. Lish)

• Draft of "Finding Florida" (frm Cardinal Numbers, before edited by G. Lish)

• Unpublished short stories (from Seizures)

— "Caution Deaf Child" (32 pgs)

—"Anything You Like" (14 pgs)

— "A Boring Lake" (19 pgs)

— "Coated Prints" (29 pgs)

— "Pearls of Every Day Screenwriting" (19 pgs)

— "The Conditions of Bremen (30 pgs)

— "Ronald Reagan Visits (9 pgs)

— "White Stones" (33 pgs)

— "Political Leaders of Latin (23 pgs)

— "Waterfront Fare" (30 pgs)

• Unpublished stories from Rocket Boogie 88

— "Rocket Boogie 88: A Novel" (introductory material, 10 pgs)

— "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans?/Or Her Brother, Fred" (4 pgs)

— "Starting an Extended Journey is Like Trying to Smoke a Cigarette Before Bed" (4 pgs)

— "The Road to the Olde Tollgate" (12 pgs)

— "Don't Drink Too Much Ropp's" (3 pgs)

— "Way Up in the Hills Among the Evergreens" (9 pgs)

— "Roller Derby Yearbook and Photo Album for 1962" (3 pgs)

— "Sweetmeat Speaks" (2 pgs)

— "Sweetmeat Rolls the Bones" (2 pgs)

— "Iggy de Kova's Little Sister" (4 pgs)

— "O22–1am #2" (2 pgs)

— "October 22–1 a.m.–#1–Lake Charles, LA, The Home of D. Fort" (1 pg)

— RB 88 notes

• Additional unpublished short stories:

— "The Zelmo Letters" (7 pgs)

– "I am positively on my way!! Sweep off the fron steps" (from Zelmo)(9 pgs)

— "Caviar Emptor" (20 pgs)

— "The Horror of the American Chop Suey Club" (2 pgs)

— "The Postman's Silent Testament" (2 pgs)

— "Some Dreams of C. W. Sanford" (1 pg)

— "The Old Root Pipe Shop Has Its Gala Opening—We Are There" (2 pgs)

— "Pertaining To Mrs. Rhoda Nolo" (3 pgs)

— "I Walk the Strand" (5 pgs)

— "They're So Helpless" (4 pgs)

— "Fried Oysters" (4 pgs)

— "Anthropophagy" notes (9 pgs)

— "Record Plant Truck in Remove K.C. Locations, Black Girl in Baltimore"

— "Peg Apelig's House Rent Party" (3 pgs)

— "Prelude to a Fleece" (1 pg)

— "Tootsie's Garage Sale" (4 pgs)

— "Un Soir en Brooklyn" (3 pgs)

— untitled excerpt (5 pgs)

— "The Tungsten File" (4 pgs)

• Additional misc. ephemera

— Film reviews from Int. Motion Picture Exhibitor magazine

— Brainstorm word map (1 pg)

— excerpt from Wild Coast (1 pg)

— "Pralines of Everyday Wisdom" (1 pg)

— untitled (1 pg)

— "broken pop bottle" (1 pg)

— Employment History

— Letter from Craig D. Nelson

— Remittance Advice from Harper & Row