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Diverse archive of over 170 items celebrating the life of influential author and screenwriter Ray Bradbury, covering an array of formats that include photographs, posters, scripts, flyers, DVDs, books, award plaques, and more, which includes well over 100 items signed by the award-winning fiction writer. The archive was amassed by Michael O’Kelly, an artist and filmmaker from Ventura, California, who founded the Ray Bradbury Theatre and Film Foundation in 2006 and presently serves as its executive director. O’Kelly and Bradbury became close friends throughout their many artistic pursuits and collaborations, which included speaking events, stage productions, and even the documentary Live Forever: The Ray Bradbury Odyssey, which was released in 2013, a year after Bradbury passed at the age of 91.
Among the archive’s many highlights is a section dedicated to Bradbury’s celebrated 1953 dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 and its connection to Playboy magazine, which serialized the work and its strong censorship themes across three issues in March, April, and May 1954. This includes the box set Playboy Cover to Cover: The 50's, which contains a souvenir copy of the 1st issue of Playboy (Marilyn Monroe on cover), signed by both Bradbury and Playboy head Hugh Hefner, as well as printed photos of the three Playboy front covers that published the book, each signed by Bradbury. Other Fahrenheit 451 items include a signed color 11 x 17 print of the first edition’s front cover, and items related to the 2009 stage production of Fahrenheit 451 at Epic Theatre in Ventura, CA, including a beautiful limited edition ceramic plaque signed on the reverse by the author.
The archive contains approximately 36 signed books (Fahrenheit 451, The Halloween Tree, The Art of Ray Harryhausen (signed by Bradbury and Harryhausen), The Martian Chronicles, S Is for Space, and more) and over 20 signed photographs, with the majority of the latter format depicting Bradbury with O’Kelly’s family at various festivals that are impressively documented herein with sundry keepsakes and collectibles. The festivals and their respective articles are as follows:
The Jules Verne Adventure Film Festival at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on December 5, 2007, at which Bradbury received a Lifetime Achievement Award. The event was attended by celebrities like Patrick Stewart, Buzz Aldrin, William Shatner, Ted Turner, Tippi Hedren, and friend and emcee Malcolm McDowell, who deemed Bradbury as ‘the American Jules Verne.’ Items from this event include programs and a rare leather briefcase presented to Bradbury as part of his award gift package, which contains a flask, cigar holder, pen, and various ephemera issued by The Edison nightclub, which hosted the festival’s afterparty.
The 9th Ojai Film Festival, which presented Bradbury with a Lifetime Achievement Award on November 8, 2008. Includes a rare award plaque, 13˝ x 13˝ x 1.5˝, which features original artwork by famed Mad magazine cartoonist Sergio Aragones (signed on the reverse by Bradbury), two posters, a program, and numerous photos from the festival, picturing Bradbury with actor friends Edward James Olmos and Joe Mantegna.
The 1st Ray Bradbury Theatre Festival, held by the Rubicon Theatre Company from October 25-28, 2007, an event that featured the California premiere of the one-man stage adaptation of ‘The Illustrated Man.’ This section, which is highlighted by a rare limited edition ceramic plaque, 9.5˝ x 13˝ x 1.5˝, numbered 14/15, and features an original design by Bradbury, who has signed on the reverse, also includes posters, programs, bookplates, and flyers, the majority of which are signed.
The balance of the archive boasts a diverse collection of Bradbury memorabilia related to the Live Forever documentary, the film and stage adaptations of Bradbury’s 1972 play The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit, his work on the CBS Radio drama series Suspense, and various speaking events and theatre workshops. Other notable items include an attractive ceramic ‘Ray Bradbury Live Forever 2012 Youth Award,’ a set of three The Ray Bradbury Theatre Celebration posters, three Christmas poem sheets, and two U-Matic Sony KCA 30 video cassettes featuring a recording of Bradbury’s interview for the Connie Martinson Talks Books television show. In overall fine condition. A marvelous and meticulous ode to one of the 20th-century’s most acclaimed fiction writers, whose visionary storytelling and shrewd social commentary forever shaped the landscape of literature, film, and popular culture.
