The Lisa Chickering and Jeanne Porterfield collection documents their work as travel filmmakers, photographers, and writers from 1954-2015. Their films are an example of the travel lecture film, a genre which combined silent travelogue films with live narration. Chickering and Porterfield presented their films throughout the United States and Canada in the 1960s and 1970s before turning to freelance still photography and travel writing in the early 1980s. The audiovisual and photography collection begins with their first joint travels in the 1950s and covers a range of their professional activities through the early 2000s, mainly encompassing original travel footage, edited travelogues, and travel still photography. Supporting documentation includes film scripts, lecture recordings, personal and professional manuscripts, financial and professional records, and a substantial amount of newspaper and magazine articles which serve as a record of the press generated by and about Chickering and Porterfield.
Scope and Contents:
The Lisa Chickering and Jeanne Porterfield collection documents their work as travel filmmakers, photographers, and writers from 1954-2015. The audiovisual and photography collection begins with their first joint travels in the 1950s and covers a range of their professional activities through the early 2000s, mainly encompassing original travel footage, edited travelogues, and travel still photography. Supporting documentation includes film scripts, lecture recordings, personal and professional manuscripts, financial and professional records, and a substantial amount of newspaper and magazine articles which serve as a record of the press generated by and about Chickering and Porterfield.
Records pertaining to Chickering and Porterfield's film career include full lecture scripts for their five major silent travel films: Austria à la Carte (1960), Caribbean Dutch Treat (1963), Bravo Portugal! (1965), Europe's Mini-Countries (1968), and Winter in Mexico (1973). Chickering and Porterfield delivered these scripts at venues throughout the United States in front of live audiences while the (silent) travelogues were screened behind them, essentially acting as live narrators. Silent access copies are available for each of these films except for Austria à la Carte; audio recordings of their live lectures are available for Austria à la Carte, Caribbean Dutch Treat, Winter in Mexico. Reference video is also available for Chickering and Porterfield's two shorter sound films: Four Seasons of Austria (1962) and Portugal with Pleasure (1968). Other film material includes several sets of lecture tour records listing dates, locations, topics, and fees, as well as a large amount of advertising material.
Also included in this collection are a large number of published and unpublished manuscripts, including both personal projects and assignment travel writing. Several personal narrative essays and more complete memoir drafts give insight into Chickering and Porterfield's filmmaking process, industry tips, and travel methods, as well as anecdotes from the field. Assignment travel writing ranges geographically, with a focus on cruise ships.
Other materials in the collection include extensive inventories of still photography, personal and professional correspondence, and a substantial amount of printed material which was retained as a central resource for press generated by and about Chickering and Porterfield.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged in 9 series: Series 1. Film documentation, 1959-1986, undated; Series 2. Still photography documentation, 1958-2004, undated; Series 3. Writings, 1954-1997, undated; Series 4. Printed material, 1959-2002, undated; Series 5. Other professional materials, 1987-2000, undated; Series 6. Correspondence, 1957-1992, 2000, 2015, undated; Series 7. Films and film-related sound recordings, circa 1960-2015; Series 8. Other audiovisual material, 1957, 1966, 1981, undated; Series 9. Photographs, 1956-2001, undated.
Biographical / Historical:
Lisa Chickering (1922-) and Jeanne Porterfield (1923-2010) were travel filmmakers, photographers, and writers in New York City whose professional output spanned from the 1960s through the early 2000s. Chickering and Porterfield first met in Chicago, where they were childhood friends and neighbors. Porterfield attended the University of Chicago and eventually earned a master's in musicology from the American Conservatory of Music, after which she trained under Uta Hagen to pursue stage and television acting; Chickering trained as an opera singer and pianist before turning to work as a stage and cabaret singer, as well as a model at the John Robert Powers Agency. The pair's filmmaking career began in 1954, when they traveled to Paris for a singing engagement Chickering had booked. When they arrived, they found the engagement had fallen through. Porterfield began to act as Chickering's agent, and the two cobbled together a three-year international tour, which they documented on an 8mm camera. Upon returning to New York in 1958, they incorporated a production company, Viewpoints, Inc., and returned to Europe to film their first professional project.
