“Your letters . . . your existence has made something of this world that [it] hadn’t the possibility of before.” – Peter F. Neumeyer
It was 1968. Edward Gorey was contracted by the publisher Addison-Wesley to illustrate a children’s book written by Peter F. Neumeyer. At their first meeting Gorey slipped and Neumeyer grabbed him by the arm. The grab dislocated Gorey’s shoulder and it was during his stay at the hospital waiting for treatment that they began what would become a deep life-long friendship.
The book, an illustrated memoir, features 75 typewriter-transcribed letters, 38 illustrated envelopes, and more than 60 postcards and illustrations exchanged between them.
“The letters also paint an intimate portrait of Edward Gorey, a man often mischaracterized as macabre or even ghoulish. His gentleness, humility, and brilliance—interwoven with his distinctive humor—shine in each letter”
Gorey and Neumeyer would end up collaborating on three children’s books: Donald and The.; Why We Have Day and Night and Donald Has a Difficulty.
The details:
Neumeyer, Peter F., edited by. Floating Worlds. The Letters of Edward Gorey & Peter F. Neumeyer. San Francisco: Pomegranate, 2011. First Printing. Large octavo. 256pp. Index. Numerous illustrations in color throughout. Pictorial paper covered boards in a matching dust jacket. $35
Press release (PDF)