1998 Volume 121 No 1–4 - Phi Delta Theta Scroll Archive

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brought a
festive air
to any
gathering,
probably
because he
had such a
damn sood
Humphrey Bogart and actress Lauren
Bacall were married in the 1940s.
They met Bromfieid during one of
his successfiil stints as a Hollywood
script writer.
From the early '40s until the mid-
1950s, the railroad station in
Mansfield's Flats was the portal to
Malabar. Bromfield's ^unous guests
would get off the Broadway Limited
where they were met by Bromfield's
chauffeur. He would take them and
their bags through the city, down
^^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^° along twisting
, Pleasant Valley Road to the Big House
lime
where Louis and Mary Bromfieid and
himself.
Bromfield's secretary, George
Hawkins, would meet them and make
them feel at home. And it wasn't just
the front-page personalities who
came here. Malabar was a welcome place for members of Phi
Delta Theta.. A member of the Fraternity since his days at
Cornell University in 1917, Bromfield's home was always open
to brothers. For years the Phi Delta Theta alumni club in
Mansfield held a summer rush at Malabar. Bromfieid was the
host, taking his guests to nearby Moimt Jeez where one of
Ohio's lovliest views could be had. There, on this small mountain
top, a fire was built in a pit where ears of com would be
roasted. Bromfieid brought along plenty of sandwiches, salads
and soft drinks. These events had a strong effect on the yoimg
graduates fiom high schools in the Mansfield area who came
for the rush. Many wound up joining Phi Delta Theta. After
all, if it was good enough for Louie ...
From Ohio to Europe
Bromfieid was bom in Mansfield in 1896. His parents were
farmers and unusually energetic, a trait they passed on to
their son. While he grew up with a love of the land and of
forming, he also dreamed about writing novels. At first, forming
seemed the goal when he enrolled in the Cornell University
Agricultural School. That's where he pledged Phi Delta Theta.
His next stop was New York City where he attended an arts
course at Columbia. Ever restless, Bromfieid came home to
Mansfield and did a short stint as a reporter in one of the city's
newspapers. Then he joined the parade of young men, including
Ernest Hemingway, who volunteered as members of the
American Field Service, to drive ambulances. Bromfieid did his
driving for the French Army on the Western Front. During that
time he won the Croix de Guerre for bravery.
Coming home, Bromfieid found work in the publishing industry,
working in the promotions department of G.P. Putnam
and Sons. While in New York, he met, courted and married
Mary Appleton Wood. Theirs was a lasting love match that produced
three daughters and a lifetime of travel and adventure
that ended at Malabar Farm.
A colleague at Putnam and Sons, fiiture Broadway actress
Frieda Inescourt, recalled the early Bromfieid: "He was sure of
his direction; sure as few of us ever are in this muddled sphere.
He knew what he was traveling from and what he was traveling
toward ... He was going places, but his lounging gait and a
certain semi-insolent, spravding ease in all circumstances suggested
that he had no sense of being pressed for time. Time
was something that Bromfieid handled with spectacular ability.
He was already writing novels. The first, "The Green Bay Tree,"
was published in 1826, followed by "Possession" in 1925 and
"Early Autumn," his Prize winner, in 1926. Bromfieid would
write 30 books in his lifetime. The greatest nvunber were novels,
and several of them, written in the late '40s and early '50s,
helped, along with screen writing, to finance his risky agricultural
experiments at Malabar Farm. His most lasting books
were those associated with forming, namely "Pleasant Valley"
in 1945, "Malabar Farm" in 1948 and "Out of the Earth" in
1950. As a neighboring farmer once put it, "Louie doesn't keep
books on his farm but books keep him on the form."
It was personal secretary George Haw^dns who crunched the
numbers for Bromfieid and handled the details for him wdiile
he wrote, farmed or entertained.
Despite Bromfield's incredible literary outpouring, one of
the questions most often sisked in and around New York City
in the 1920s was, "When does Louis write"
Bromfieid lived hard, attending and giving parties, enjoying
ballet and musical theater. He was a man, firiendssaid, vidio was
made for cocktail parties.
"He brought a festive air to any gathering, probably because
he had such a damn good time himself' another said.
Bromfieid eventually admitted he usually worked two hours a
day, usually from 9:30 to 11:30 in the morning.
"I don't fiddle around when I write," he said.
Generally, Bromfieid tossed his ideas around during the day
and morning and when he sat down, what he had to say was
ready to roU. During their New York years, the Bromfidds kept
a home at Cold Spring Harbor, Long Island, and an apartment
in Manhattan. Never just a literary man, Bromfield's interests
included agriculture, economics, music, painting, politics, reli-
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