177 Main St. USA, July 1972
In this column, Cormier writes about the age transitions all four of his children are experiencing: 4 to 5, 12 to 13, 15 to 16, and 20 to 21. Each stage is a different moment in time. Near the end of the column, Cormier talks of how parents also pass through different times and how watching a son turn to a man makes for a new friend, but to watch a daughter turn to a woman comes with a sense of loss.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier">Robert Cormier</a>
<em>St. Anthony's Messenger</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
July 1972
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
JPG, 8.5 x 11 magazine page
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Magazine+column">Magazine column</a>
"When It's Time To Say Goodbye" John Fitch IV Column
In this column Cormier writes about saying goodbye to his son after settling him in at the college dormitory. He ponders the differences between saying goodbye to a son than to a daughter, who allows for more sentimentality. He comes to realize that all of their lives were filled with goodbyes and that all has already been said. This column was later reprinted in the St. Anthony's Messenger in the "1177 Main St. USA" column in November 1972.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier">Robert Cormier</a>
<em>Fitchburg Sentinel</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
14 September 1972
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
JPG, 8.5x14
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"Trying To Convince My Heart" John Fitch IV Column
In this column Cormier shares the bittersweet feeling of a parent saying goodbye to his child, over and over again, as she grows up. Even in the happy moments of children's summer trip to camp, the Cape, or their first crushes, he feels a pang of loneliness to watch them grow further from home.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier%0D%0A">Robert Cormier
</a>
<em>Fitchburg Sentinel</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
23 August 1973
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
JPG, 8.5x14
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"The Santa Problem" John Fitch IV Column
As with many of his Christmas columns, Cormier addresses the idea of Santa, Christmas magic, and the innocence of childhood. He admits never telling a child that Santa is not real but cannot defend his existence, just as faith or a joke cannot be explained without polluting its existence. Believing in Santa Claus keeps the child alive, so he laments the time that his children no longer believe.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier%0D%0A">Robert Cormier
</a>
<em>Fitchburg Sentinel</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
24 December 1976
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
<a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/113" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><span>"Advent and the Family" Visitor</span></a><br /><a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/80" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">"The Last Party" John Fitch IV Column</a>
JPG, 8.5x14
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"That Summer"
In this short story, 15-year-old Jean-Paul visits his uncle in Canda to recover from an extended illness. During his stay, he develops a crush for an older woman from Montreal, as does his uncle. While Jean-Paul comes of age through this unrequited love, his uncle comes to admit his own timidness in life.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier">Robert Cormier</a>
<em>The Sign</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
February 1958
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
JPG, 8.5 x 11 magazine page
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Magazine+feature">Magazine feature</a>
"Suddenly She's 10 Years Old" <em>St. Anthony's Messenger</em> column 1177 Main St. USA
This column recounts Cormier's daughter's transitional stage as a ten-year-old. Among the topics of discussion are her love of horses and her new-found preoccupation with getting the right haircut and crushing on television actors.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier">Robert Cormier</a>
<em>St. Anthony's Messenger</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
August 1977
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
JPG, 8.5 x 11 magazine page
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Magazine+column">Magazine column</a>
"Holding To What Is Magic" John Fitch IV Column
This John Fitch IV article is one of a few in which Cormier talks about magic and dad jokes. Here, as in other pieces, he links magic and the belief in magic to the innocence of childhood. When he teaches his daughter a trick, he is sad for the lost magic and thinks forward to all the other things that will lose their magic as she grows.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier">Robert Cormier</a>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
1 March 1973
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
JPG, 8.5x14
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"Goodbye Little Girl" <em>Woman's Own</em>
<p>In Cormier's short story "Goodbye Little Girl" a father comes to grips with his daughter encountering her first love. The father is skeptical of the boy and expresses sadness in the idea of being replaced by a boy who can make her happy when he cannot. This story is a revised version of "Charlie Mitchell, You Rat, Be Kind to My Little Girl" published in <em>McCall's</em> three months earlier.</p>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier">Robert Cormier</a>
<em>Woman's Own</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
5 July 1969
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
<a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/136">"Charlie Mitchell, You Rat, Be Kind to My Little Girl" McCall's</a>
JPG, 10 3/8 x 13 magazine pages
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Magazine+short+story">Magazine short story</a>