Viewpoints, Inc. released five full-length (70-80 minute) silent travelogues through the 1960s and early 1970s, set in Western European and North American tourist destinations: Austria à la Carte (1960), Caribbean Dutch Treat (1963), Bravo Portugal! (1965), Europe's Mini-Countries (1968), and Winter in Mexico (1973). Chickering and Porterfield acted as directors, producers, cinematographers, and editors on each film. The pair also presented these films on the travel lecture film circuit at venues in the United States and Canada ranging from Kiwanis clubs to major concert halls, narrating their silent footage onstage in front of live audiences.
Viewpoints, Inc. also released two shorter 30-minute public relations sound films sponsored by Volkswagen of America: Four Seasons of Austria (1962, which used footage from Austria à la Carte) and Portugal with Pleasure (1968, which used footage from Bravo Portugal!). Both of these films won awards at the American Film Festival. A third public relations film, co-sponsored by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and the Curaçao Tourism Board and titled Curaçao: The Caribbean Dutch Treat, was released in 1962 and used footage from Caribbean Dutch Treat.
Chickering and Porterfield turned to still photography in earnest in the 1980s and continued working through the early 2000s; their work was published as educational filmstrips as well as in various leading travel and lifestyle publications, including in The New York Times, Travel & Leisure, Town & Country, Glamor, Gourmet, Harper's Bazaar, and Better Homes & Gardens. The pair also authored a number of travel features to accompany their photos, with a particular emphasis on cruise ships.
Porterfield died in 2010 in New York City, where Lisa still lives.
1922 -- Lisa Chickering born December 24 in Chicago, Illinois.
1923 -- Jeanne Porterfield born February 14 in Beloit, Wisconsin.
1954 -- First joint travels abroad
1958 -- Viewpoints, Inc. (production company) incorporated
1960 -- Austria à la Carte released
circa 1962 -- Recipients, Silver Plaque of Merit in Tourism from Austrian National Tourist Office
1962 -- Recipients, American Film Festival Blue Ribbon (for Four Seasons of Austria) Four Seasons of Austria released
1962 -- Recipients, Blue Ribbon from the American Film Festival Travel Category (for Four Seasons of Austria)
1963 -- Caribbean Dutch Treat released
1965 -- Bravo Portugal! released
1968 -- Europe's Mini-Countries released
1968 -- Recipients, American Film Festival Blue Ribbon (for Portugal with Pleasure) Portugal with Pleasure released
1968 -- Recipients, Blue Ribbon from the American Film Festival Travel Category (for Portugal with Pleasure)
1972-1975 -- Educational filmstrips photographed by Chickering and Porterfield distributed by the Society for Visual Education, Inc.
1973 -- Winter in Mexico released
circa 1975 -- Began working in still photography and travel writing
1982 -- Recipient (Porterfield), Grand Prize for Black and White Photography, Society of American Travel Writers
1983 -- Recipients, First and Second Prize, Society of American Travel Writers Freelance Council Photo Contest
1987-1990 -- President (Chickering), Travel Journalists' Guild
2008 -- Recipient (Chickering), Bern Keating Award for Lifetime Service, Travel Journalists' Guild
2010 -- Died (Porterfield) January 15 in New York, New York.
Provenance:
This collection was donated to the National Anthropological Film Collection (formerly the Human Studies Film Archives) by Lisa Chickering in 2015.
