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Duke Ellington Collection

Creator:
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
Names:
Duke Ellington Orchestra  Search this
Washingtonians, The.  Search this
Ellington, Mercer Kennedy, 1919-1996 (musician)  Search this
Strayhorn, Billy (William Thomas), 1915-1967  Search this
Collector:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Musical History  Search this
Extent:
400 Cubic feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Phonograph records
Papers
Photographic prints
Posters
Sound recordings
Scrapbooks
Music
Clippings
Awards
Audiotapes
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 20th century
Harlem (New York, N.Y.) -- 20th century
Washington (D.C.) -- 20th century
Date:
1903 - 1989
Summary:
The collection documents Duke Ellington's career primarily through orchestrations (scores and parts), music manuscripts, lead sheets, transcriptions, and sheet music. It also includes concert posters, concert programs, television, radio, motion picture and musical theater scripts, business records, correspondence, awards, as well as audiotapes, audiodiscs, photographs, tour itineraries, newspaper clippings, magazines, caricatures, paintings, and scrapbooks.
Scope and Contents:
Dating approximately from the time Duke Ellington permanently moved to New York City in 1923 to the time the material was transferred to the Smithsonian Institution in 1988, the bulk of the material in the Duke Ellington Collection is dated from 1934-1974 and comprises sound recordings, original music manuscripts and published sheet music, hand-written notes, correspondence, business records, photographs, scrapbooks, news clippings, concert programs, posters, pamphlets, books and other ephemera. These materials document Ellington's contributions as composer, musician, orchestra leader, and an ambassador of American music and culture abroad. In addition, the materials paint a picture of the life of a big band maintained for fifty years and open a unique window through which to view an evolving American society.

The approximate four hundred cubic feet of archival materials have been processed and organized into sixteen series arranged by type of material. Several of the series have been divided into subseries allowing additional organization to describe the content of the material. For example, Series 6, Sound Recordings, is divided into four subseries: Radio and Television Interviews, Concert Performances, Studio Dates and Non-Ellington Recordings. Each series has its own scope and content note describing the material and arrangement (for example; Series 10, Magazines and Newspaper Articles, is organized into two groups, foreign and domestic, and arranged chronologically within each group). A container list provides folder titles and box numbers.

The bulk of the material is located in Series 1, Music Manuscripts, and consists of compositions and arrangements by Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn and other composers. Series 6, Sound Recordings also provides a record of the performance of many of these compositions. The materials in Series 2, Performances and Programs, Series 3, Business Records, Series 8, Scrapbooks, Series 9, Newspaper Clippings, Series 11, Publicity and Series 12, Posters provide documentation of specific performances by Duke Ellington and His Orchestra. Ellington was a spontaneous and prolific composer as evidenced by music, lyrical thoughts, and themes for extended works and plays captured on letterhead stationery in Series 3, Business Records, in the margin notes of individual books and pamphlets in Series 14, Religious Materials and Series 15, Books, and in the hand-written notes in Series 5, Personal Correspondence and Notes.

During its fifty-year lifespan, Duke Ellington and His Orchestra were billed under various names including The Washingtonians, The Harlem Footwarmers and The Jungle Band. The soloists were informally called "the band", and Series 3 includes salary statements, IOU's, receipts and ephemera relating to individual band members. Series 1, Music Manuscripts contains the soloists' parts and includes "band books" of several soloists (for example; Harry Carney and Johnny Hodges) and numerous music manuscripts of Billy Strayhorn. The changing role of Strayhorn from arranger hired in 1938 to Ellington's main collaborator and composer of many well-known titles for Duke Ellington and His Orchestra including "Take The A' Train" and "Satin Doll" can be traced in these music manuscripts. Series 7, Photographs and Series 2, Performances and Programs contain many images of the band members and Strayhorn. This Collection also documents the business history of Duke Ellington and His Orchestra. Series 3, Business Records contains correspondence on letterhead stationery and Series 11, Publicity contains promotional material from the various booking agencies, professional companies, and public relations firms that managed the Orchestra.

The materials in the Duke Ellington Collection provide insight into public and institutional attitudes towards African Americans in mid-twentieth-century America. The business records in Series 3 beginning in 1938 and published sheet music in Series 1 depict Duke Ellington's progression from an African-American musician who needed "legitimization" by a white publisher, Irving Mills, to a businessmen who established his own companies including Tempo Music and Duke Ellington, Incorporated to control his copyright and financial affairs. Programs from the segregated Cotton Club in Series 2, Performances And Programs and contracts with no-segregation clauses in Series 3: Business Records further illustrate racial policies and practices in this time period. The public shift in perception of Duke Ellington from a leader of an exotic "Jungle Band" in the 1930s to a recipient of the Congressional Medal Of Freedom in 1970 is evidenced in Series 2, Performances And Programs, Series 12, Posters, Series 7, Photographs and Series 13, Awards. Reviews and articles reflecting Ellington's evolving status are also documented in Series 8, Newspaper Clippings, Series 9, Scrapbooks, Series 10, Newspaper and Magazine Articles.

The materials in the Duke Ellington Collection reflect rapid technological changes in American society from 1923-1982. Sound recordings in Series 6 range from 78 phonograph records of three minutes duration manufactured for play on Victrolas in monaural sound to long-playing (LP) phonograph records produced for stereo record players. Television scripts in Series 4, programs in Series 2 and music manuscripts (for example, Drum Is A Woman) in Series 1 demonstrate how the development of television as a means of mass communication spread the Orchestra's sound to a wider audience. The availability of commercial air travel enabled the Ellington Orchestra to extend their international performances from Europe to other continents including tours to Asia, Africa, South America and Australia and archival material from these tours is included in every series.

Series 4, Scripts and Transcripts and Series 6, Audio Recordings contain scripts and radio performances promoting the sale of United States War bonds during World War II, and Series 7, Photographs includes many images of Duke Ellington and His Orchestra's performances for military personnel revealing the impact of historic events on Duke Ellington and His Orchestra. Series 2: Programs and Performances, Series 9, Newspaper clippings and Series 8, Scrapbooks document the 1963 Far East tour aborted as a result of President John F. Kennedy's assassination.

The Duke Ellington Collection contains works by numerous twentieth-century music, literature, and art luminaries. Series 1, Music Manuscripts contains original music manuscripts of William Grant Still, Eubie Blake, Mary Lou Williams, and others. Series 4, Scripts and Transcripts contains a play by Langston Hughes, and Series 12, Posters contains many original artworks.
Arrangement:
Series 1: Music Manuscripts, circa 1930-1981, undated

Series 2: Performances and Programs, 1933-1973, undated

Series 3: Business Records, 1938-1988

Series 4: Scripts and Transcripts, 1937-1970

Series 5: Personal Correspondence and Notes, 1941-1974, undated

Series 6: Sound Recordings, 1927-1974

Series 7: Photographs, 1924-1972, undated

Series 8: Scrapbooks, 1931-1973

Series 9: Newspaper Clippings, 1939-1973, undated

Series 10: Magazine Articles and Newspaper Clippings, 1940-1974

Series 11: Publicity, 1935-1988

Series 12: Posters and Oversize Graphics, 1933-1989, undated

Series 13: Awards, 1939-1982

Series 14: Religious Material, 1928-1974

Series 15: Books, 1903-1980

Series 16: Miscellaneous, 1940-1974
Biographical / Historical:
A native of Washington, DC, Edward Kennedy Ellington was born on April 29, 1899. Edward was raised in a middle-class home in the Northwest section of Washington described by his sister Ruth--younger by sixteen years--as a "house full of love." Ellington himself wrote that his father J.E. (James Edward) raised his family "as though he were a millionaire" but Edward was especially devoted to his mother, Daisy Kennedy Ellington. In 1969, thirty-four years after his mother's death, Ellington accepted the Presidential Medal of Freedom with these words, "There is nowhere else I would rather be tonight but in my mother's arms." Both his parents played the piano and Ellington began piano lessons at the age of seven, but like many boys he was easily distracted by baseball.

In his early teens, Ellington sneaked into Washington clubs and performance halls where he was exposed to ragtime musicians, including James P. Johnson, and where he met people from all walks of life. He returned in earnest to his piano studies, and at age fourteen wrote his first composition, "Soda Fountain Rag" also known as "Poodle Dog Rag." Ellington was earning income from playing music at seventeen years of age, and around this time he earned the sobriquet "Duke" for his sartorial splendor and regal air. On July 2, 1918, he married a high school sweetheart, Edna Thompson; their only child, Mercer Kennedy Ellington, was born on March 11, 1919. Duke Ellington spent the first twenty-four years of his life in Washington's culturally thriving Negro community. In this vibrant atmosphere he was inspired to be a composer and learned to take pride in his African-American heritage.

Ellington moved to New York City in 1923 to join and eventually lead a small group of transplanted Washington musicians called "The Washingtonians," which included future Ellington band members, Sonny Greer, Otto Hardwicke and "Bubber" Miley. Between 1923 and 1927, the group played at the Club Kentucky on Broadway and the ensemble increased from a quintet to a ten-piece orchestra. With stride pianist Willie "The Lion" Smith as his unofficial guide, Ellington soon became part of New York's music scene; Smith proved to be a long-lasting influence on Duke's composing and arranging direction. At the Club Kentucky, Ellington came under the tutelage of another legendary stride pianist, "Fats" Waller. Waller, a protege of Johnson and Smith, played solos during the band's breaks and also tutored Ellington who began to show progress in his compositions. In November 1924, Duke made his publishing and recording debut with "Choo Choo (I Got To Hurry Home)" released on the Blu-Disc label. In 1925, he contributed two songs to Chocolate Kiddies, an all-black revue which introduced European audiences to black American styles and performers. By this time Ellington's family, Edna and Mercer, had joined him in New York City. The couple separated in the late 1920's, but they never divorced or reconciled.

Ellington's achievements as a composer and bandleader began to attract national attention while he worked at the Cotton Club in Harlem, New York City, from 1927 to 1932. The orchestra developed a distinctive sound that displayed the non-traditional voicings of Ellington's arrangements and featured the unique talents of the individual soloists. Ellington integrated his soloists' exotic-sounding trombone growls and wah-wahs, their high-squealed trumpets, their sultry saxophone blues licks and Harlem's street rhythms into his arrangements. In the promotional material of the Cotton Club, the band was often billed as "Duke Ellington and His Jungle Band." With the success of compositions like "Mood Indigo," and an increasing number of recordings and national radio broadcasts from the Cotton Club, the band's reputation soared.

The ten years from 1932 to 1942 are considered by some major critics to represent the "golden age" for the Ellington Orchestra, but it represents just one of their creative peaks. These years did bring an influx of extraordinary new talent to the band including Jimmy Blanton on double bass, Ben Webster on tenor saxophone, and Ray Nance on trumpet, violin and vocals. During this ten year span Ellington composed several of his best known short works, including "Concerto For Cootie," "Ko-Ko," "Cotton Tail," "In A Sentimental Mood," and Jump For Joy, his first full-length musical stage revue.

Most notably, 1938 marked the arrival of Billy Strayhorn. While a teenager in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Strayhorn had already written "Lush Life," "Something To Live For" and a musical, Fantastic Rhythm. Ellington was initially impressed with Strayhorn's lyrics but realized long before Billy's composition "Take the A' Train" became the band's theme song in 1942 that Strayhorn's talents were not limited to penning clever lyrics. By 1942, "Swee' Pea" had become arranger, composer, second pianist, collaborator, and as Duke described him, "my right arm, my left arm, all the eyes in the back of my head, my brain waves in his head, and his in mine." Many Ellington/Strayhorn songs have entered the jazz canon, and their extended works are still being discovered and studied today. Strayhorn remained with the Ellington Organization until his death on May 30, 1967.

Ellington had often hinted of a work in progress depicting the struggle of blacks in America. The original script, Boola, debuted in Carnegie Hall in November of 1943, retitled Black, Brown and Beige. The performance met with mixed reviews, and although Ellington often returned to Carnegie Hall the piece was never recorded in a studio, and after 1944 was never performed in entirety again by the Ellington Orchestra. Nonetheless, it is now considered a milestone in jazz composition.

After World War II the mood and musical tastes of the country shifted and hard times befell big bands, but Ellington kept his band together. The band was not always financially self-sufficient and during the lean times Ellington used his songwriting royalties to meet the soloists' salaries. One could assign to Ellington the altruistic motive of loyalty to his sidemen, but another motivation may have been his compositional style which was rooted in hearing his music in the formative stage come alive in rehearsal. "The band was his instrument," Billy Strayhorn said, and no Ellington composition was complete until he heard the orchestra play it. Then he could fine tune his compositions, omit and augment passages, or weave a soloist's contribution into the structure of the tune.

In 1956, the American public rediscovered Duke and the band at the Newport Jazz Festival in Rhode Island. The searing performances of tenor saxophonist Paul Gonsalves on "Diminuendo and Crescendo In Blue," his premiere soloist, alto saxophonist Johnny Hodges on "Jeep's Blues", and the crowd's ecstatic reaction have become jazz legend. Later that year Duke landed on the cover of Time magazine. Although Ellington had previously written music for film and television (including the short film, Black and Tan Fantasy in 1929) it wasn't until 1959 that Otto Preminger asked him to score music for his mainstream film, Anatomy of a Murder, starring Jimmy Stewart. Paris Blues in 1961, featuring box-office stars Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier in roles as American jazz musicians in Paris, followed.

