The collection contains letters to Bryan and the corrected typescript and page proofs of Merry Gentlemen (And One Lady) (1985) by Bryan (Princeton Class of 1927), which contains biographical portraits of such humorists as Robert Benchley, Nunnally Johnson, S. J. Perelman, Dorothy Parker, and other writers who were connected with the Algonquin Round Table and The New Yorker. The letters to Bryan are from three of his fellow humorists and friends, H. Allen Smith (about 160 letters, 1954-1976), Frank Sullivan (about 100 letters, 1938-1975), and Finis Farr, Princeton Class of 1926 (about 500 letters, 1935-1981). Also included is a typescript, with holograph corrections, of "Man of Letters: Finis Farr, 1904-1982," with an inscription to Bryan's friend Glen Perry.

The following standard abbreviations, or their variations, are used to identify materials in this collection: ACS = autograph card signed, ALsS = autograph letters signed, TLS = typewritten letter signed, TMs = typewritten manuscript.