Restrictions:
The Lisa Chickering and Jeanne Porterfield collection is open for research. Please contact the archives for information on availability of access copies of audiovisual recordings. Original audiovisual material in the National Anthropological Film Collection may not be played.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Citation:
Lisa Chickering and Jeanne Porterfield Collection, National Anthropological Film Collection, Smithsonian Institution
To a considerable degree, the James H. Howard papers consist of manuscript copies of articles, book, speeches, and reviews that document his professional work in anthropology, ethnology, ethnohistory, archeology, linguistics, musicology, and folklore between 1950 and 1982. Among these are a few unpublished items. Notes are relatively scant, there being somewhat appreciable materials for the Chippewa, Choctaw, Creek, Dakota, Omaha, Ponca, Seminole, and Shawnee. The chief field materials represented in the collection are sound recordings and photographs, but many of the latter are yet to be unidentified. A series of color photographs of Indian artifacts in folders are mostly identified and represent the extensive American Indian Cultural collection of costumes and artifacts that Howard acquired and created. Other documents include copies of papers and other research materials of colleagues. There is very little original material related to archeological work in the collection and that which is present concerns contract work for the Lone State Steel Company.
Scope and Contents:
The James Henri Howard papers document his research and professional activities from 1949-1982 and primarily deal with his work as an anthropologist, archeologist, and ethnologist, studying Native American languages & cultures. The collection consists of Series 1 correspondence; Series 2 writings and research, which consists of subject files (language and culture research materials), manuscripts, research proposals, Indian claim case materials, Howard's publications, publications of others, and bibliographical materials; Series 3 sound recordings of Native American music and dance; Series 4 photographs; and Series 5 drawings and artwork.
Howard was also a linguist, musicologist, and folklorist, as well as an informed and able practitioner in the fields of dance and handicrafts. His notable books include Choctaw Music and Dance; Oklahoma Seminoles: Medicines, Magic, and Religion; and Shawnee! The Ceremonialism of a Native American Tribe and its Cultural Background.
Some materials are oversize, specifically these three Winter Count items: 1. a Dakota Winter Count made of cloth in 1953 at the request of James H. Howard, 2. a drawing of British Museum Winter Count on 4 sheets of paper, and 3. Photographs of a Winter Count.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged in 5 series: Series 1. Correspondence, 1960-1982, undated; Series 2. Writings and Research, 1824-1992; Series 3. Sound Recordings, 1960-1979; Series 4. Photographs, 1879-1985; Series 5. Drawings and Artwork, 1928-1982.
Chronology:
1925 -- James Henri Howard was born on September 10 in Redfield, South Dakota.
1949 -- Received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Nebraska.
1950 -- Received his Master of Arts from the University of Nebraska and began a prolific record of publishing.
1950-1953 -- Began his first professional employment as an archaeologist and preparator at the North Dakota State Historical Museum in Bismarck.
1955-1957 -- Was a museum lecturer at the Kansas City (Missouri) Museum.
1957 -- James H. Howard received his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan. Joined the staff of the Smithsonian's River Basin Surveys in the summer.
1957-1963 -- Taught anthropology at the University of North Dakota.
1962 -- Chief archeologist at the Fortress of Louisberg Archeological Project in Nova Scotia.
1963-1968 -- Taught anthropology at the University of South Dakota; State Archeologist of South Dakota; Director of the W. H. Over Dakota Museum.
1963-1966 -- Director of the Institute of Indian Studies, University of South Dakota.
1968-1982 -- Associate professor of anthropology at Oklahoma State University at Stillwater (became a full professor in 1971).
1979 -- Consulted for exhibitions at the Western Heritage Museum in Omaha, Nebraska.
1982 -- Died October 1 after a brief illness.
Biographical/Historical note:
James H. Howard was trained in anthropology at the University of Nebraska (B.A., 1949; M.A., 1950) and the University of Michigan (Ph.D., 1957). In 1950-1953, he served as archeologist and preparator at the North Dakota State Historical Museum; and, in 1955-1957, he was on the staff of the Kansas City (Missouri) Museum. During the summer of 1957, he joined the staff of the Smithsonian's River Basin Surveys. Between 1957 and 1963, he taught anthropology at the Universtity of North Dakota. Between 1963 and 1968, he served in several capacities with the University of South Dakota including assistant and associate professor, director of the Institute of Indian Studies (1963-1966), and Director of the W.H. Over Museum (1963-1968). In 1968, he joined the Department of Sociology at Oklahoma State University, where he achieved the rank of professor in 1970. In 1979, he was a consultant for exhibitions at the Western Heritage Museum in Omaha, Nebraska.