Ellington's first performance overseas was in England in 1933, but the 1960s brought extensive overseas tours including diplomatic tours sponsored by the State Department. Ellington and Strayhorn composed exquisite extended works reflecting the sights and sounds of their travels, including the Far East Suite, 1966. They wrote homages to their classical influences; in 1963, they adapted Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite and celebrated Shakespeare's works with the suite Such Sweet Thunder in 1957. With Ella Fitzgerald, they continued the Norman Granz Songbook Series. Ellington also began to flex his considerable pianist skills and recorded albums with John Coltrane (1963), Coleman Hawkins (1963), Frank Sinatra, and Money Jungle (1963) with Charles Mingus and Max Roach. The First Sacred Concert debuted in San Francisco's Grace Cathedral in 1965. In his final years, Ellington's thoughts turned to spiritual themes and he added a Second (1968) and Third (1973) Concert of Sacred Music to his compositions.

In his lifetime, Duke received numerous awards and honors including the highest honor bestowed on an American civilian, the Congressional Medal Of Freedom. In 1965, Ellington was recommended for a Pulitzer Prize to honor his forty years of contribution to music but the recommendation was rejected by the board. Most likely he was disappointed, but his response at the age of sixty-six was, "Fate is being kind to me. Fate doesn't want me to be famous too young."

Ellington never rested on his laurels or stopped composing. Whenever he was asked to name his favorite compositions his characteristic reply was "the next five coming up," but to please his loyal fans Ellington always featured some of his standards in every performance. Even on his deathbed, he was composing the opera buffo called Queenie Pie.

Duke Ellington died on May 24, 1974 at seventy-five years of age. His funeral was held in New York's Cathedral of St. John The Divine; he was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery. His long-time companion Beatrice "Evie" Ellis was buried beside him after her death in 1976. He was survived by his only child, Mercer Kennedy Ellington, who not only took up the baton to lead the Duke Ellington Orchestra but assumed the task of caring for his father's papers and his legacy to the nation. Mercer Ellington died in Copenhagan, Denmark on February 8, 1996, at the age of seventy-six. Ruth Ellington Boatwright died in New York on March 6, 2004, at the age of eighty-eight. Both Mercer and Ruth were responsible for shepherding the documents and artifacts that celebrate Duke Ellington's genius and creative life to their current home in the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center

William H. Quealy Collection of Duke Ellington Recordings (AC0296)

Rutgers University Collection of Radio Interviews about Duke Ellington (AC0328)

Duke Ellington Oral History Project (AC0368)

Duke Ellington Collection of Ephemera and realated Audiovisual Materials (AC0386)

Annual International Conference of the Duke Ellington Study Group Proceedings (AC0385)

Robert Udkoff Collection of Duke Ellington Ephemera (AC0388)

Frank Driggs Collection of Duke Ellington Photographic Prints (AC0389)

New York Chapter of the Duke Ellington Society Collection (AC390)

Earl Okin Collection of Duke Ellington Ephemera (AC0391)

William Russo Transcription and Arrangement of Duke Ellington's First Concert of Sacred Music (AC0406)

Ruth Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials (AC0415)

Music manuscripts in the Ruth Ellington Collection complement the music manuscripts found in the Duke Ellington Collection.

Carter Harman Collection of Interviews with Duke Ellington (AC0422)

Betty McGettigan Collection of Duke Ellington Memorabilia (AC0494)

Dr. Theodore Shell Collection of Duke Ellington Ephemera (AC0502)

Edward and Gaye Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials (AC0704)

Andrew Homzy Collection of Duke Ellington Stock Music Arrangements (AC0740)

John Gensel Collection of Duke Ellington Materials (AC0763)

Al Celley Collection of Duke Ellington Materials (AC1240)

Materials at Other Organizations

Institute of Jazz Studies
Separated Materials:
Artifacts related to this collection are in the Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) and include trophies, plaques, and medals. See accessions: 1989.0369; 1991.0808; 1993.0032; and 1999.0148.

"
Provenance:
The collection was purchased through an appropriation of Congress in 1988.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the original and master audiovisual materials are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Copyright restrictions. Consult the Archives Center at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.

Paul Ellington, executor, is represented by:

Richard J.J. Scarola, Scarola Ellis LLP, 888 Seventh Avenue, 45th Floor, New York, New York 10106. Telephone (212) 757-0007 x 235; Fax (212) 757-0469; email: rjjs@selaw.com; www.selaw.com; www.ourlawfirm.com.
Occupation:
Composers -- 20th century  Search this
Topic:
Big bands  Search this
Pianists  Search this
Bandsmen -- 20th century  Search this
Jazz -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Musicians -- 20th century  Search this
Music -- Performance  Search this
African American entertainers -- 20th century  Search this
African Americans -- History  Search this
Popular music -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Music -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
African American musicians  Search this
Genre/Form:
Phonograph records
Papers
Photographic prints
Posters
Sound recordings
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Music -- Manuscripts
Clippings
Awards
Audiotapes
Citation:
Duke Ellington Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0301
See more items in:
Duke Ellington Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep850a376a1-6b6d-48bc-9076-cffef76fea2c
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0301
Online Media:

Are you all reet? [music]

Composer:
Calloway, Cab, 1907-1994  Search this
Clark, Allan, 1896-1950  Search this
Palmer, Jack  Search this
Collection Creator:
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (manuscript, 31 cm.)
6 Items (copy scores, 31 cm.)
1 Item (conductor score and/or parts (Published sheet music), 30 cm.)
Container:
Box 22 (Series 1), Folder 4
Type:
Archival materials
Manuscripts
Conductor scores
Copy scores
Music
Parts (musical)
Piano vocal scores
Published sheet music
Date:
1941
Scope and Contents:
see also oversize
6 parts and 1 score.
Are you all reet? is contained in one folder consisting of 1 six-page score, 6 parts in Eb Major concert, and a published sheet in F Major -- in ink, and pencil. -- in unidentified hands (Whaley?).
Score is for 4 saxes - 1, 2, 3, 4; 3 trumpets - 1, 2, 3; 2 trombones - 1, 2; guitar, and bass. Parts for 2 altos - 1, 3; 2 tenors - 1, 2; guitar; bass. -- from the Duke Ellington Library.
General:
Handwriting and other details have been reported based on the notes of David Berger, Andrew Homzy, Dr. Theodore Hudson, Walter van de Leur, and Dr. Mark Tucker.
Condition: fair. Folder A -- 12p.
Publication:
New York, NY, Mills Music Inc., 1941
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the original and master audiovisual materials are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Copyright restrictions. Consult the Archives Center at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.

Paul Ellington, executor, is represented by:

Richard J.J. Scarola, Scarola Ellis LLP, 888 Seventh Avenue, 45th Floor, New York, New York 10106. Telephone (212) 757-0007 x 235; Fax (212) 757-0469; email: rjjs@selaw.com; www.selaw.com; www.ourlawfirm.com.
Topic:
Music -- United States -- 20th century  Search this
Genre/Form:
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Conductor scores
Copy scores
Music
Parts (musical)
Piano vocal scores
Published sheet music
Collection Citation:
Duke Ellington Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
See more items in:
Duke Ellington Collection
Duke Ellington Collection / Series 1: Music Manuscripts / 1.1: Music Manuscripts / 1.1.2: A Titles
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8c6ee2d8a-efe8-4f23-a3bf-38adc53e58ea
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0301-ref37286

Ogeechee river lullaby [music]

Composer:
Calloway, Cab, 1907-1994  Search this
Wood, Guy  Search this
Palmer, Jack  Search this
Collection Creator:
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (conductor score and/or parts (Published sheet music), 28 cm.)
13 Items (copy scores, 32 cm.)
Container:
Box 252, Folder 4
Type:
Archival materials
Copy scores
Lead sheet
Manuscripts
Music
Parts (musical)
Piano vocal scores
Published sheet music
Date:
1942
Scope and Contents:
13 parts and 1 score.
Ogeechee river lullaby is contained in one folder consisting of 1 published two-page piano vocal score in Eb Major concert, and 1 lead sheet and 12 parts in Db Major concert -- in ink -- in identified hand (Williams) and unidentified hand.
Piano vocal score lyrics begin "The stars are bright tonight on 'Geechee river ...". Lead sheet for unidentified treble instrument. Parts for 3 reeds - alto 1, tenor 1, tenor 2; 4 trumpets - 1, 2, 3, 4; 3 trombones - 1, Tizol, Tricky; bass; guitar. -- from the Duke Ellington Library.
General:
Handwriting and other details have been reported based on the notes of David Berger, Andrew Homzy, Dr. Theodore Hudson, Walter van de Leur, and Dr. Mark Tucker.
Publication:
New York, NY, Rytvoc, Inc., 1942
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the original and master audiovisual materials are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Copyright restrictions. Consult the Archives Center at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.

Paul Ellington, executor, is represented by:

Richard J.J. Scarola, Scarola Ellis LLP, 888 Seventh Avenue, 45th Floor, New York, New York 10106. Telephone (212) 757-0007 x 235; Fax (212) 757-0469; email: rjjs@selaw.com; www.selaw.com; www.ourlawfirm.com.
Topic:
Music -- United States -- 20th century  Search this
Genre/Form:
Copy scores
Lead sheet
Manuscripts
Music
Parts (musical)
Piano vocal scores
Published sheet music
Collection Citation:
Duke Ellington Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
See more items in:
Duke Ellington Collection
Duke Ellington Collection / Series 1: Music Manuscripts / 1.1: Music Manuscripts / 1.1.16: O
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8832cc9a9-6ec6-40e8-a661-b0902f98eebf
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0301-ref43283

William "Cat" Anderson Collection

Creator:
Anderson, William "Cat", 1916-1981 (musician)  Search this
Names:
Cat Anderson Quintet  Search this
Duke Ellington Orchestra  Search this
Lionel Hampton Orchestra  Search this
Mingus Quintet  Search this
Bechet, Sidney (musician)  Search this
Calloway, Cab, 1907-1994  Search this
Carter, Benny, 1907-2003  Search this
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
Fitzgerald, Ella, 1917-1996  Search this
Hampton, Lionel  Search this
Humphrey, Hubert H. (Hubert Horatio), 1911-1978  Search this
Humphrey, Muriel  Search this
Johnson, Lucy Bird  Search this
Johnson, Lyndon B. (Lyndon Baines), 1908-1973  Search this
Tatum, Art, 1909-1956  Search this
Webster, Ben  Search this
Extent:
5 Cubic feet (12 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Manuscripts
Transcripts
Oral histories (document genres)
Oral history
Phonograph records
Photographs
Recordings
Interviews
Clippings
Audiotapes
Awards
Audiocassettes
Articles
Date:
1940-1981
bulk 1963-1977
Scope and Contents note:
Primarily audiotapes, sheet music, and photographic images. Also: correspondence, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, itineraries, awards, and ephemera.,Of particular interest are recordings or photographic images, including the personalities listed below, and President and Mrs. Tubman of Liberia; also, two interviews and three recordings of Cat Anderson as guest with various university and college jazz bands.
Arrangement:
Collection is divided into four series.

Series 1: Music

Series 2: Original tapes and recordings

Series 3: Photographs

Series 4: Miscellaneous
Biographical/Historical note:
Cat Anderson (Sept 12, 1916 - April 29, 1981) was one of the premier trumpet players of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Known for his effortless high notes, he was a strong section leader and a great soloist whose style exhibited humor and precision. He grew up in Jenkins= Orphanage in Charleston, SC, received basic music training there, and participated in many of their famous student ensembles. He formed and played with the Cotton Pickers, a group of orphanage teens while still a young man. Before joining Ellington in 1944, he played in several big bands, including Claude Hopkins and Lionel Hampton. Anderson left the Ellington organization from 1947 through 1949 again to lead his own group. From 1959 to1961 and after 1971 Anderson free lanced, working with the Ellington orchestra intermittently. He died in 1981 after receiving honors from the US Air Force, the Prix du Disque de Jazz, and the City of Los Angeles.
Related Archival Materials:
Related artifacts include: awards, plaques, mutes, trumpet mouth pieces, and the Jon Williams/Cat Anderson simulator in the Division of Cultural and Community Life (now Division of Cultural and Community Life). See accession: 1998.3074.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the National Museum of American History in January 1998, by Dorothy Anderson, Cat Anderson's widow. It was acquired through negotiations with her, her brother, Mr. John Coffey and her nephew, Andrew Brazington. The materials were picked up from Mr. John Coffey of upper N.W. Washington, DC on January 21, 1998.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Master tapes not available to researchers.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Copyright status of items varies. Signed copies of releases on file.
Occupation:
Composers -- 20th century  Search this
Topic:
Music -- 20th century  Search this
Music -- Acoustics and physics  Search this
Musicians -- 20th century  Search this
Piano and synthesizer music  Search this
Inventions -- 1980-2000  Search this
Synthesizer music  Search this
Electric engineering -- 1980-2000  Search this
Band musicians  Search this
African American musicians  Search this
Jazz musicians -- United States  Search this
Inventors -- 20th century  Search this
Genre/Form:
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Transcripts
Oral histories (document genres)
Oral history
Phonograph records
Photographs -- 20th century
Recordings
Interviews
Interviews -- 1950-2000
Clippings -- 20th century
Audiotapes -- 1940-1980
Awards
Audiocassettes
Audiotapes
Articles -- 1940-1980
Citation:
William "Cat" Anderson Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0630
See more items in:
William "Cat" Anderson Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep891a9a0e4-7c4f-4956-b81e-6d65c57e1f29
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0630
Online Media:

