Robin Moore papers (MS.2011.046)

Series 1. Correspondence and personal files. This series contains correspondence with his family, friends and associates. It also includes a wide variety of personal information including financial information, his passport, address books, condolences received by his family upon his death in 2008, and materials related to the life of his wife Mary Olga.

Series 2. Diaries. Moore kept a daily diary consistently during June 1974 until July 1983. He also kept a diary during his trip to Vietnam during 1964 when he was attached to the Special Forces and doing research for his book The Green Berets . He also kept a detailed diary of his trip to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in April 1979.

Series 3. Articles about Moore and topics of interest. Moore actively collected newspaper and magazine articles about himself and his wife Mary Olga. The majority of the articles relate to his literary career and the books he published. In 1981, he campaigned as a Republican to become a Senator from Connecticut and there are many articles relating to his political campaign. He also collected articles on topics of interest primarily related to military and political topics.

Series 4. Manuscripts and Research. This series represents the bulk of the collection. These files contain the research he conducted for books, screenplays, and articles along with drafts and final versions for most of his literary works. He was working on a book called KARMA and his Memoirs at the time of his death.

Series 5. Jonathan Keith "Jack" Idema Lawsuit. This series contains documents and correspondence relating to the lawsuit Moore brought against Jonathan Keith "Jack" Idema. Moore travelled to Uzbekistan in December 2001 to research the CIA-Northern Alliance war against the Taliban and al-Qaeda, publishing the account in the bestseller The Hunt for Bin Laden: Task Force Dagger . Shortly after the publication of The Hunt for Bin Laden , controversy arose over the veracity of the book, particularly regarding the involvement of J. Keith Idema. Idema, who was one of Moore's major sources, provided what later proved to be fabricated accounts of his exploits. In order to portray himself as having a greater role in the operation, Idema apparently went as far as to rewrite much of Moore's and Chris Thompson's text prior to publication under the direct authorization of Random House editor Bob Loomis. Special Forces soldiers who were on the mission (including those whom Moore interviewed) disputed Idema's claims. Moore eventually disavowed The Hunt for Bin Laden and the book remains out of print.

Series 6. Photographs. The photographs are primarily personal family photographs of his wife, family and friends. It also includes slides that he took in Vietnam during 1964 and photographs of his trips to Dubai, Oman, Israel, and Lebanon during the 1970s.

Series 7. Audio and Film. The majority of this series are micro magnetic audio cassettes like the kind used in small audio recorders and telephone answering machines during the 1970s to the 1990s. Most are untitled so no information is currently available for their contents. The ones that do have identification appear to be recordings of telephone conversations, recordings of Moore used as notes on particular topics or interviews. Of note are reel-to-reel magnetic audio recordings of Mary Olga singing. This series also contains 4 reels of super 8mm motion picture film and a 1 inch magnetic video tape of Robin Moore on a program called Fast Talk discussing Rhodesia.