LONESOME DOVE: A 10th AnniversaryCelebration
SAN MARCOS, TEXAS — A display of memorabilia and photographs from the classic television miniseries Lonesome Dove will be exhibited at the Southwestern Writers Collection and Wittliff Gallery of Southwestern and Mexican Photography at Southwest Texas State University Feb. 7 through June 1.
The collection, founded in 1986, holds the complete Lonesome Dove miniseries archive � everything from Larry McMurtry’s early version of his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel to the costumes worn and guns carried by Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones in their legendary performances as Gus and Call.
“Over the past 10 years Lonesome Dove has become an enduring American television classic and has remained close to our hearts,” says Connie Todd, curator of the collection.
“We think this unique dual exhibit is a wonderful way to celebrate the remarkable accomplishments of the film and to share rarely seen production artifacts with the university community and the public at large.”
The Lonesome Dove materials were donated through the efforts of Bill and Sally Wittliff, who are also the founding donors of the Southwestern Writers Collection and Wittliff Gallery of Southwestern & Mexican Photography.
The Lonesome Dove archives contain a complete record of the miniseries, including props, wardrobe, set designs, photographs, production notes, screenplay notes and drafts, and hundreds of hours of film “dailies.”
Bill Wittliff, who wrote the screenplay adaptation of McMurtry’s novel and was the executive producer of the film, has been described as a “Renaissance hombre.” Wittliff, who has long been considered an accomplished photographer, created a series of transcendent images while on the set of Lonesome Dove.
The photographs, which are part of SWT’s permanent collection, have been widely exhibited and were recently featured in Texas Monthly, which called the images “landscapes of Texas myth...[that] whisk us back not just to 1988 but to the late 1870s.” These photographs will be on display in the Wittliff Gallery.
The Lonesome Dove exhibit will also feature a special on-line component, as selected materials from the archive will be displayed on the Southwestern Writers Collection website at www.library.txstate.edu/swwc. The Southwestern Writers Collection is a major archival repository focusing on the literature, film and music of the Southwest. The Collection is located adjacent to the Wittliff Gallery of Southwestern & Mexican Photography on the campus of Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos, halfway between Austin and San Antonio. The collection is housed on the top floor of SWT’s Albert B. Alkek Library. Hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, 8 a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday, 1-5 p.m. Saturday, 2-6 p.m. Sunday. Call (512) 245-2313 or visit the website at www.library.txstate.edu/swwc for more information.