Milt Gabler Papers

Creator:
Armstrong, Lucille  Search this
Bechet, Sidney, 1897-1959  Search this
Armstrong, Louis, 1901-1971  Search this
Condon, Eddie, 1905-1973  Search this
Calloway, Cab, 1907-1994  Search this
Commodore Records.  Search this
Feather, Leonard, 1914-1994  Search this
Gabler, Milt  Search this
Davis, Sammy, 1925-  Search this
Decca (recording company).  Search this
Granz, Norman  Search this
Hawkins, Coleman  Search this
Kaempfert, Bert, 1923-1980  Search this
Ives, Burl, 1909-  Search this
Holiday, Billie, 1915-1959  Search this
Norvo, Red, 1908-1999  Search this
Mills Brothers.  Search this
Krupa, Gene, 1909-1973  Search this
Kelly, Peck, 1898-  Search this
Williams, Cootie, 1911-1985  Search this
United Hot Clubs of America.  Search this
Stewart, Rex (William), Jr., 1907-1967 (cornetist)  Search this
Jordan, Louis, 1908-1975  Search this
Goodman, Benny (Benjamin David), 1909-1986  Search this
Names:
Crosby, Bing, 1904-1977  Search this
Goodman, Benny (Benjamin David), 1909-1986  Search this
Extent:
25 Cubic feet (75 boxes )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Legal records
Magazines (periodicals)
Catalogs
Correspondence
Financial records
Music
Bank statements
Autobiographies
Articles
Tax records
Business records
Newsletters
Photographs
Recordings
Sheet music
Date:
1895-2001
Summary:
The collection documents Gabler's involvement in the recording industry and the evolution of Commodore Records. The documentation begins with the Commodore Radio Shop through its evolution to Commodore Music Shop. The collection also includes the beginnings of the Commodore record label and information detailing Gabler's 30 years as staff producer and later Vice-President in Charge of Artists and Repertoire at Decca Records (1941-1974). There is a small collection of black and white photographs chronicling the early years at the Commodore Music Shop, as well as jam sessions, often held at Jimmy Ryan's on 52nd Street. The collection also includes a vast array of audio recordings (mainly audiodiscs).
Scope and Contents:
Papers documenting Gabler's life and career, including: correspondence with family members, friends and people in the music business such as Sammy Davis, Jr. and Lucille Armstrong (Louis' wife); Gabler's writings, including an autobiography and numerous articles; music manuscripts and sheet music, the lyrics for some of which were written by Gabler, and other compositions written by others, including Red Norvo, Eddie Condon and others; legal and financial records, including royalty statements, tax papers and banking records; business records for Commodore and Decca, including correspondence from persons such as Norman Granz, Burl Ives, and Leonard Feather; Commodore and Decca legal records including licensing and trademark documents; publicity materials; production records, such as production logs and liner notes; printed materials such as catalogs, newsletters, magazines, and periodicals; papers relating to Gabler's affiliation with Bert Kaempfert, including correspondence, sheet music and lyrics, and production records; photographs of Gabler and his family and of numerous others in the music industry, including Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Sammy Davis Jr., Bert Kaempfert, the Mills Brothers, Rex Stewart, Cootie Williams, Benny Goodman, Coleman Hawkins, Gene Krupa, Louis Jordan, Peck Kelly, Sidney Bechet, Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong, and numerous others, many taken in the studio during recording sessions; and audio recordings.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into twenty-seven series.

Series 1: Personal Correspondence

Series 2: Writings by Milt Gabler

Series 3: Music Manuscripts and Sheet Music

Series 4: Personal Financial and Legal Records

Series 5: Commodore and Decca Correspondence and Gabler Rolodex

Series 6: Commodore and Decca Legal Records

Series 7: Commodore and Decca Financial

Series 8: Publicity

Series 9: Commodore and Decca Projects

Series 10: Production Records

Series 11: Commodore General Correspondence

Series 12: Commodore Financial Records

Series 13: Commodore Legal Records

Series 14: Commodore Production Records

Series 15: Commodore, Various Projects and Topical Files

Series 16: Commodore Publicity Records

Series 17: Business Cards

Series 18: Catalogs

Series 19: Newsletters

Series 20: Serials

Series 21: Monographs

Series 22: Newsclippings, Periodical Articles, and Advertisements

Series 23: Correspondence with Organizations

Series 24: Organization Membership cards

Series 25: Bert Kaempfert

Series 26: Photographs

Series 27: Audio Discs
Biographical / Historical:
Milt Gabler was born in Harlem, New York on May 20, 1911. He began managing his father's radio and small appliance store, the Commodore Radio Shop, while still a teen. Gabler convinced his father to expand the business and sell audio recordings. Soon Gabler pioneered the concept of marketing reissues by leasing discontinued masters from various record companies (mainly Victor, Columbia, Vocalion, and Brunswick). Eventually the Gablers changed the name of the family business to the Commodore Music Shop. By the early 1930's Gabler founded the first mail order record label, United Hot Clubs of America, to reach an even greater audience of jazz enthusiasts. In 1935 Gabler began publicizing the music shop by staging a series of Sunday afternoon jam sessions at several different recording studios along 52nd Street. Later the jam sessions moved to the nearby jazz club, Jimmy Ryan's.

In 1938 Gabler founded the Commodore music label. It was the first American recording label created exclusively for jazz music. A recording session for Eddie Condon's Windy City Seven at Brunswick Studios was the first original Commodore recording. In 1939 Gabler recorded Billie Holiday's controversial "Strange Fruit", which became Commodore's first major commercial success. Other notable Commodore artists include Sidney Bechet, Jonah Jones, Peck Kelley, Red Norvo, Ralph Sutton, and Teddy Wilson. Gabler began as a staff producer at Decca Records in 1941 and worked with artists from many different musical genres: Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, Brenda Lee, the Weavers, and Louis Jordan, among others. Gabler also began writing lyrics in collaboration with Decca songwriters/composers. In 1954 Gabler produced the first recordings by Bill Haley and the Comets. In addition, Gabler continued to run the Commodore recording label until 1957. Gabler also managed the Commodore Music Shop until 1958, when he began working full-time at Decca as Vice-President in Charge of Artists and Repertoire. Throughout the 1960's Gabler served as lyricist in a number of collaborations with Bert Kaempfert and Herbert Rehbein. Gabler retained his influential position at Decca until 1974 when the corporation moved to the West Coast. Through the Decca years, Gabler had saved the Commodore masters and in 1974 began to reissue the recordings through Atlantic, Columbia Special Products, and finally United Hot Clubs of America. In 1987 Mosaic Records also began to reissue the entire catalog of Commodore recordings.

In the last decades of his life Gabler remained active in a number of professional organizations, most notably the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which bestowed upon him a Grammy lifetime achievement award in 1991. Gabler died in New York on July 20, 2001.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Milt Gabler estate, through Lee Gabler.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use. Some materials restricted; but most are available for unrestricted research access on site by appointment.

Several items of personal correspondence contained private medical information about living individuals. The originals were removed and will remain sealed until 2030. Copies with the sensitive information redacted are available for research use in the collection.

Access to audio recordings for which no reference copy exists requires special arrangements with Archives Center staff. Please ask the reference archivist for additional information.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Music publishers  Search this
Jazz musicians -- United States  Search this
Jazz -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Composition (Music)  Search this
Music trade  Search this
Music -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Musicians -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Legal records
Magazines (periodicals) -- 20th century
Catalogs
Correspondence -- 20th century
Financial records
Music -- Manuscripts
Bank statements
Autobiographies
Articles
Tax records
Business records -- 20th century
Newsletters -- 20th century
Photographs -- 20th century
Recordings
Sheet music -- 20th century
Citation:
Milt Gabler Papers, 1927-2001, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0849
See more items in:
Milt Gabler Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep844dc4ee2-1f0b-43c1-9566-5dc6b5b62ee2
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0849
Online Media:

Ella Fitzgerald Papers

Creator:
Fitzgerald, Ella, 1917-1996  Search this
Producer:
Decca (recording company).  Search this
Verve Records (Firm)  Search this
Granz, Norman  Search this
Performer:
Jazz at the Philharmonic (Musical group)  Search this
Musician:
Betts, Keter, 1928-  Search this
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
Gillespie, Dizzy, 1917-1993  Search this
Pass, Joe, 1929-1994  Search this
Peterson, Oscar, 1925-  Search this
Names:
Goodman, Benny (Benjamin David), 1909-1986  Search this
Arranger:
Riddle, Nelson  Search this
Extent:
50 Cubic feet (92 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Awards
Videocassettes
Audiotapes
Programs
Sound recordings
Manuscripts
Phonograph records
Photographs
Posters
16mm motion picture film
Clippings
Contracts
Greeting cards
Date:
circa 1935-1996
Summary:
Ella Fitzgerald, often called the "First Lady of Song," was one of the 20th century's most important musical performers. The collection reflects her career and personal life through photographs, audio recordings, and manuscript materials.
Scope and Contents:
The Ella Fitzgerald Papers document the performing and personal life of the "First Lady of Song." The collection contains music manuscripts, sheet music, photographs, scripts, correspondence, clippings, business records, sound recordings and video. The bulk of the materials reflect Fitzgerald's career as a singer and performer. The collection comprises materials found in Ella Fitzgerald's home at the time of her death.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into 10 series.

Series 1: Music Manuscripts and Sheet Music, 1919-1973

Suberies 1.1: Television Shows

Series 2: Photographs, 1939-1990

Subseries 2.1: Ella Fitzgerald Performing Alone

Subseries 2.2: Ella Fitzgerald Performing With Others

Subseries 2.3: Publicity

Subseries 2.4: Ella Fitzgerald With Family, Colleagues, and Friends

Subseries 2.5: Ella Fitzgerald Candid Photographs

Subseries 2.6: Performing Venues

Subseries 2.7: Photographs From Friends and Fans

Series 3: Scripts, 1957-1981

Series 4: Correspondence, circa 1960-1996

Series 5: Business Records, 1954-1990

Series 6: Honorary Degrees and Awards, 1960-1996

Series 7: Concert Programs and Announcements, 1957-1992, undated

Series 8: Clippings, 1949-1997

Subseries 8.1: Magazine Articles, 1949-1997

Subseries 8.2: Newspapers, circa 19650-circa 1990

Series 9: Emphemera, 1950-1996

Subseries 9.1: Album Jackets

Subseries 9.2: Miscellaneous

Series 10: Audiovisual, 1939-1995

Subseries 10.1: Sound Discs: Test Pressings, Transcription Discs, and Performer Copies, 1939-1979

Subseries 10.2: Commercial Sound Recordings, 1956-1961

Subseries 10.3: Demonstration Sound Discs: Other Artists

Subseries 10.4: Sound Tapes, 1938-1996

Subseries 10.5: Videotapes, 1967-1999

Subseries 10.6: Reference Tape Cassettes (for 1/4" open reel originals)
Biographical / Historical:
Born in Newport News, Virginia on April 25th, 1918, Ella Fitzgerald was sent to an orphanage in Yonkers, New York at the age of six. In 1934, she was discovered as a singer in New York's famed Apollo Theater Amateur Contest. This led to a stint with drummer Chick Webb's Band, with whom she recorded her first big hit, "A -tisket A-tasket" in 1938.

After Webb died in 1939, Fitzgerald took over leadership of the band for three years, during which time they were featured on a live radio series. She then embarked upon a solo career, which included recording for Decca Records, and in 1946, she began a pivotal association with producer Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic series, which brought her a large international following.

In 1956, Fitzgerald left Decca Records to join Granz's newly formed Verve label. Among her notable Verve recordings were a series of "songbooks" featuring the work of major American composers such as Cole Porter, George Gershwin, and Harold Arlen as well as classic collaborations with Count Basie and Duke Ellington. Fitzgerald's toured and performed extensively and her immense popularity also led to appearances on television, in movies, and in commercials and magazine ads.

Despite increasing health problems, Fitzgerald continued to tour, perform and record into her seventies with musicians such as guitarist Joe Pass, arranger-producer Quincy Jones, and pianist Oscar Peterson. Throughout her life, Fitzgerald was active in charitable work with particular emphasis on the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation and the Ella Fitzgerald and Harriette E. Shields Child Care Centers.

Ella Fitzgerald was admired and honored world-wide. In addition to receiving more than a dozen Grammy awards, she was awarded numerous honorary degrees and many states and cities had commemorative Ella Fitzgerald days. Fitzgerald was a Kennedy Center honoree in 1979 and Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Club named her "Woman of the Year" in 1982.

The "First Lady of Song" died on June 17, 1996, of complications from diabetes.
Related Materials:
Materials at the Archives Center

Benny Carter Collection, 1928-2000 (AC0757)

Charismic Productions Records of Dizzy Gillespie, 1940s-1993 (AC0979)

Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program Collection, 1992-2012 (AC0808)

Milt Gabler Papers, 1927-2001 (AC0849)

Tad Hershorn Collection, 1956-1991 (AC0680)

Ernie Smith Jazz Film Collection, circa 1910- circa 1970 (AC0491)
Separated Materials:
"The National Museum of American History, Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds Ella Fitzgerald artifacts including costumes and clothing.

