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Reviews 173 Charmian’svarious voyages. Although the chronology mainly comprises a list of London’s daily activities, interpretation of data is by no means absent. Some­ times more interpretation is needed. At other times, it is debatable. But the whole chronology lends itself to such rich interpretations now that we have the basic, reliable data at hand to consider and argue over. Due to this work’s appearance as an independent publication, some unfor­ tunate typographical errors occur. Also, the 1914film, It’ s No Laughing Matter, is no London adaptation. However, new technology does have benefits in this area. The author will provide computer disks with corrections and additions to anyone who makes a request. Jack London: A Definitive Chronology is essential reading for all sincerely interested in the true facts of the author’s life. It is a necessity for all public and university libraries. y f ONY WILLIAMS Southern Illinois University at Carbondale \Jdck London— The Movies, an Historical Survey. By Tony Williams. (Los Angeles: David Rejl, 1992. 260 pages, $46.95.) In this thoroughly researched book, Williams (a professor of cinema and photography at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and a Jack London scholar) probes the complex world of literature and film to discover why there have been so few successful Hollywood adaptations ofjack London’s best selling and widely translated stories. Although Disney’s 1991 WhiteFang springs to mind as an example of a very successful film adaptation, it is the exception. The film’s director, Randall Kleiser, liberally alters the original novel to fit the medium of film rather than slavishly following his source, whereas, Williams informs us, most film adapta­ tions went wrong because directors relied too heavily on London’s literary genius and failed to re-work the author’s vision according to the demands of a new artistic form. As this saga of the translation of London’s stories into film unfolds, we sense the greatness of London’s accomplishment in captivating the imagination of large audiences through the use of language alone. This book includes twenty stills and much information on film, television and foreign adaptations of London’s fiction. It also contains a Jack London filmography listing films made in the USA, Germany, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Canada, USSR, France, Mexico and Great Britain which should stimulate fur­ ther interest in London’s international reputation. In recounting the dealings of the Jack London estate with film producers, agents and lawyers to establish its rights to stage, silent, sound and television versions of London’s works, Williams documents the evolution of both the Hollywood film industry and the individual artist’s relationship to a wholly new artistic medium. 174 Western American Literature This book challenges film makers to capture the illusive spirit of London’s fiction on film for the enjoyment of today’s audiences. It also invites further investigation of the social and historical forces shaping the relationship be­ tween fiction and film in twentieth-century America.¿USAN M. NUERNBERG University ofWisconsin-Oshkosh /Mark Twain’ s Letters, Volume Three: 1869. Edited by Victor Fischer and Michael B. Frank; associate editor, Dahlia B. Armon. (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1992. 776 pages, $40.00.) jrfverland with Mark Twain: James B. Pond’ s Photographs and Journal of the North American Lecture Tour of 1895. Edited by Alan Gribben and Nick Karanovich. (Elmira, New York: Center for Mark Twain Studies, 1992. 112 pages, $29.00.) Twain devotees will recall that 1869 saw the humorist counting the days until his wedding; struggling through two successful, but exhausting, lecture tours; wrangling with Elisha Bliss over delays in the publication of Innocents Abroad', reveling in the book’s success when it finally appeared; and taking charge of the Buffalo Express. The third volume of Mark Twain’ s Letters contains the surviving epistolary record of this frantic period, one hundred eighty-eight letters addressed to his fiancée (Olivia Langdon), various friends, relatives, and business associates. The extra-romantic correspondence, however, isjust a side dish here: Twain’s letters to his “little rascal,” Livy, compose nearly half of the total number of items and are the longest in the collection. All of the now famous peculiarities of the courtship...

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