Howard's abiding interest were the people of North America, whom he studied both as an ethnologist and archeologist. Between 1949 and 1982, he worked with the Ponca, Omaha, Yankton and Yaktonai Dakota, Yamasee, Plains Ojibwa (or Bungi), Delaware, Seneca-Cayuga, Prairie Potatwatomi of Kansas, Mississipi and Oklahoma Choctaw, Oklahoma Seminole, and Pawnee. His interest in these people varied from group to group. With some he carried out general culture studies; with other, special studies of such phenomena as ceremonies, art, dance, and music. For some, he was interest in environmental adaptation and land use, the latter particularly for the Pawnee, Yankton Dakota, Plains Ojibwa, Turtle Mountain Chippewa, and Ponca, for which he served as consultant and expert witness in suits brought before the United Stated Indian Claims Commisssion. A long-time museum man, Howard was also interested in items of Indian dress, articles associated with ceremonies, and other artifacts. He was "a thoroughgoing participant-observer and was a member of the Ponca Hethuska Society, a sharer in ceremonial activities of many Plains tribes, and a first-rate 'powwow man'." (American Anthropologist 1986, 88:692).
As an archeologist, Howard worked at Like-a-Fishhook Village in North Dakota, Spawn Mound and other sites in South Dakota, Gavin Point in Nebraska and South Dakota, Weston and Hogshooter sites in Oklahoma, and the Fortess of Louisbourg in Nova Scotia. He also conducted surveys for the Lone Star Steel Company in Haskall, Latimer, Le Flore and Pittsburg counties in Oklahoma.
Related Materials:
Howard's American Indian Cultural Collection of Costumes and Artifacts, that he acquired and created during his lifetime, is currently located at the Milwaukee Public Museum. In Boxes 19-21 of the James Henri Howard Papers, there are photographs with accompanying captions and descriptions in binders of his American Indian Cultural Collection of Costumes and Artifacts that his widow, Elfriede Heinze Howard, created in order to sell the collection to a museum.
Provenance:
These papers were donated to the National Anthropological Archives by James Henri Howard's wife,
Elfriede Heinz Howard, in 1988-1990, 1992, & 1994.
Restrictions:
The James Henri Howard papers are open for research.
Access to the James Henri Howard papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact repository for terms of use.
Topic:
Indians of North America -- Southern states Search this
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. research center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
American Academy in Rome records, 1855-2012. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Haydnfest, International Musicological Conference, 9-10/75
Container:
Box 14 of 20
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Accession 07-142, National Museum of American History, Division of Music, Sports, and Entertainment, Curatorial Records
American Musicological Society (AMS), Committee on the History of the Society, 1993-1998
Container:
Box 12 of 20
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Accession 07-142, National Museum of American History, Division of Music, Sports, and Entertainment, Curatorial Records
IMS (International Musicological Society) Meeting, Berkeley, 1977
Container:
Box 13 of 20
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Accession 07-142, National Museum of American History, Division of Music, Sports, and Entertainment, Curatorial Records
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Jacques Seligmann & Co. records, 1904-1978, bulk 1913-1974. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Processing of the collection was funded by the Getty Grant Program; digitization of the collection was funded by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Jacques Seligmann & Co. records, 1904-1978, bulk 1913-1974. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Processing of the collection was funded by the Getty Grant Program; digitization of the collection was funded by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Jacques Seligmann & Co. records, 1904-1978, bulk 1913-1974. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Processing of the collection was funded by the Getty Grant Program; digitization of the collection was funded by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.
Collection Citation:
Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. Collection, Acc. 1992.0023, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
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.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2014 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
xxxiii, 281 pages illustrations (some color) 31 cm + 4 audiocassettes, in container (31 x 26 x 3 cm) + 1 score, 79 pages, in container (31 x 26 x 3 cm)
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Millard Meiss papers, circa 1918-circa 1977, bulk 1950-1975. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Smithsonian Institution Collections Care and Preservation Fund.