"
Provenance:
The collection was donated by the Fitzgerald 1989 Trust, Richard Rosman, trustee on April 14, 1997. The Ella Fitzgeral Charitable Foundation is the successor to the Fitzgerald 1989 Trust.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Only reference copies of audiovisual materials can be used.
Rights:
The Archives Center can provide reproductions of some materials for research and educational use. Copyright and right to publicity restrictions apply and limit reproduction for other purposes. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Jazz  Search this
Genre/Form:
Awards
Videocassettes
Audiotapes
Programs -- 1930-2000
Sound recordings
Sound recordings -- 1930-1990
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Phonograph records
Photographs -- 20th century
Posters -- 20th century
16mm motion picture film
Clippings -- 20th century
Contracts
Greeting cards
Citation:
Ella Fitzgerald Papers, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0584
See more items in:
Ella Fitzgerald Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b30d86b3-2935-49c8-b13c-faf206402d9c
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0584
Online Media:

Every tub [music]

Composer:
Basie, Count, 1904-1984  Search this
Durham, Ed  Search this
Arranger:
Clayton, Buck  Search this
Collection Creator:
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
Extent:
8 Items (conductor score and/or parts (Published sheet music), 27 cm.)
8 Items (manuscripts, 32 cm.)
Container:
Box 113 (Series 1), Folder 8
Type:
Archival materials
Manuscripts
Music
Parts (musical)
Published sheet music
Date:
1938
Scope and Contents:
see also Hyde Park sa Subseries 1.3
16 parts
Every tub is contained in one folder consisting of 8 published parts in Bb Major concert and 8 parts in Eb Major concert -- in ink and pencil -- in unidentified hand (Tizol?).
Published parts in Bb Major for 1 reed - tenor 4; 1 trumpet - 3; 1 trombone - 2; violin; bass; drums; guitar; piano. Parts in Eb Major for 3 reeds - Jonny, Otto, Carney; 2 trumpets - 1, 3; 3 trombones - Tizol, Tricky, Brown. -- from the Duke Ellington Library.
General:
Handwriting and other details have been reported based on the notes of David Berger, Andrew Homzy, Dr. Theodore Hudson, Walter van de Leur, and Dr. Mark Tucker.
Condition: fair, torn.
Publication:
New York, NY, Bregman, Vocco and Conn Inc., 1938
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the original and master audiovisual materials are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Copyright restrictions. Consult the Archives Center at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.

Paul Ellington, executor, is represented by:

Richard J.J. Scarola, Scarola Ellis LLP, 888 Seventh Avenue, 45th Floor, New York, New York 10106. Telephone (212) 757-0007 x 235; Fax (212) 757-0469; email: rjjs@selaw.com; www.selaw.com; www.ourlawfirm.com.
Topic:
Music -- United States -- 20th century  Search this
Genre/Form:
Manuscripts
Music
Parts (musical)
Published sheet music
Collection Citation:
Duke Ellington Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
See more items in:
Duke Ellington Collection
Duke Ellington Collection / Series 1: Music Manuscripts / 1.1: Music Manuscripts / 1.1.6: E
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep89fc2f248-225d-4096-9676-a217a13e15a8
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0301-ref39517

Jumpin' at the woodside [music]

Composer:
Basie, Count, 1904-1984  Search this
Arranger:
Hathaway, Charlie  Search this
Collection Creator:
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (conductor score and/or parts (Published sheet music), 27 cm.)
Type:
Archival materials
Music
Parts (musical)
Published sheet music
Manuscripts
Date:
1938
Scope and Contents:
1 part.
Jumpin' at the woodside is contained in one folder consisting of 1 published part in Bb Major concert -- in ink.
Part for 1 violin - 1. -- from the Duke Ellington Library.
General:
Handwriting and other details have been reported based on the notes of David Berger, Andrew Homzy, Dr. Theodore Hudson, Walter van de Leur, and Dr. Mark Tucker.
Publication:
New York, NY, Bregman, Vocco and Conn Inc., 1938
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the original and master audiovisual materials are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Copyright restrictions. Consult the Archives Center at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.

Paul Ellington, executor, is represented by:

Richard J.J. Scarola, Scarola Ellis LLP, 888 Seventh Avenue, 45th Floor, New York, New York 10106. Telephone (212) 757-0007 x 235; Fax (212) 757-0469; email: rjjs@selaw.com; www.selaw.com; www.ourlawfirm.com.
Topic:
Music -- United States -- 20th century  Search this
Genre/Form:
Music
Parts (musical)
Published sheet music
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Collection Citation:
Duke Ellington Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
See more items in:
Duke Ellington Collection
Duke Ellington Collection / Series 1: Music Manuscripts / 1.1: Music Manuscripts / 1.1.11: J / Jumpin' At The Woodside
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82fed25eb-f47c-4bd4-b640-d60043df5800
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0301-ref51845

Benny Carter Collection

Creator:
Carter, Benny, 1907-2003  Search this
Extent:
67.5 Cubic feet (182 boxes, 3 oversize folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Awards
Clippings
Scrapbooks
Scores
Posters
Photographs
Music
Manuscripts
Date:
1928-2000
Scope and Contents:
The majority of the material in the Benny Carter Collection is dated from the late 1920s through the later half of the 1990s. Donated to the Smithsonian Institution in December, 2000, the bulk of the collection is comprised of original music manuscripts (full scores and parts), band books, and published sheet music from Benny Carter's prolific career as a jazz composer and musician. The collection also contains newspaper clippings, correspondence, photographs, scrapbooks, awards, posters, commercial sound recordings, a few jazz related journals and some personal ephemera documenting Benny Carter's personal life and career as a composer, arranger, bandleader, trumpeter and alto saxophonist.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into six series

Series 1: Music Manuscripts, 1928-1990s

Series 2: Newspaper Clippings and Magazine Clippings, 1928-2000

Series 3: Photographs, 1928-1998

Series 4: Awards and Proclamations, 1961-1999

Series 5: Sound Recordings, 1958-1989

Series 6: Ephemera, 1952-2000

Series 7: 2004 Photographs Addenda

Series 8: 2004 Ephemera Addenda

Series 9: 2004 Magazine and Newsclippings Addenda

Series 10: 2004 Awards and Proclamations Addenda
Biography:
Bennett Lester Carter, better known as "Benny," was born on August 8, 1907 in New York City. The Carter's were quite a musical family - - Benny's father played guitar, his mother played piano, and a cousin, Theodore ("Cuban") Bennett, played the trumpet professionally - - so it was no surprise that Benny also became a musician, beginning his musical training at the age of ten. He first played the trumpet and then C-melody saxophone before changing to alto saxophone, which became his chief instrument.

Benny Carter began his professional career around the young age of seventeen, when he joined a local group as an alto saxophonist. He subsequently played with various other groups, including Billy Paige and Louis Deppe, until attending Wilberforce College in Ohio to study seminary in 1925. Finding music more enticing than theology, Carter left college and instead toured with Horace Henderson's Wilberforce Collegians intermittently between 1925 and 1928.

Carter's musical talents began attracting widespread attention in 1930 during a year-long stint with Fletcher Henderson's orchestra, to which he contributed many important arrangements. As word of his talent continued to spread, Carter played with such notables as William "Chick" Webb (1931) and served as musical director of William McKinney's Cotton Pickers (1931-1932) in Detroit. Upon returning to New York in 1932, Carter formed his own highly-respected orchestra. In its two years of existence, the Benny Carter Orchestra included several major pioneers in early swing style, such as Bill Coleman, Dicky Wells, Ben Webster, Chu Berry, Teddy Wilson, and Sid Catlett. Months after playing the inaugural show in New York City at Harlem's Apollo Theater in 1934, Carter disbanded the orchestra and, one year later, sailed to Europe to spread jazz across the globe.

After arriving in Europe, Carter first performed with Willie Lewis in Paris, France, and then, during 1936 -1938, served as staff arranger for the BBC Dance Orchestra in London, England. As he continued to tour throughout his stay in Europe (even leading his own interracial band in the Netherlands in 1937), he met with even greater success than in the United States. By this point, Carter was well-known for his arrangements and for his alto saxophone and clarinet playing. He was also recognized for his talented singing and tenor saxophone, trumpet, and piano playing.

In 1938, Carter sailed back to the United States and formed a new orchestra which regularly played at Harlem's Savoy Theater until 1940. He toured the United States during the next few years, both with small groups and with his big band, finally settling in Los Angeles in 1945. There he continued to lead his band (band members included modern jazz greats such as Miles Davis and J. J. Johnson), but turned increasingly to writing and arranging music for films and television productions. His film scores include Stormy Weather (1943), A Man Called Adam (1966), Red Sky at Morning(1970), and Buck and the Preacher (1972). "Ironside," "Bob Hope Presents," and the Alfred Hitchcock show were among the television programs for which he wrote music.

Carter had stopped performing with a regular orchestra by 1946, but he remained active up through the 1960s both by playing at Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic shows and with Duke Ellington, among others. He also continued to arrange music for various singers, including Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, Peggy Lee, and Louis Armstrong. During the 1970s he began performing again, touring in Europe, Asia and Australia; in 1976 he toured the Middle East under sponsorship of the U.S. Department of State. Carter also became involved with academia, serving as visiting professor or workshop consultant at universities such as Yale, Cornell, Princeton, and Duke. He remained active in the music business well into the 1990s and still resides in California.

Benny Carter is regarded as "one of the most versatile musicians of his time." As a musician, he made major contributions to several areas of jazz and, as an arranger, he helped to construct the big-band swing style. He has received many awards throughout his career. The more prestigious honors included a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences and a 1994 Grammy Award for the album "Elegy in Blue."

Footnotes

[1 ] Biographical note derived from Benny Carter: A Life in American Music, by Monroe and Edward Berger, and James Patrick (New York: Scarecrow Press and the Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University, 1982).

[2] J. Bradford Robinson, "John Kirby," The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, vol 1, 1986: 653-54.
Provenance:
The Benny Carter Collection was donated by Bennett Carter in December 2000.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Reproduction restricted due to copyright.
Topic:
African American musicians  Search this
Jazz -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Awards
Clippings -- 20th century
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Scores
Posters -- 20th century
Photographs -- 20th century
Music -- Manuscripts
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Citation:
Benny Carter Collection, 1928-2000, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0757
See more items in:
Benny Carter Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep839f63d81-a542-41dc-8929-3f0c7f433f2f
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0757
Online Media:

Fletcher and Horace Henderson Music and Photographs

Creator:
Henderson, Horace, 1904-1988  Search this
Lewis, Barbara  Search this
Lewis, Barry  Search this
Henderson, Fletcher, 1897-1952  Search this
Extent:
22.5 Cubic feet (82 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Audiocassettes
Audiotapes
Manuscripts
Parts (musical)
Photographs
Date:
1930s-1980s
Scope and Contents:
The Fletcher and Horace Henderson Collection contains original scores and band books, loose sheet music, both original and published, from both Fletcher and Horace's libraries, playlists, lyrics, photographs, personal papers and correspondences, newspaper clippings, jazz publications, an oral history manuscript of an interview with Horace, audio tapes, and other personal memorabilia documenting the lives and careers of the two brothers as pianists, band leaders, and arrangers. The majority of the material dates from the mid 1920s to the early 1980s.

Series 1: Fletcher and Horace Henderson's Music ca. 1930s - 1980s Boxes 1-68. Original band books and scores, lyrics, playlists, loose music, and published music either arranged or used by Fletcher or Horace Henderson during their careers as pianists, band leaders, and arrangers. The series is organized into six subseries: Subseries 1A: Horace's Band Books, Subseries 1B: Loose Music, Subseries 1C: Original Scores, Subseries 1D: Lyrics, Suberies 1E: Playlists, and Suberies 1F: Published Music.

Suberies 1A, ca. 1940s -1980s, boxes 1-21. Horace Henderson Band Books. Each Band Book stands on its own, and is identified by the musician who used it or the location where the music was performed. Some performers include Gail Brochman, Eddie Calhoun, and George Reed. Many of the band books were used for performances at the Trianon Ballroom in Chicago.

Subseries 1B, ca. 1930s - 1980s, boxes 22-58. Music in boxes 22-54 comes from Horace Henderson's band library, and boxes 55-58 from Fletcher Henderson's band library. The music consists of full scores, piano scores, and parts arranged or used by Horace or Fletcher Henderson. Arranged alphabetically by title; FS - Full Score, PS - Piano Score, and P - Parts. * Indicates an overlap between loose music, and music known to have been performed at the Trianon Ballroom in Chicago. **Indicates an overlap between Horace and Fletcher's Libraries. The music is arranged alphabetically by music title.

Subseries 1C, ca. 1930s - 1940s, boxes 59-60. Original scores arranged by Fletcher Henderson, many for Benny Goodman and other bandleaders, including AHoneysuckle Rose@, AKing Porter's Stomp@, and AStealin' Apples@. There is also a complete band book written and arranged by Fletcher. Arranged alphabetically by title.

Subseries 1D, ca. 1940s - 1980s, box 61. Original lyrics used in performances by Horace Henderson's bands. Arranged alphabetically by title where identified.

Subseries 1E, ca. 1940s - 1980s, boxes 62-63. Playlists compiled in preparation for performances by Horace Henderson's orchestras, listing titles played at various performances. Un-arranged.

Subseries 1F, ca. 1920s-1980s, boxes 64-68. Published sheet music and books for piano/vocal parts. Includes art music, method books, popular music, fake books, and music book covers. Folders are arranged by type of publication, and the music is arranged alphabetically by title within each folder.

Series 2: Photographs, ca. 1920s - 1980s Boxes 69-70. Photographs documenting the lives of both Fletcher and Horace Henderson's personal lives and careers. Photographs are arranged by category including Fletcher Henderson Candids with Friends, Horace Henderson Candids, Performance Marquees, and both brothers with their orchestra. Some unique pictures include portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Henderson (Fletcher and Horace's parents), candids of Fletcher with Benny Goodman, and Horace with Lena Horne.

