Grabbing a Place on the Totem Pole: How Newspaperman H. Allen Smith Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Book Business

Abstract

Newspaperman H. Allen Smith delighted Americans in 1941 with his book Low Man on a Totem Pole, which was stuffed with bawdy, folksy observations of a cross-section of humanity, from celebrities to strip-tease artists to everyday oddballs. This article offers a glimpse of American humor between the world wars as it tracks Smith's evolution, both professionally and personally, from a newspaper reporter to a successful humorist and book author. It uses letters, newspapers clippings, and other written documents contained in Morris Library's Special Collections at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, as well as excerpts from Low Man, Smith's first successful book. This article also explores how Smith's relationship with H. L. Mencken, a luminary in the writing field and a long-time Smith idol, changed during this time period. Finally, it examines where Smith's writing fits in light of larger trends in between-war humor and how his work influenced modern humorists familiar to readers today.