American Studies Commons^™

Samuel Hopkins Adams, His Novel, Revelry, And The Reputation Of Warren G. Harding, Robert W. Coren

The Courier

In November 1926, Samuel Hopkins Adams's novel of Washington politics, Revelry, appeared. Since its central character is an American President easily identifiable as the late Warren G. Harding, it created a great stir. Adams's characterization of Harding was sympathetic, but also uncomplimentary, suggesting several negative personal attributes. A controversy over the appropriateness of Adams's behavior ensued. In the press, Adams was either lauded for telling the truth about Harding or condemned for his bad taste in maligning the President, who died in 1923.

Papers of Samuel Hopkins Adams preserved in the Bird Library of Syracuse University, reveal that the author …