Series 3: Personal Papers and Correspondences, ca. 1920s - 1980s Boxes 71-78. Programs and broadsides, newspaper articles, letters, essays, publications, and other personal documents tracing the lives of Horace and Fletcher, as well as some personal items of their parents. The series is divided into six subseries: Subseries 3A: Programs and Broadsides, Subseries 3B: Newspaper Articles and Clippings, Subseries 3C: Personal Papers and Correspondences, Subseries 3D: Miscellaneous Publishings, Subseries 3E: Transcript of an Oral History Interview, and Subseries 3F: Henderson Family Scrapbook.

Subseries 3A, ca 1930s - 1980s Boxes 71-72. Contains broadsides and ad clippings promoting both Horace and Fletcher's performances, along with programs for various jazz festivals. There are also three sets of Las Vegas Programs, advertising the weekly happenings during the years Horace was performing there, mainly at the Riviera Hotel and Casino (1959-1961). These include; Ken's Spotlight Las Vegas, Fabulous Las Vegas Magazine, On The Go, and other miscellaneous circulations. Arranged by category (Fletcher's broadsides, Horace's broadsides, Programs), and by date within each set of publications or programs.

Subseries 3B, ca. 1950s - 1980s, Boxes 73 & 78. Contains newspapers, articles, and clippings, ranging from 1951 to 1986, documenting the lives of Fletcher, Horace, and some of their contemporaries (ie: Duke Ellington) through the eyes of the media. Arranged by categories; reference to Fletcher, Horace, or Miscellaneous. Box 73 contains the oversized articles.

Subseries 3C, ca. 1920s-1980s, Box 74. Contains letters, contracts, and other personal documents of Fletcher, Horace, and their parents. Also contains a copied photo collection of Horace, a manuscript of AHorace Henderson Presents his Interpretation of Jazz@, and an essay (author unknown) about Fletcher's influence on jazz.

Subseries 3D, ca. 1960s - 1980s, Box 75. Contains miscellaneous publishings collected from the various locations Horace lived and worked. Includes weekly circulations from Denver and the surrounding area where Horace lived from the mid sixties until his death, along with various music magazines that he subscribed to (ADownbeat@, AInternational Musician@). Arranged by date within each category.

Subseries 3E, ca. 1975, box 76. Contains the original transcript of the Oral History Interview of Horace Henderson, for the Smithsonian Institution, performed by Tom MacCluskey on April 9-12, 1975.

Subseries 3F, box 77. Contains a Henderson Family Scrapbook which includes photographs of Fletcher's and Horace's father and mother, and various newspaper clippings commending the careers of Mr. Henderson, Horace, and Fletcher. The scrapbook's original order has been maintained.

Series 4: Audio Tape Recordings ca.1970s - 1980s Boxes 79-80. Contains a collection of recordings of live performances of Horace's orchestra in various Denver area locations such as the Esquire Supper Club and the Petroleum Club. Also includes a sample tape, a brief Atest@ recording by Horace and Angel, a radio tribute to Horace, and a few miscellaneous mix tapes. The tapes are arranged by date when available. Box 79 contains the original copies, and box 80 contains the duplicates.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into four series.

Series 1: Horace and Fletcher Henderson's Music

Series 2: Photographs

Series 3: Personal Papers

Series 4: Horace Henderson Audio Tapes
Biographical / Historical:
Fletcher Hamilton Henderson, Jr. (a.k.a. Smack) was born on December 18, 1897 in Cuthbert, Georgia. He was born into a middle class black family, and as a child studied European art music with his mother, a piano teacher. His sister later became the head of the music department at the Tuskeegee Institute in Alabama, and his younger brother, Horace, would eventually follow in his footsteps as a jazz musician, arranger, and band leader. Horace W. Henderson (a.k.a. Little Smack) was born on November 22, 1904. He also studied piano with his mother and sister, and like his brother, began formal music training as a teenager. Fletcher Henderson attended Atlanta University where he earned a degree in chemistry and math in 1919.

In 1920, Fletcher Henderson moved to New York City to find a job as a chemist. Because employment in this field was hard to come by, especially for African Americans, he began working as a song demonstrator for the Pace Hardy Music Company. Shortly after Fletcher Henderson's arrival Harry Pace founded Pace Phonograph Corporation to produce records on the Black Swan label in 1921. Fletcher joined Pace's music team and was responsible for contracting and leading a jazz bands to accompany the label's singers.

In 1924, Fletcher's orchestra, under the direction of Don Redman, began to perform at Club Alabam (sic) on New York City's Broadway Avenue. That same year he and the band was offered a job performing at the Roseland Ballroom, where the band remained for ten years and gained national fame. His band was no different than the hundreds of dance bands, springing up across the country in response to the growing demand for social dance music, such as Count Basie's Orchestra, King Oliver and his Dixie Syncopators, and McKinney's Cotton Pickers. Don Redman left the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra in 1927 to direct McKinney's Cotton Pickers. However the music collaboration of Redman and Henderson had by then established what would become the "standard" big band arrangement for several decades, specifically the dynamic interplay between the brass and reed sections of the orchestra that included interspersed solos made famous by such esteemed soloists of the band as Louis Armstrong and Coleman Hawkins. Some of the band's most notable recordings made between 1924 and 1925 include Copenhagen and Sugarfoot Stomp.

By this time Horace Henderson had formed his own college jazz band in 1924, The Wilberforce Collegians, after transferring from Atlanta University to Wilberforce University to pursue a music degree. His older brother sent him arrangements and piano parts used by the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra for performances by the Collegians. Later that year Horace Henderson left the university to travel and perform with his band in New York City. His newly formed band included such notable musicians as Benny Carter and Ben Webster. While in New York he also began playing as a guest musician in his brother's band and learning from such legends of jazz as Coleman Hawkins, Buster Bailey, Louis Armstrong, and Don Redman that were working for the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra. During a Smithsonian Institution sponsored oral history interview with Tom MacCluskey, Horace recalled late night jam sessions at Hawkins' (Hawk) apartment where they would play through pieces from "Fletch's" library and analyze each individual's performance. We would "stop and discuss what had transpired during that session, you know, that particular tune. And man, that was a lesson...It was a session that was actually to help everybody, so that they would try things out and take another tune, and use these particular little points that Hawk would tell 'em.'"

Until the 1930s, the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra was the principal model for big jazz bands. However, his management of the band and its finances led to frequent band break-ups. In 1934, severe financial problems forced Fletcher to sell some of his best arrangements to Benny Goodman. Horace Henderson and others suggested Goodman's rapid rise in popularity among swing bands for white audiences was largely due to Fletcher Henderson's innovative band arrangements. Fletcher Henderson continued to lead bands until 1939 when he joined Goodman's orchestra as a full time staff arranger. In 1941 he returned to band leading and arranging, but suffered a severe stroke in 1950. Fletcher was partially paralyzed from the stroke, and died on December 29, 1952.

Horace, also, formed many bands throughout the 1930s and 40s, and became a sideman for leaders such as Don Redman (1931-33) and, most notably, his brother. He was a pianist and arranger for Fletch's band intermittently between 1931 and 1947. During this time, Horace spent a lot of time in Chicago with Fletcher's band at the Grand Terrace, and formed his own band at Swingland. Horace also worked as a freelance arranger for Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, and Earl Hines3. From November 1942 through August 1943, Horace was the leader of the 732nd Military Police Band in Joliet, Illinois. The position was first offered to Louis Armstrong, who turned it down and recommended Horace for the position. After leaving the army, he played with Fletcher's band for two years. Horace began writing for Charlie Barnet in 1944, where he first came across Lena Horne. During a job at the Paramount, Charlie had Called Horace to say that his vocalist had laryngitis, and he needed a new singer. Horace went to the Apollo in Harlem in search of some talent, and they sent him to the Regent where he could find Lena Horne. She joined Charlie's show the next day, and from there went on to fame. Horace joined her for an extended tour as a pianist and arranger, and later worked with Billie Holiday3.

Horace moved to Denver with his wife, Angel, in the late 1960s. The Horace Henderson Combo performed at many nightclubs and resorts in the Denver area, including Estes Park, the Broadmoor Hotel, and the Petroleum Club. He began playing the organ in 1970 because the clubs didn't want to pay for four or five piece bands, and with an organ to replace the piano, a bass player was no longer necessary3. Horace continued to lead bands in the Denver area until his death on August 29, 1988.

Although both brothers had a major impact on the future of jazz, Horace is often thought of merely as a shadow to his more celebrated brother. Fletcher Henderson's career as a pianist, bandleader, and arranger is one of the most important in jazz history. Bands of leaders such as Count Basie, Charlie Barnet, Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, and Benny Goodman all played arrangements, which were either written or influenced by Fletcher Henderson. Fletcher constantly surrounded himself with the most talented musicians of his era, and patterned the basic formula, which were imitated throughout the big band era. However, at least thirty of Fletcher's arrangements, many for Benny Goodman, are accredited as Horace's work. His arrangement Hot and Anxious was based on the traditional riff that later became the basis for Glenn Miller's In the Mood. Christopher Columbus is the most notable example of Horace's potent piano style, which is often noted to be stronger than his brother's. Although the brothers had differences, Horace insists that they did not involve music. Fletcher's style and success had a huge influence on Horace's career, and he was incredibly grateful for all his brother taught him. In an interview in April of 1975, he was quoted as saying, "I idolize his way of thinking because he was successful. You don't fight success, you join it." 3

Sources

1. Biographical information derived from The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, edited by Barry Kernfeld (New York: Macmillan Press Ltd, 1988). 2. The Pace Phonograph corporation was the first African-American-owned recording company in the United States. Historical information derived from The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Black Music; Biographical Dictionary of Afro-American and African Musicians, by Eileen Southern (USA: Greenwood Press, 1982).

3. Interview with Horace Henderson, April 2-12, 1975, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
Provenance:
The Fletcher and Horace Henderson collection was acquired by the museum in December of 2001, donated by Barbara and Barry Lewis.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Music -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Audiocassettes
Audiotapes
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Parts (musical)
Photographs -- 20th century
Citation:
Fletcher and Horace Henderson Music and Photographs, 1930s-1980s, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0797
See more items in:
Fletcher and Horace Henderson Music and Photographs
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b519292b-04b8-413a-a057-0c9c19f26b75
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0797
Online Media:

Frederick and Mary Hill Fried Folk Art Archives

Creator:
Fried, Frederick, 1909-1994  Search this
National Carousel Association.  Search this
Fried, Mary Hill  Search this
Extent:
36 Cubic feet (89 boxes, 10 map-folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Advertisements
Clippings
Blueprints
Books
Auction catalogs
Design drawings
Date:
circa 1662-1999, undated
Scope and Contents:
Collection primarily documents American folk art collected by Frederick Fried (1908-1994) and his wife Mary McKensie Hill Fried (1914-1988). It includes photographic materials, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, research files, lecture notes, unpublished manuscripts, brochures, drawings, printed advertisements, blueprints, books, patents, correspondence, trade literature, sheet music, auction catalogs, oral history interviews, and commercially recorded music. Of particular interest is the material relating to carousels. There is a substantial amount of material relating to New York architecture, wood carvings, show figures, weathervanes, mechanical and coin operated machines, amusement parks, the circus, tattoos and lesser-known folk arts. The collection is arranged by subject or genre in the order maintained by Frederick and Mary Fried.
Arrangement:
Series 1, Professional Materials, 1930-1995, undated

