MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD. OREGON
SUNDAY. NOVEMBER 11. 1962
B 3
Meeting With Steinbeck
Recalled by Publisher Covici
By RALPH H. COSHAM
United Prese International
New York WD Browsing
through the crowded shelves
of a secondhand bookshop in
Chicago in search of some
thing to read on the train
back to New York, Publisher
Pascal Covici came across a
volume of short stories by a
young, unknown author. Ori
ginally priced at $2.50, it had
been marked down to 10
cents so he bought it.
Covici liked the book so
much that as soon as he
reached New York, he tele
phoned the author's agent.
The agent was unable to tell
him very much about the
young man, except that he
lived in California and that
his latest work had already
been rejected by seven pub
lishers. Covici read the manu
script, liked it, and published
it.
The novel was "Tortilla
Flat"; the author, John Stein
beck. Covici recalled this inci
dent at a party in New York
to celebrate the award to
John Steinbeck of the 1962
Nobel Prize for literature in
recognition of his "realistic
and imaginative" writings.
And particularly for his 1961
best seller "The Winter of
Our Discontent" a story of
the temptations which beset
the honest man.
Steinbeck is a true artist:
an author who writes because
something inside tells him
that he must. He is a man
who shuns the limelight and
dislikes the false fripperies
which hang from the mantle
of fame. He once lost an order
for 500 books because he re
fused to attend a literary tea
and sign copies for the social
ites of San Francisco.
AMERICAN NOVELIST-John Steinbeck was born in Salinas,
Calif., in 1902, a section of the country which provided the
background for many of his novels and stories. This year he
was awarded the 1962 Nobel Prize for literature. (UPI)
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And at the Dress conference
which followed the announce
ment of his Nobel laureate,
the tall, thickset author was
obviously ill at ease. He
wore a neat, double-breasted,
dark grey suit with the air of
a man who hates to be
dressed up. He dislikes pub
licity and hates to be photo
graphed. The combination of
both, multiplied by the num
ber of newsmen and photog
raphers present, was almost
too much.
John Ernst Steinbeck was
horn Feb. 27. 1902 in Salinas
Calif., of mixed German and
Irish ancestry. His father,
John Ernst Sr., was born in
Florida, but spent most of his
life in Salinas where he held
the post of county treasurer
for many years. His mother, j
Olive (Hamilton) Steinbeck, I
taught in the little red school
house of the Big Sur the
ranges which surround Sali
nas and which provided Stein
beck with a locale for some of
his later works.
Schooling Noted
He graduated from Salinas
High school in 1918 and
studied sporadically at Stan
ford University from 1919 to
1925. He was unhappy there
at first, but he finally man
aged to persuade the authori
ties that he was not interested
in a degree. He merely
wanted to study things which
interested him when they
interested him. He was in
terested in science, marine
biology, traveling and
changing jobs. He worked on
a cattle ranch, in a labora
tory and in a sugar refinery.
In 1925. John Steinbeck
boarded a freighter bound for
New York via the Panama
Canal. He got a job as a re
porter on a New York news
paper but was fired because
he would report only the
poetry and the philosophy he
saw in the news. So he tried
freelancing, subsidizing his
meager income by carrying
bricks for the building of
Madison Square Garden.
Young Steinbeck did not
take New York by storm so
he decided to return to Cali
fornia. He worked for a while
as winter caretaker of an
estate (losing the job when a
pine tree fell onto the own
ers' house) and then in a trout
hatchery. In his spare time he
wrote "Cup of Gold", a semi
historical novel of the life
and limes of the Caribbean
Pirate Henry Morgan. It was
his fourth novel, but the first
one to be published.
Novel Publised
That was in 1929. During
the next four years, two more
were published: "Pastures of
Heaven", and "To a God
Unknown". The total sales of
all three did not exceed 3.000
copies.
With the rejection of his
new novel, "Tortilla Flat" by
seven publishers, John Stein
beck had almost given up the
thought of writing for
living.
But the picture changed.
"Tortilla Flat" went to eight
editions.
It was not until "Of Mice
and Men", in 1937, however,
(hat he began to make a living
as a writer. This, one of his
most successful novels, be
came a bestseller, a Broad
way play and a movie.
Then, of course, came "The
Grapes of Wrath", the story
of the struggles of an Okla
homa family forced out of
their home by drought. This
book, which won him the
Pulitzer prize in 19411. has
become the ardslick by
which all his work is
measured.
Special Assignments
During World War II. Stein
beck did special assignments
for the Uniled Slates Army
Air forces and for a time was
a war correspondent In
Europe. Since then, he has
traveled extensively nota
bly, in 1048 to Russia, with
Photographer Robert Capa,
and in I Mil through the Unil
ed States wilh Charley, his
poodle.
Steinbeck learned of (he
Nobel award while watching
an early morning television
newscast seeking the latest
on Cuba.
"My first reaction was one
of disbelief," he said. "Then
I had a cup nf colfee. and
now 1 feel numb. I feel very
unreal."
Social Injustice
Commenting that much of
his work was concerned wilh
social injustice we asked
Steinbeck whether he himself
had ever been a victim of
such injustice.
"No." he said. "I really
haven't had time."
He agreed that t hp sting of
"Grapes of Wra.h" was gone
from some of his later work.
"I eness I'm not annoyed at
anything thrsp days." he
grinned. "Or maybe it's just
because of my age. In any
case, it's not so easy In find
the underdog any more. Years
ago you could recognize the
underdog because he was
broke and hungry. Nowadays
they are all spread mil ynu
might even find them at the
top of an office block."
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