To Alan Jay Lerner [Letter 510]

Alan Jay Lerner (1918–86) was an eminent lyricist, best-known for his collaborations with Frederick Loewe on such Broadway musicals as My Fair Lady, Brigadoon and Camelot. At the time of this letter, he was editor of The New York Times Sunday theater section.

August 31, 1963

Mr. Alan Jay Lerner
c/o Editor
Sunday Theater Section
New York Times
229 West 43rd Street
New York, New York

Dear Mr. Lerner:

Please accept my enthusiastic congratulations for your article “Illuminate But Don’t Eavesdrop” in The New York Times, August 25.

It is brilliantly reasoned and written. I wanted to cheer at every paragraph—and did, when I came to the statement that what we need is “a poetic theater, a romantic theater, a heroic theater, a moral theater and a theatrical theater” (particularly this last).

I am enclosing a copy of a column I wrote for the Los Angeles Times, December 16, 1962, which you may find of interest.

Cordially,

Ayn Rand

AR:dk