Subseries 1.1, Lectures, 1968-1989, undated

Subseries 1.2, Research Notes, 1962-1975, undated

Subseries 1.3, Published and Unpublished Materials, 1960-1990, undated

Subseries 1.4, Exhibitions, 1966-1985, undated

Subseries 1.5, Correspondence, 1945-1995, undated

Subseries 1.6, Office Files, 1930-1991, undated

Series 2, Sculptors and Ship Carvers, 1855-1987, undated

Series 3, Ship Carving Reference Files, 1875-1990, undated

Series 4, Show Figures, 1847-1989, undated

Subseries 4.1, Carvers, 1847-1987, undated

Subseries 4.2, Reference Files, 1864-1989, undated

Series 5: Carousels, 1851-1999, undated

Subseries 5.1, Reference Files, 1851-1990, undated

Subseries 5.2, Manufacturerst, 1854-1999, undated

Subseries 5.3, Carvers, undated

Subseries 5.4, Foreign, 1902, undated

Subseries 5.5, Organizations, 1974-1991, undated

Subseries 5.6, Museum Collections, 1959-1989, undated

Series 5.7, Sites, 1962-1991, undated

Series 6, Charles W. Parker Company, 1904-1905; 1922-1924, undated

Subseries 6.1, Glass Plate Negatives, 6x8, 1904-1905, undated

Subseries 6.2, Glass Plate Negatives, 8x10, 1922-1924, undated

Series 7, Amusements Parks, 1917-1992, undated

Series 8, Amusement Industry, 1662-1994, undated

Subseries 8.1, Companies, 1903, undated

Subseries 8.2, Reference Files, 1662-1994, undated

Series 9, Circus, 1902-1992, undated

Series 10, Architectural Ornaments, 1832-1988, undated

Subseries 10.1, Residential Architecture, 1899-1985, undated

Subseries 10.2, New York City Municipal Parks, 1968-1988, undated

Subseries 10.3, South Street Seaport, 1965-1970, undated

Subseries 10.4, New York Civic Sculpture, 1832-1977, undated

Subseries 10.5, Architectural Ornamentation, 1873-1985, undated

Series 11, Weathervanes, 1854-1981, undated

Series 12, Automatic, Coin Operated, and Vending Machines, 1960-1980, undated

Series 13, Banner Paintings and Painters, 1892-1999, undated

Series 14, Folk Arts, 1783-1999, undated

Subseries 14.1, Reference Files, 1831-1988, undated

Subseries 14.2, Clocks and Watches, 1869-1876; 1976, undated

Subseries 14.3, Eagles, 1843-1989, undated

Subseries 14.4, Musical Instruments, 1963-1999, undated

Subseries 14.5, Painters and Paintings, 1950-1990, undated

Subseries 14.6, Signs and Symbols, 1974, 1976, undated

Subseries 14.7, Other Materials, 1872-1988, undated

Subseries 14.8, Miscellaneous, 1783-1954, undated

Series 15: Photographic Materials, 1832-1988, undated

Subseries 15.1, Photographs and Contact Sheets, 1940-1984, undated

Subseries 15.1.1, America's Forgotten Arts, undated

Subseries 15.1.2, Artists in Wood, undated

Subseries 15.1.3, General, 1940-1984, undated

Subseries 15.2, Slides, 1832-1987, undated

Subseries 15.3, Negatives, undated

Subseries 15.4, Glass Plate Negatives, undated

Subseries 15.5, Snapshots, 1964-1988, undated

Subseries 15.5.1, Artists, Manufacturers, and Dealers, undated

Subseries 15.5.2, Museum Collections, 1964, undated

Subseries 15.5.3, Parks or Other Locations, undated

Subseries 15.5.4, Private Collections, 1987-1988, undated

Subseries 15.5.5, General, 1983-1988, undated

Series 16, Audiovisual Materials, 1940-1991, undated

Subseries 16.1, Audiocassette Tapes, 1971-1988, undated

Subseries 16.1.1, Lectures, 1974-1986, undated

Subseries 16.1.2, Interviews, 1971-1984, undated

Subseries 16.1.3, Music, 1972-1988, undated

Subseries 16.2, Audiotapes, 1940-1977, undated

Subseries 16.2.1, Lectures and Performances, 1969-1973, undated

Subseries 16.2.2, Interviews, 1940-1976, undated

Subseries 16.2.3, Conferences and Meetings, 1973-1977

Subseries 16.2.4, Music, 1956, undated

Subseries 16.2.5, Other, undated

Subseries 16.3, Videotapes, 1982-1991, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Frederick P. Fried was born December 11, 1908 in Brooklyn, New York. He grew up in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn where his father owned a clock business across the street from Charles Carmel, a carousel carver. Fried acquired a fine-arts education in the 1930s with an emphasis on sculpture. He served with the Air Force during the Second World War. After a successful military career, Fried worked as art director in several fashion agencies. He met Mary McKenzie Hill, an academically trained artist in one of the studios.

Mary McKenzie Hill was born in 1914 in Baltimore, Maryland. She graduated from the Maryland Institute of Fine Arts. After graduation, she spent a year abroad studying before she returned to the United States to work as a fashion illustrator in Baltimore and New York. During World War Two Hill was a draftsman for a firm of architects.

Fried and Mary Hill married in 1949. The couple had two children Robert Hazen and Rachel. Around 1953 Fried began to collect architectural ornaments in New York. Fried served as the art director for Bonwit Teller in New York City from 1955-1962. He left the fashion world in 1962 to pursue his passion for collecting and writing full time. Fried published his first book, Pictorial History of Carousels in 1964. In 1967, Fred and Mary Fried purchased a forty-acre farm in Bristol, Vermont where the family spent their summers.

In 1968, Fried led a national campaign to preserve the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse (Seamen's Church Institute at South Street). He also became active in politics and served as the campaign manager for a New York State senator. His interest in Indian cigar store figures resulted in his publication Artists in Wood: American Carvers of Cigar Store Indians, Show Figures and Circus published in 1970. The focus of the book was Samuel Anderson Robb a New York wood carver. Fried co-founded the National Carousel Association in 1973. In 1978, Fried wrote America's Forgotten Folk Art with his wife Mary. This publication covered subjects such as carousels, banner painting, scarecrows, beach sand sculpture, tattoos, cast iron toys, amusement park architecture and trade signs.

Fried's collecting goal was to first preserve artifacts and to then make them available through his writings and exhibitions. His most treasured relics were the items he salvaged from the ruins of Coney Island. Fried referred to such artifacts as the uncelebrated arts. He became one of the founders of the Anonymous Arts Recovery Society a group of individuals who saved architectural ornaments from the wreckers' balls. In addition, he was one of the founders of the National Carousel Round Table which was created to preserve hand-carved merry-go-rounds. As a result of his collecting, research and writing Fried became recognized as the authority on carousels, coin-operated machines, and cigar store figures. He served as a consultant to many Museums; in particular as chief consultant on American Folk Art for the Smithsonian Institution.

Frederick and Mary Hill worked together in many ways to document, collect, preserve and increase the awareness about primarily the folk arts. Mary McKenzie Hill Fried passed away in 1988 at the age of seventy-four. Frederick P. Fried died July 1994 at the age of eighty-six.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

E. Howard Clock Company Records (NMAH.AC.00776)

M. Francis Misklea Carousel Collection (NMAH.AC.0665)

Archives Center Carousel Collection (NMAH.AC.0675)

Messmore and Damon, Incorporated Company Records (NMAH.AC.0846)

Anthony W. Pendergast Collection (NMAH.AC.0882)

Frank Paulin Photoprints (NMAH.AC.1373)

Wurlitzer Company Records (NMAH.AC.0469)

Industry on Parade (NMAH.AC.0507)

Reel #191, Craftsmen of the Carousel, 1954. Manufacturing merry-go-rounds for amusement reports. Arrow Development Co., Mountain View, California.
Provenance:
Collection a bequest of the Frederick Fried Estate.
Rights:
Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark. Fees for commercial reproduction.
Occupation:
Wood-carvers  Search this
Topic:
Periodicals  Search this
Merry-go-round art  Search this
Signs and signboards  Search this
Weather vanes  Search this
Coin-operated machines  Search this
Architecture -- Details  Search this
Amusement ride equipment industry  Search this
Amusement rides  Search this
Folk art  Search this
Merry-go-round  Search this
Figure sculpture -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 20th century
Advertisements
Clippings
Blueprints -- 20th century
Books
Auction catalogs
Design drawings
Citation:
Frederick and Mary Hill Fried Folk Art Archives, circa 1662-1999, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0528
See more items in:
Frederick and Mary Hill Fried Folk Art Archives
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep86ee1b419-6b88-4312-8172-ee9f05d72195
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0528
Online Media:

Harry Warren Papers

Donor:
Riva, Julia  Search this
Jones, Jophe  Search this
Composer:
Warren, Harry, 1893-1981  Search this
Extent:
32 Cubic feet (70 boxes, 26 folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Business records
Memorabilia
Awards
Sheet music
Correspondence
Scripts (documents)
Posters
Theater programs
Legal records
Programs
Date:
1894-2000, undated
bulk 1926-1980, undated
Summary:
The papers of popular songwriter Harry Warren, three time Academy Award winner and prolific contributer to the American songbook.
Scope and Contents:
The Harry Warren Papers consists of original music manuscripts, scores, song sheets, commercial sheet music, bound scores, scripts, business records, correspondence (business, personal and fan), clippings, magazines, photographs, cassette tapes, LP records, posters and programs and personal memorabilia. The material documents the personal life and professional career of composer, songwriter and lyricist Harry Warren from 1894 to 1981 and to a lesser extent the operation of his Four Jays Music Corporation, circa 1954-2000. The bulk of the collection covers the years 1927-1980. The collection is organized into eight series.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into eight series.

Series 1: Music Manuscripts, 1928-1987

Subseries 1.1: Original Holographic Theatre and Motion Picture Music Manuscripts, 1930-1960

Subseries 1.2: Bound Presentation Scores, 1931-1982

Subseries 1.3: Original Individual Song Manuscripts, 1938-1965

Subseries 1.4: Published Sheet Music, 1930-1980

Subseries 1.5: Published Songs, Instrumentals, and Song Collections, 1928-1987

Series 2: Correspondence, 1930-1994

Series 3: Business Records, 1894-1996

Series 4: Scripts, 1946-1958

Series 5: Theatre Programs and Posters, 1915-1999

Series 6: News Clippings and Magazines, 1934-2000

Series 7: Recordings, Audio-Visual Materials, and Photographs, 1926-1977

Subseries 7.1: Recordings, Playback Discs, 1934-1961

Subseries 7.2: Cassette Tapes, 1933-1981, undated

Subseries 7.3: Photographs, 1930-1977, undated

Subseries 7.4: Reference Video Tapes, 1933-1957

Subseries 7.5: Compact Discs, undated

Subseries 7.6: Film, 1927-1964

Series 8: Memorabilia, 1918-1990
Biographical / Historical:
With the possible exception of Irving Berlin, no one has contributed as much material to the canon of American popular song in the 20th century as Harry Warren (1893-1981). Warren was born in Brooklyn, New York, December 24, 1893, to Italian immigrant parents. His birth name was Salvatore Anthony Guaragna. By the time he graduated from grade school, he was known as "Harry Warren". He legally changed his name in 1938. He was educated in the public schools of New York but had no formal musical training. He taught himself to play the organ and piano and also sang in the church choir. Both Warren's sister and brother were performers so the theatrical world was not unknown to him. He worked as an actor and assistant director for the Vitagraph film studio in New York and played mood music for actress Corinne Griffith. During World War I, Warren served in the United States Navy at Montauk Point, New York. For a few weeks after the war, he worked as an insurance examiner for The Travellers Agency.

In December 1918, Warren married Josephine Wensler (1897-1993). Their first child was a son named Harry Warren, Jr. (1920-1937). In 1920, Warren became a song plugger for the music publishing firm of Stark & Cowan. Warren continued writing and in 1922 along with lyricist Edgar Leslie produced his first song hit, "Rose of the Rio Grande." From that point on, Warren composed a continuous stream of hits introduced by such artists as Paul Whiteman and others. By 1925, a second child, Joan (1924-1991), nicknamed "Cookie", was born. Warren continued his success with such songs as "I Love My Baby (My Baby Loves Me)," "In My Gondola" and the very popular 1928 hit "Nagasaki."

By 1929, Warren was the director of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP). He held that position until 1933. He also served on the ASCAP Board of Directors. During this time Warren worked with various musicians including Gus Kahn, Bert Kalmer, and Harry Ruby. In 1930, he wrote his first motion picture score for the film Spring is Here. Al Jolson asked him to compose a song for the show, Wonder Bar (1931). During the 1930s, Warren composed three other Broadway shows, Sweet and Low (1930), Crazy Quilt (1931) featuring Fanny Brice, and Laugh Parade (1931) starring Ed Wynn.

In 1932, Warren was hired by Warner Brothers Studios to help write songs for the Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler film 42nd Street (1933). Along with lyricist, Al Dubin, Warren wrote such hits as "We're in the Money" and "The Shadow Waltz". Warren continued composing memorable songs for motion pictures such as Gold Diggers of 1933, The Singing Marine (1937), and Footlight Parade (1933). Gold Diggers of 1935 included Warren's first Academy Award winning song, "Lullaby of Broadway". Warren made cameo appearances in a few films during his stay at Warner Brothers. He and lyricist Dubin can be seen in 42nd Street, Go Into Your Dance (1935), and A Very Honorable Guy (1934). He also appeared in a Vitaphone short entitled Harry Warren: America's Foremost Composer.

Warren left Warner Brothers for 20th Century Fox in 1940. At Fox he helped compose the scores for such motion pictures as, Sun Valley Serenade (1941), Orchestra Wives (1942), and The Gangs All Here (1943) that included the Carmen Miranda standard, "The Lady in the Tutti-Frutti Hat". During this period, he worked with lyricists Ralph Rainger, Mack Gordon and Leo Robin, and others. Hello Frisco, Hello (1943) garnered Warren his second Academy Award for the song, "You'll Never Know". While at Fox, Warren composed "Chattanooga Choo Choo" a song that became the first gold record in the history of the recording industry.

In 1945, legendary musical film producer Arthur Freed at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer courted Warren for his MGM production unit. Freed quipped that Warren would have the office right next door to his--and he did. For Warren the offer to write music at the studio that practically invented the movie musical was irresistible and he left 20th Century Fox for MGM. He joined Freed in writing the songs for Yolanda and the Thief (1945) starring Fred Astaire and Freed's protégée Lucille Bremer. The film was directed by the incomparable Vincent Minnelli. His next high profile score was for The Harvey Girls (1946) composed with renowned lyricist Johnny Mercer. The picture starred Judy Garland and John Hodiak. Directed by George Sidney, it was a major success, due in part to Warren's tuneful "On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe". This song brought Warren his third and what would be his final Academy Award.

While at MGM, Warren worked with lyricists Mack Gordon, Ralph Blane, and others. In 1948, he and Blane composed the song score for Freed and director Rouben Mamoulian's ambitious film adaptation of Eugene O'Neills stage play Ah Wilderness entitled Summer Holiday (1948) starring Mickey Rooney and Gloria DeHaven. This is reported to have been Warren's favorite film assignment, but the film was not an unqualified success. Warren remained at MGM until the 1950s composing for such films as The Barkleys of Broadway (1949), starring Astaire and Rogers, Summer Stock (1950), starring Judy Garland and Gene Kelly and his final film for MGM, Skirts Ahoy! (1952), starring Esther Williams and Vivian Blane. After leaving MGM, Warren wrote the score for the Bing Crosby film, Just for You at Paramount. Warren also served on the Board of Directors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Warren went on to write the music for two Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin films, The Caddy (1953) for which he composed "That's Amore", Artists and Models (1955) and for three Jerry Lewis films, Rock-a-Bye Baby (1958), Cinderfella (1960), and The Ladies Man (1961). Warren also composed instrumental pieces one being a "Mass in Honor of St. Anthony".

