Commonwealth Literary Fund Fellowships

Containers:

Box 141-143 (MS 4887)

Component identifier:

Subseries a

Content Summary:

Hardy applied for a Commonwealth Literary Fund Fellowship in 1968. When the awards were announced Hardy's name was absent, although he alleged that his application was recommended, but had been vetoed by Immigration Minister, B.M. Snedden. Correspondence written during 1968-69 between Hardy and W.R. Cumming, secretary to the Fund, together with press cuttings concerning the awards, form the first part of the subseries.

Later, in 1972, Hardy was awarded a Commonwealth Literary Fund Fellowship to complete a work on Henry Lawson. After this was announced Derry Hogue of The Australian interviewed Hardy by telephone. When the article was published, Hardy sued Nationwide News Pty Ltd for 'damages for defamation arising out of the publication'. A settlement was made out of court. The papers contain correspondence between Hardy and the administrators of the Fund, the Prime Minister's Department and later the Literature Board (Australian Council of the Arts); a hand written copy of Hardy's record of his interview with Hogue, correspondence between Hardy and Roy F. Turner, Freeman and Partners, solicitors for Nationwide News Pty Ltd and the deed of settlement.

Immediate source of acquisition:

The papers of the writer Frank Hardy were purchased by the Library in seven consignments between 1975 and 1988.

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