"Crazy About Horses" John Fitch IV Column
Here Cormier talks about his young daughter's recent interest in horses. First, he outlines some of her past interests - medicine, veterinary medicine, thoughts about becoming a jockey. Then, he shares her passion for horses and riding. He thinks of her future when dreams can be bought with a 25 cent pony ride.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier%0D%0A">Robert Cormier
</a>
<em>Fitchburg Sentinel</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
15 September 1976
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
<a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/75" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><span>"And Do On -- Letter To A Child" John Fitch IV Column</span></a>
JPG, 8.5x14
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"Charlie Mitchell, You Rat, Be Kind to My Little Girl" <em>McCall's</em>
<p>This short story features a father coming to grips with his daughter falling in love for the first time. It is difficult not to read this story as autobiographical or to overlook theĀ gender bias regarding a woman's ability to think logically. This story was later revised and published in <em>Woman's Own</em> under the title, "Goodbye Little Girl".</p>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier">Robert Cormier</a>
<em>McCall's</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
April 1969
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
<a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/137" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">"Goodbye Little Girl" Woman's Own</a>
JPG, 10 3/8 x 13 1/4
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Magazine+short+story">Magazine short story</a>
"Ballerina, Turn Around" John Fitch IV Column
Here Cormier talks about his eight-year-old daughter. Much of the article consists of him offering various numbers that define her - her age, her weight, her height, etc. These numbers, this arithmetic terrifies him - for each day that proceeds she grows older and older. Eventually, she will no longer be his little girl. Just as her older sister, then 18, she will leave her childhood behind.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier%0D%0A">Robert Cormier
</a>
<em>Fitchburg Sentinel</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
5 June 1975
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
<a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/66" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">"That Certain Child" John Fitch IV Column</a>
JPG, 8.5x14
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"As The Hour Nears" John Fitch IV Column
In this column, Cormier discusses the magic of Santa and the innocence of childhood. His daughter, seven going on eight, isn't sure if she believes in Santa any longer. But she writes to him just in case, and she tries her best to stay up late to see him come down the chimney with the gifts. Cormier dodges answering her questions on his existence but knows that the time is coming when she will know the answers herself.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier%0D%0A">Robert Cormier
</a>
<em>Fitchburg Sentinel</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
24 December 1974
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
JPG, 8.5x14
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"And So On -- Ten Years Old" John Fitch IV Column
<p>In this John Fitch IV column Cormier shares stories of his daughter as she turns 10, "a magic moment in life, poised between childhood and adolescence." Still obsessed with horses, she is now also becoming aware of fashion and her own appearance. Cormier recounts a particularly significant haircut, the piercing of her ears, and a crush on television star, David Soul, from <em>Starsky and Hutch</em>.</p>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier%0D%0A">Robert Cormier
</a>
<em>Fitchburg Sentinel</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
10 June 1977
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
<a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/51" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><span>"The Hair Cut" John Fitch IV Column</span></a>
JPG, 8.5x11
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"And So On -- Father Of The Bride" John Fitch IV Column
In this column, Cormier considers a bride and groom. He thinks about the bride and the child she was (and continues to be) in the eyes of her father. He reflects on the giving away of the bride as a culminating goodbye after many others: when the daughter leaves for kindergarten or stops believing in Santa Claus.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Robert+Cormier%0D%0A">Robert Cormier
</a>
<em>Fitchburg Sentinel</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
25 March 1975
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
JPG, 8.5x11
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Newspaper+column">Newspaper column</a>
"Advent and the Family" <em>Visitor</em>
Though this story by "Bob" Cormier is written in the third person, about a girl and her father, it reads as autobiographical. He recounts the daughter's last Christmas party and her father coming to grips with her growing up.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=39&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Bob+Cormier">Bob Cormier</a>
<em>Visitor</em>
Robert E. Cormier Collection at Fitchburg State University's Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library
10 December 1978
AnnaMary L. Consalvo
Katharine Covino
Elise Takehana
<a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/80" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">"The Last Party" John Fitch IV Column</a><br /><a href="https://robertcormiertwistedintimacy.omeka.net/items/show/71" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><span>"The Santa Problem" John Fitch IV Column</span></a>
JPG, 8.5x11 cardstock paper
English
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Xerox+of+newspaper+article">Xerox of newspaper article</a>