Warren returned to Broadway in 1956 with the musical Shangri-La, based on the novel Lost Horizon. The show was not a success and closed after fewer than thirty performances. He composed the title song for the Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr film, An Affair to Remember (1957); this song brought him his last nomination for an Academy Award. The song was later used in the motion picture Sleepless in Seattle (1993) starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.

During the 1950s, Warren started his own music publishing company, Four Jays Music Corporation. After writing the songs for The Ladies Man, Warren retired from films but continued to write for piano, even composing the song for the Miss Oklahoma Pageant. His last film effort was to compose one song for the motion-picture Rosie (1968). During the last years of his life Warren composed and ran his music publishing business, but remained largely forgotten as the man who had composed a great deal of America's musical heritage.

With the resurgence in the appreciation of the movie musical in the early 1970s, the tunes composed during Warren's heyday were back in vogue, brought on in a large part by the phenomenal success of MGM's That's Entertainment! (1974). In 1980, he was asked to compose the musical numbers for an upcoming movie musical entitled, Manhattan Melody but it was never produced. 1980 brought the Warren name back to the marquees of Broadway with the David Merrick production of 42nd St.. The full budgeted big Broadway musical used the basic storyline from the 1933 film and drew upon the whole of the Warren and Dubin catalogue for the score. The production proved to be wildly popular, running in excess of five years on Broadway. Warren died in California on September 22, 1981. He was interred in the Sanctuary of Tenderness at Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles beside his wife and son. After Warren's death, his daughter Joan "Cookie" Warren Jones administered the music publishing company until her death in 1991.
Key:
OF = Original Film, RV = Reference Video, MV = Master Video
Separated Materials:
The Division of Cultural History (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) has three dimensional objects related to Harry Warren.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution by Julia Riva and Jophe Jones, granddaughters of Harry Warren, on December 15, 2000.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the audiovisual materials are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Researchers must use reference copies of audio-visual materials. When no reference copy existsContact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Occupation:
Composers -- 20th century  Search this
Topic:
Musical films  Search this
Popular music -- Writing and publishing  Search this
Musical reviews, comedies, etc.  Search this
Genre/Form:
Business records -- 20th century
Memorabilia -- 20th century
Awards
Sheet music -- Manuscripts -- 20th century
Correspondence -- 20th century
Scripts (documents)
Posters -- 20th century
Theater programs -- 1910-1990
Legal records
Programs
Citation:
Harry Warren Papers, 1909-2000, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Gift of Jophe Jones and Julia Riva.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0750
See more items in:
Harry Warren Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep866a68fa0-73e3-4c39-9ce1-9425e269f431
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0750
Online Media:

Claude Williams Papers

Creator:
Williams, Claude, 1908-2004  Search this
Fouse-Williams, Blanche Y.  Search this
Extent:
1 Electronic discs (CD)
13 Cassette tapes
4.66 Cubic feet (14 boxes, 3 map- folders)
Container:
Map-folder 1
Map-folder 3
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Electronic discs (cd)
Cassette tapes
Letters (correspondence)
Photographs
Programs
Posters
Scrapbooks
Financial records
Awards
Business records
Audiotapes
Articles
Manuscripts
Date:
1920-2005
Summary:
Business and personal papers, photographs, and audio recordings of Claude "Fiddler" Williams, an award-winning jazz fiddler. Although Williams played music for almost a century the materials in this collection date largely from 1970 to 2005.
Scope and Contents:
This collection documents the later life and career of jazz violinist Claude "Fiddler" Williams. Materials include correspondence, photographs, unpublished writings, awards, business records, financial records, programs and a few music manuscripts. There is one scrapbook and several audio recordings. There are also an autographed poster from 1997 honoring five inductees to the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, including Claude Williams, Merle Haggard, Patti Page, Woody Guthrie and Eddie Burris. While there are some materials from Williams's youth, the vast majority of the collection dates from 1970. Williams's second wife, Blanche Y. Fouse-Williams, was vigilant about saving his papers. She also managed his career for the last few years of his life. This accounts for the increased volume of materials documenting his later years. Materials generally are arranged in chronological order within series and subseries.

Series 1, Business Records, 1973-2005, undated, is divided into seven subseries and includes business records, information relating to tours and performances, awards and certificates, business and personal correspondence, financial papers, articles and newspaper clippings, and biographical information.

Subseries 1, Events, 1977-2004, undated, includes contracts, copies of newspaper clippings, performance programs, brochures, ticket stubs, travel itineraries, travel receipts, correspondence, materials regarding his work as a fiddle teacher, advertisements for performances, a certificate of recognition, and napkins saved from a Washington Education Television Association (WETA) performance at the White House in 1998. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 2, Itineraries, 1990-2001, includes lists and correspondence detailing locations, musicians, travel and lodging plans, and financial compensation for William's performances. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 3, Awards and Certificates, 1978-2002, contains awards and certificates of appreciation from the Steamboat Delta Queen, Annual Black Musicians Conference, Kansas City Chapter of the International Association of Jazz Record Collectors, and the Manhattan School of Music, as well as an invitation to a reception honoring Kansas City Jazz musicians from the Consul General of Japan. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 4, Correspondence, 1975-2004, consists of information relating to travel arrangements, tours, remuneration, music recordings, press kits, contracts, public television performances, involvement with the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, as well as Williams's Smithsonian Folkways recording. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 5, Financial Papers, 1990-2005, includes information about travel and payment, hotel bills and receipts, invoices for performances, music recordings sales, royalty statements and copies of checks. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 6, Press, 1973--005, undated, includes magazines, newspaper clippings and articles, about Williams's performances and music, appearances and jazz festivals, as well as the Kansas City Jazz scene. Magazine titles include Kansas City Magazine , Missouri Alumnus , The Masters Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program , Jazz Ambassador Magazine , Kansas City Ambassador to Jazz , The Mississippi Rag , Fiddler Magazine , Jazz News , Jazz Times , Living Blues , Blues Access , and Kansas City . Materials are arranged by type and then in chronological order.

Subseries 7, Music, 1989-1995, undated, contains thirteen audio tape recordings, one CD, sheet music and set lists of music performed by Williams. There is an audio recording of Black and Blue: A Musical Revue , a Folk Master performance at Carnegie Hall. Williams's work with James Chirillo, an appearance on Birdflight , as well as recordings of live and studio performances are also included among these materials. There is a copy of Williams's CD Swingtime in New York and an interview from1992. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Series 2, Personal Papers, 1978--005, undated, is divided into two subseries and contains letters, cards, postcards, invitations, copies of email, and requests for information and interviews. Most of the correspondence was addressed to Williams but there are materials that were sent to Blanche Williams. The correspondence is generally from fans, friends and family.

Subseries 1, Correspondence, 1978-2005, undated, consists of birthday cards from school age children, postcards, copies of newspaper clippings, White House and other government correspondence, congratulations or birthday wishes, as well as personal correspondence from friends inquiring about Williams's health and well-being. Also included is a draft for a chapter in a book on Claude Williams's contributions to jazz. Requests relating to research about Williams are also included. Materials are arranged in chronological order. Materials are arranged first by type followed by general correspondence in chronological order.

Subseries 2, Miscellaneous, undated, contains ephemera, autographs, affiliates list, well-wishes to Blanche Williams, a funeral program, mailing lists, lists of affiliated organizations, and a Count Bassie autograph.

Series 3, Photographs, 1977-2004, undated, includes personal and professional photographic prints and negatives of Williams. Subjects include performances and festivals, headshots and publicity, images of other musicians, family, friends, and posters with photographs created for his funeral. The majority of these photographs are of performances. Materials are arranged by subject.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into three series.

Series 1, Business Records, 1973-2005, undated

Subseries 1.1, Events, 1977-2004, undated

Subseries 1.2, Itineraries, 1990-2001

Subseries 1.3, Awards and Certificates, 1978-2002

Subseries 1.4, Correspondence, 1975-2004

Subseries 1.5, Financial Papers, 1990-2005

Subseries 1.6, Press, 1973-2005, undated

Subseries 1.7, Music; 1989-1995, undated

Series 2, Personal Papers, 1978-2005, undated

Subseries 2.1, Correspondence, 1978-2005, undated

Subseries 2.2, Miscellaneous, undated

Series 3, Photographs, 1977-2004, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Claude "Fiddler" Williams, 1908-2004, was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, the son of a blacksmith. His musical gifts developed at a very early age, and he quickly became adept at the guitar, banjo, mandolin and cello, learning mostly by ear, without formal training. After hearing the jazz violinist Joe Venuti, the violin became his instrument of choice, and it remained so for the rest of his life. He migrated to Kansas City in 1927 and toured with several territory bands. Additionally Williams toured with the Twelve Clouds of Joy and the Cole Brothers, and in 1936, joined Count Basie's band as the first guitarist. After he was fired from Count Basie's band because John Hammond thought Williams's guitar solos were taking too much attention away from Basie, he went back to the violin (or "fiddle" as he preferred to call it) and focused exclusively on it for the rest of his life. Later he started his own band and toured with several jazz groups working for a short time with the Works Progress Administration (WPA). His band appeared at the Monterey Jazz Festival, the Nice Jazz Festival, and the Smithsonian Institution's Festival of American Folk Life. Williams received numerous honors and awards, including induction into the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame, a proclamation from the city of Kansas City, and a 1998 National Heritage Fellowship which included a $10,000 award. President Bill Clinton invited him to perform at one of the parties celebrating his first inauguration. Williams continued to tour and perform until well into his nineties. He also gave instruction at Mark O'Connor's annual fiddle camp to young violinists. Mr. Williams died in April 2004.
Separated Materials:
Artifacts donated to the Museum's Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) include a suit and violin. See accession numbers: 2005.3105 and 2007.3020.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Claude Williams's widow, Blanche Y. Fouse-Williams, in 2005.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.

Physical Access: Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves. Researchers must use reference copies of audio-visual materials. When no reference copy exists, the Archives Center staff will produce reference copies on an "as needed" basis, as resources allow.

Technical Access: Do not use original materials when available on reference audio tapes.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Music -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Jazz -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Jazz musicians -- United States  Search this
Violinists  Search this
Musicians -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Letters (correspondence) -- 20th century.
Photographs -- 2000-2010
Programs
Posters -- 1950-2000
Scrapbooks
Financial records
Awards
Business records -- 20th century
Audiotapes
Articles
Photographs -- 20th century
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Citation:
Claude Williams Papers, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0909
See more items in:
Claude Williams Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82736f8a2-824b-43e6-96c8-6449a163c087
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0909
Online Media:

Groucho Marx Collection

Artist:
Benton, Thomas Hart, 1889-1975  Search this
Collector:
Marx, Groucho (Julius Henry), 1890-1977 (comedian)  Search this
Names:
Four Nightingales  Search this
Marx Brothers  Search this
Paramount Pictures  Search this
RKO Pictures (studio)  Search this
Three Nightingales  Search this
United Artists  Search this
Warner Brothers  Search this
Marx, Chico  Search this
Marx, Harpo, 1888-1964  Search this
Palmer, Minnie  Search this
Extent:
12 Cubic feet (39 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Personal papers
Photographs
Motion pictures (visual works)
Photographic prints
Scrapbooks
Sheet music
Correspondence
Place:
Hollywood (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Date:
1911-1978, undated
Summary:
Papers, films, and collected materials of 20th century comedian Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx.
Scope and Contents:
Series 1: Correspondence, 1932-1977 is arranged alphabetically by correspondent. In 1965, Marx gave the Library of Congress a portion of his correspondence with well-known personages. The majority of the correspondence in this collection dates from the post World War II era (Marx's early correspondence is located at the Library of Congress.) This series includes correspondence from well-known persons, fans, admirers and friends. There is an extensive amount of correspondence with the screenwriter Nunnally Johnson. The series includes letters concerning public relations, Walt Disney caricatures of the Marx Brothers, The Grouchophile permission letters, unidentified correspondence and one letter from Chico Marx to Gummo Marx.

Series 2: Publications, Manuscripts and Print Articles by Marx, 1930-1958, undated is arranged chronologically with circa and undated material placed before the book manuscripts. This series contains written material by Groucho Marx excepting scripts and sketches. The series includes articles written by Marx for national magazines, various speeches and manuscripts for three of Marx's books.

Series 3: Scripts and Sketches, 1939-1959, undated, is arranged alphabetically with television scripts and sketches placed before full-length movie and theatre scripts. This series contains television, motion picture and theatre scripts and sketches, monologues, and related written material pertaining to works starring or featuring Marx. It also contains scripts for the one theatrical play written by Marx, A Time for Elizabeth.

Series 4: Scrapbooks, 1923-1978 is arranged chronologically and contains sixteen scrapbooks spanning Marx's career from his first Broadway success, I'll Say She Is to the year after his death. Of particular interest are the early scrapbooks for the Marx Brothers career, a scrapbook spanning the years 1934-1958 complied by Marx himself for his daughter Melinda, a photographic scrapbook compiled by the staff of Life magazine documenting a 1963 magazine layout of Marx and his then wife Eden Hartford Marx. There is also a scrapbook devoted to Chico Marx's brief career as a bandleader in the mid-late 1940s.

Series 5: Music,circa 1930-1975, undated is arranged alphabetically and includes original music manuscripts written by Marx and songs for Marx's shows and motion pictures and unidentified manuscripts perhaps written by Marx, his friends, his daughter Melinda or her music teacher. It also includes commercially produced sheet music purchased by Marx, copies of songs featured in Marx's motion pictures, music from "Minnie's Boys the theatrical production based on the Marx Brothers and their mother, an autographed copy of "Stay Down Here Where You Belong" by Irving Berlin, songs written by Marx published commercially, and Marx's copy of a collection of songs by Gilbert and Sullivan.

