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Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
The personal papers of Robert "Bob" and Louise Koke consist of 2.4 cubic feet and document the couple's years traveling and living in Asia before, during, and after World War II. The bulk of the material is from 1935 through 1949 and consists of correspondence, a travel diary, financial documents, and photographs. The papers concern their initial travels through Asia, their time running a hotel in Bali, Bob's military service in Sri Lanka and India during World War II, and their experiences in Shanghai after the war and before the Communist takeover of China, with a small number additional materials from the period following their return to the United States.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Robert and Louise Koke measure 2.4 cubic feet and date from 1933 to 1992, with the bulk of the material dating from between 1935 and 1949. The collection consists of correspondence, financial documents, Louise's travel diary from 1935-1936, and photographic material from their travels.
The correspondence is mainly between Bob and/or Louise Koke and Bob's family, including his parents, John and Neltha Koke, and sister, Dorothy, or a mixture of the three. Almost all letters are from Bob and/or Louise to Bob's family; the family's responses are not included. Their correspondence is almost exclusively from Bob and Louise's time in Asia, although there are some from when they were in the USA. They spent time in Japan, China, Singapore, and Indonesia, and Bob was in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) during World War II. Finally, they spent the years immediately following the war in Shanghai. Their departure from Asia marks the end of the bulk of the correspondence. The rest of the letters are to or from a mixture of correspondents outside the family. A few poems and short stories written by Louise are also among the correspondence.
Financial documents pertaining to Bob and Louise's purchases abroad and their dealings selling Balinese goods to MGM make up the financial documents series.
Louise's travel diary documents a portion of their travels in 1935-1936, from their arrival in Japan to partway through their time in China.
Photographic material includes photographs taken by Bob in Japan, China, and Indonesia. Most appear to have been taken between 1935 and 1949. They depict local sites, people, and cultural events.
Biographical / Historical:
Robert "Bob" Koke was born in 1910 in Pasadena, California to Neltha and John Koke. He worked in the Production Department at MGM and was a tennis professional. Louise was born Louise Gignoux on May 25, 1897 in New York City. She was a painter. Robert and Louise Koke travelled to Asia in late 1935, touring Japan before visiting China, Singapore, and Bali. The Kokes arrived in Bali in 1936 and decided to stay. They opened Kuta Beach Hotel with Muriel "Manx" Pearson and spent the next five years growing their hotel, living among and observing the local population and their traditions. The Kokes fled Bali on the last boat out of the island in 1941 due to the threat of Japanese invasion.
Shortly thereafter, Bob joined US Army Intelligence and was sent to Ceylon (Sri Lanka), where he trained agents in Indonesian languages and culture to go undercover in the Japanese-controlled country. He remained with the military after the war and joined the CIA in 1947 when it was founded. He and Louise were based in Shanghai from 1946 until 1949, when they were forced to leave due to the Communist takeover of the country. Upon their return to the United States, following a brief sojourn in Formosa (modern-day Taiwan) and Japan, Bob continued to work with the CIA until his retirement in the mid-1970s. Louise died in 1992, Bob in 1996.
During his travels, Bob took numerous photographs of local sites, people, and their traditions. His photos of Balinese traditional culture before the island was overrun by tourists are of particular interest. He and Louise also kept up consistent contact with his parents during their time abroad, noting their perspective on aspects of local Balinese traditions, their way of life in Bali, the many and varied guests they had, and local and international happenings of the time.
Provenance:
Gift of BASAbali.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Rights:
Permission to reproduce and publish an item from the Archives is coordinated through the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery's Rights and Reproductions department. Please contact the Archives in order to initiate this process.
Film documents harvesting season which is interwoven wtih the ritualistic life and trances.
Legacy Keywords: Rites and ceremonies ; Irrigation ; Harvest festivals g ; Agriculture ; cultivation ; Dance ; Music ; Instruments musical instruments ; Language and culture ; Asia ; Bali Island (Indonesia)
General:
Local Number: HSFA 2004.10.4
Collection Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Please contact the archives for information on availability of access copies of audiovisual recordings. Original audiovisual material in the Human Studies Film Archives may not be played.
Collection Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Collection Citation:
Man TV, Human Studies Film Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Footage taken by Milton E. Merriman, 1920s-1952. Most of the footage is of China, Japan, India, and Southeast Asia. The remainder features the Middle East; Europe & Great Bitain; Mexico, Puerto Rico, & South America; and the United States. The edited footage was used by Mr. Merriman in his travel lectures presented during the 1950s.
Footage of: Mexico ; Egypt ; Bombay (India) ; Singapore ; Shanghai (China) ; Manila ; Java ; Japan ; China ; Jerusalem ; Baalbek (Syria) ; Europe ; Bali Island (Indonesia) ; Macau (China) ; Bangkok (Thailand) ; Korea ; India ; Mt Abu ; North America ; Mississippi River ; Los Angeles (Calif.) ; California ; New Orleans (La.) ; Louisiana Terrebonne Parish ; Whiting ; Indiana ; 1941 ; Trieste ; Paris ; France ; Florence (Italy) ; Venice (Italy) ; Italy ; Switzerland ; Schemnerling ; Austria ; London (England) ; England ; Great Britain ; United Kingdom ; U.K. ; UK ; New York ; New York (N.Y.) ; United States ; Taiwan ; Hong Kong ; Formosa ; Siam ; Thailand ; Ceylon ; Sri Lanka ; Sumatra ; South America ; Cuba ; Panama ; Panama Canal (Panama) ; Jamaica ; Peru ; Chile ; Straits of Magellan ; Argentina ; Brazil ; Trinidad ; Venezuela ; Curacao ; Peking (China) ; Beijing (China)
General:
Local Numbers: HSFA 1976.4.1-11
Collection Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Please contact the archives for information on availability of access copies of audiovisual recordings. Original audiovisual material in the Human Studies Film Archives may not be played.
Collection Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Collection Citation:
Milton E. Merriman travel films, Human Studies Film Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Film reels (black-and-white silent; 1,200 feet, 16mm)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Film reels
Silent films
Place:
Malay Archipelago
Bali Island (Indonesia)
Date:
circa 1936
Scope and Contents:
Bali, shot by the novelist Vicki Baum in 1936.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or Anthropology Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Local Numbers:
HSFA 1994-018; HSFA 1998-024
Provenance:
Received on deposit from Mantle Hood in 1994. Subsequently received as a gift from Wolfgang Lert, Vicki Baum's son, in 1998.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Please contact the archives for information on availability of access copies of audiovisual recordings. Original audiovisual material in the Human Studies Film Archives may not be played.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
silent films
Citation:
Bali, Human Studies Film Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Film reels (black-and-white sound; 1,000 feet, 35mm)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Film reels
Travelogues (motion pictures)
Sound films
Place:
Malay Archipelago
Java (Indonesia)
Bali Island (Indonesia)
Date:
1931
Scope and Contents:
A LAND THAT TIME FORGOT: EAST INDIES (1931) Talking Picture epics, Inc. travelog to Java and Bali (AFI/Kit Parker collection).
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or Anthropology Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Provenance:
Received from American Film Institute (National Center for Film and Video Preservation) in 1998.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Please contact the archives for information on availability of access copies of audiovisual recordings. Original audiovisual material in the Human Studies Film Archives may not be played.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
Travelogues (Motion pictures)
Sound films
Citation:
A Land That Time Forgot: East Indies, Human Studies Film Archives, Smithsonian Institution
