The Gladys Hall papers span the years 1918-1969 (bulk 1930-1941) and encompass 10 linear feet. The papers consist primarily of notes and manuscripts for her articles on various movie stars. Among the notables represented are Lucille Ball, Humphrey Bogart, Gary Cooper, Joan Crawford, Joan Fontaine, Judy Garland, Susan Hayward, Mary Pickford, Shirley Temple, Lana Turner, and John Wayne. There is also a small amount of correspondence, as well as most of the fiction written by Hall. The collection contains very little personal information and no material on her portrait-photographer husband Russell Ball.

Gladys Hall (1891-1977) was born in New York City. After marrying portrait photographer Russell E. Ball in 1912, she began a career as a professional writer. She started out by writing poems and fan magazine articles, and soon her novelettes and short stories were published as well. Beginning in 1922 she wrote a syndicated column, "The Diary of a Professional Movie Fan," for the Metropolitan Newspaper Service. After she and her husband moved to Los Angeles in 1927, Hall concentrated on writing for such fan magazines as "Photo Play," "Modern Screen," and "Screenland," interviewing many of the major movie stars of the 1930s. She was a founding member of the Hollywood Women's Press Club in 1928. After the death of her husband in 1942, Hall returned to New York for what was intended to be a short stay. Instead, she found she could write about movie stars just as well in the East and remained in New York for the rest of her life. In her later years she continued to write for fan magazines and collaborated on a book on dog and puppy care.