Series 6: Publicity, ca. 1911-1977 contains theatre programs, motion picture reviews, newspaper clippings both foreign and domestic, record album covers, a book cover and one poster of the Marx Brothers. There are items related specifically to Chico Marx. This series is arranged chronologically.

Series 7: Artwork and Photographs, 1911-1976, undatedis arranged according to subject matter and includes artwork, features cartoons and caricatures of the Marx Brothers by various artists including the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer art department and Hirschfield, sketches of the Marx Brothers by Sheila Smith, Peggy Jacobs, Bridget Crowe and Mark E. Williams (all probably fans of the Marx Brothers), various candid photographs, publicity photographs and studio portraits of Marx, his brothers, his immediate family, correspondence and related images and photographic negatives and transparencies.

Series 8: Personal and Family Documents, 1925-1975, undated contains documents relating to Marx's personal life and his brothers Chico Marx, Harpo Marx, and his daughter Melinda. Of particular interest is Marx's copy of the transcript of his divorce deposition from Eden Hartford Marx, two proclamations from the City of Los Angeles and a portfolio cover made for him by his daughter Melinda. This series is arranged chronologically.

Series 9: Audiovisual, 1929-1970 includes home movies of Groucho, brothers Harpo and Chico, and Groucho's wife and children as well as film and kinescope copies of television programs featureing Groucho as the star or guest.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into 9 series.

Series 1: Correspondence,1932-1977

Series 2: Publications, Manuscripts, and Print Articles by Groucho Marx, 1930-1958, undated

Series 3: Scripts and Sketches, 1939-1959, undated

Series 4: Scrapbooks, 1923-1978

Series 5: Music, circa 1930-1975, undated

Subseries 5.1: Original Music Manuscrpts

Subseries 5.2: Commercially Produced Sheet Music and Collections

Series 6: Publicity, circa 1911-1977

Series 7: Artwork and Photographs, 1911-1976, undated

Subseries 7.1: Artwork

Subseries 7.2: Photographs

Subseries 7.3: Photographic Negatives and Transparencies

Series 8: Personal and Family Documents, 1925-1978, undated

Series 9: Audiovisual

Subseries 9.1: Moving Images

Subseries 9.2: Sound Recordings
Biographical / Historical:
One of 20th century America's most enduring comics and cultural icons was Groucho Marx. Julius Henry Marx, better known as Groucho, was born in New York City on October 2, 1890. He was the third of five sons born to Minna and Samuel Marx. Minna's brother, Al Shean, was a part of the well-known vaudeville team, Gallagher and Shean.

The Marx family consisted of five boys: Leonard (Chico), Arthur (Harpo), Julius (Groucho), Milton (Gummo) and Herbert (Zeppo). The family lived in the Yorkville section of New York City. Groucho had a high soprano singing voice and his first job was singing in the choir of an Episcopal church. He joined Gus Hall and his vaudeville troupe when he was eleven. Groucho attended P.S. 86 but never went beyond the 7th grade. Minna organized the Three Nightingales with Groucho, Gummo and a girl singer. The girl was eventually replaced by a boy tenor and Harpo joined the troupe. The name of the group was changed to The Four Nightingales. Minnie acted as the group's manager. The group became known as the Marx Brothers with everyone except Gummo taking part in the act. The family moved to Chicago ca. 1904 where their grandfather lived.

The brothers toured the South and Midwest performing a vaudeville skit called, "Fun in Hiskule". It is noted that the comedy act began in Nacogdoches, Texas. The Marx Brothers first big success came in 1919 with their vaudeville act entitled "Home Again". In 1920, they were booked into the Palace Theatre in New York City and played there for thirteen months. They were later banished from the circuit due to a contract violation - they had accepted employment without Albee's permission. Groucho married Ruth Johnson on February 4th, 1920 and divorced her in July 1942. They had one daughter, Miriam and one son, Arthur born in 1921.

In 1923, they toured with the show, "I'll Say She Is", a collection of vaudeville routines that Groucho had written in collaboration. The show ran on Broadway for thirty-eight weeks. On December 8, 1925, the brothers (using their nicknames professionally for the first time) opened on Broadway in "The Cocoanuts". The play was written expressly for them by George S. Kaufman and Morris Ryskind with music by Irving Berlin. The brothers made a silent film circa 1924 called "Humor Risk" but it was never released. "Animal Crackers" opened on October 23, 1928. It was in this show that Groucho created one of his most famous characters, Captain Spaulding, the African explorer. Groucho was by this time paired with Margaret Dumont, stooge and foil, whom Groucho claimed never, really understood the Marx Brothers comedy.

On the strength of their success in "The Cocoanuts", they were signed to a film contract. In 1929, they made the film version of "The Cocoanuts" while performing "Animal Crackers" on the stage. Their mother, Minna Marx died the same year. The following year they starred in the film version of "Animal Crackers". Both films were made in New York City. In 1931, Groucho moved to Hollywood where The Marx Brothers made thirteen films. The brothers signed with Paramount Pictures and made "Monkey Business" (1931), "Horsefeathers" (1932) and "Duck Soup" (1933) while at the studio. In 1933, Zeppo left the troupe and Samuel Marx died.

In February 1934, Groucho and Chico teamed up in a radio program called, "Flywheel, Shyster and Flywheel", about characters who were comic lawyers. In March 1934, they replaced Ethel Waters on a weekly radio series sponsored by the American Oil Company. In 1935, the brothers starred in "A Night at the Opera" for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, a film produced by Irving Thalberg and a sequel, "A Day at the Races" (1937). In addition to working for MGM, the brothers starred in "Room Service" (1938) for the RKO studio.

The brothers discontinued the act in September 1941 but reunited for the film "A Night in Casablanca" (1946) and "Love Happy" (1949). Groucho found work as a solo artist making films for RKO, Warner Brothers and Paramount. In March 1943, the Pabst Blue Ribbon Brewery sponsored a half-hour variety show on CBS starring Groucho. Groucho married his second wife, Catherine "Kay" Gorcey in July 1945, they had one daughter Melinda. They divorced in 1951. Groucho continued to guest on many radio shows and continued to be at his peak when ad-libbing. John Guedel created "You Bet Your Life" for Groucho in October 1947. The show aired over the ABC radio network. It moved to CBS and in 1950 it was purchased by NBC and ran on television until 1961. The show ran for a total of four years on radio and eleven years on television. Groucho won radio's Peabody Award as best comedian on radio in 1948; an Emmy award in 1951; and the Motion Picture Daily Annual TV poll from 1951-1954.

Groucho was also musical. He played the guitar, but never as part of his shows. He was also an author and a playwright. He wrote the stage play, "A Time for Elizabeth", in 1948 with Norman Krasna. The play ran for eight days on Broadway but had longer runs in summer stock. In July 1954, Groucho married his third and final wife Eden Hartford. They divorced in December of 1969. In 1967, Simon and Schuster published excerpts from letters Groucho had donated to the Library of Congress in 1965. The book was entitled The Groucho Letters. Groucho authored other books, Groucho and Me (1959) his autobiography, The Secret Word is Groucho (1976) with Hector Arce and The Grouchophile (1976).

Groucho retired in 1961 but in 1972 with the help Erin Fleming, his companion and manager since 1969, he toured in a solo act. The show entitled, "An Evening with Groucho" played Carnegie Hall in New York City in May 1972. Groucho was made a Commander of the French Order of Arts and Letters at the Cannes Film Festival in 1972. In 1974, Groucho received an honorary Academy Award (Oscar) for the contribution of the Marx Brothers to the art of film. Marx died on August 19th, 1977.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Julius H. (Groucho) Marx, through the Estate of Groucho Marx, August 5, 1987.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the films are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Reference copies of audiovisual materials must be used. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Comedians -- 1920-1970  Search this
Entertainment  Search this
Radio comedies  Search this
Comedy  Search this
Theater  Search this
Radio programs  Search this
Vaudeville  Search this
Television programs  Search this
Genre/Form:
Personal papers
Photographs -- 20th century
Motion pictures (visual works)
Photographic prints
Scrapbooks
Sheet music
Correspondence -- 1930-1950
Citation:
Groucho Marx Collection, 1911-1978, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0269
See more items in:
Groucho Marx Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep845dd2cd0-46ee-4664-8bb1-93308c140f43
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0269
Online Media:

Leonard Gaskin Papers

Creator:
Gaskin, Mary  Search this
Gaskin, Leonard, 1920-  Search this
Extent:
30 Cubic feet (129 boxes, 4 map folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Posters
Articles
Sound recordings
Scrapbooks
Date:
1895-2006
Scope and Contents:
Papers documenting the life and career of bass player Leonard Gaskin, as well as documenting the numerous other musicians he was associated with in his long career. Gaskin's career encompasses a wide range of musical genres, including gospel, rock, folk, and Caribbean music. The papers include photographs, newspaper clippings, diaries, music manuscripts, scrapbooks, publicity materials, recordings, posters, fliers and handbills.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into nine series.

Series 1: Personal Papers, 1937-2006, undated

Series 2: Diaries and Planners, 1947-2004

Series 3: Business Records, 1939-2000, undated

Series 4: Photographic Materials, 1956-2003, undated

Series 5: Scrapbooks, 1923-2003, undated

Series 6: Music Manuscripts, Published Sheet Music, and Song Folios, 1895-1992, undated

Series 7: Performance and Publicity Materials, 1920-2002

Series 8: Organizations and Associations, 1956-2001, undated

Series 9: Publications, 1956-1999
Related Materials:
Materials at the Smithsonian Institution

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Duke Ellington Collection, 1903-1989, undated

Dizzy Gillespie Collection, 1940-2006

Leslie Schinella Collection of Gene Krupa Materials, 1945-1970

Floyd Levine Jazz Reference Collection, 1880-2010, undated

John and Devra Levy Papers, 1916-2010, undated

Program in African American Culture, 1850-2003, undated

Tito Puente Papers, 1962-2001, undated

Duncan P. Scheidt Photograph Collection, 1900-2012, undated

W. Royal Stokes Collection of Photoprints and Interviews, 1970-2003

Bobby Tucker Papers, 1923-2008
Provenance:
Collection donated by Leonard and Mary Gaskin, through Poppy Gaskin.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Access and use of audiovisual materials available in the Archives Center reading room or by requesting copies of audiovisual materials at RightsReproductions@si.edu.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Music -- 20th century  Search this
Jazz  Search this
Jazz musicians  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 20th century
Posters -- 20th century
Articles
Sound recordings
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Citation:
Leonard and Mary Gaskin Papers, 1923-2006, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0900
See more items in:
Leonard Gaskin Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep86aea0738-436c-4909-927a-c896f73c2bff
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0900
Online Media:

Willie Smith Collection

Composer:
Smith, Willie, 1910-1967 (musician)  Search this
Names:
Harry James Orchestra  Search this
Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra  Search this
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
James, Harry, 1916-  Search this
Lunceford, Jimmie  Search this
Extent:
0.25 Cubic feet (2 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sheet music
Programs
Photographs
Correspondence
Date:
1945-1987
Summary:
Collection documents Willie Smith's career as a musician and arranger between 1945 and 1958.
Scope and Contents:
The Willia Smith Collection consits of correspondence, event programs, a periodical entitled Musikkunde in beispielen, thirty-siz black and white photograph, and nine music arrangements documenting Smith's career as a musician and arranger between 1945 and 1958.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into three series.

Series 1: Music Manuscripts, 1945-1947

Series 2: Photographs, 1938-1958

Series 3: Ephemera, 1945-1987
Biographical / Historical:
Willie Smith, aleading alto saxophonist and arranger of the swing period, was born in Charkeston, South Carolina on November 25, 1910 and died in Los Angeles on March 7, 1967. He attended Nashville Tennessee's Fisk University during the 1920s and played with the Jimmy Lunceford Orchestra between 1929 and 1942. After a brief period performing with Charlie Spivak's band between 1942 and 1943, Smith began his tenure with the Harry James Orchestra in 1944. Hew remained with the Harry James Orchestra until 1964 with brief interruptions between 1951 and 1953 performing with the Duke Ellington Orchestra, Jazz at the Philharmonic, and leading several of his own small ensembles in Los Angeles. In addition to Smith's reputation as a section leader and soloist, he is best known for his arrangmenets of Sophisticated Lady and Rose Rooom for the Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Fischella Smith, August 14, 1990.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Music -- 20th century  Search this
Jazz musicians -- United States  Search this
Jazz  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sheet music -- Manuscripts -- 20th century
Programs -- 1940-1990
Photographs -- 20th century
Correspondence -- 1940-2000
Citation:
Willie Smith Collection, 1945-1987, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0382
See more items in:
Willie Smith Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8a894e9c9-2624-4696-a48b-26cafe9da0c0
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0382

Mack Gordon Papers

Composer:
Myrow, Josef  Search this
Revel, Harry -- 20th century  Search this
Warren, Harry, 1893-1981 -- 20th century  Search this
Creator:
Gordon, Mack, 1904-1959  Search this
Actor:
Berle, Milton  Search this
Dailey, Dan  Search this
Dunne, Irene -- 20th century  Search this
Faye, Alice -- 20th century  Search this
Gable, Clark, 1901-1960 -- 20th century  Search this
Henie, Sonja, 1912-1969 -- 20th century  Search this
Lombard, Carole -- 20th century  Search this
O'Hara, Maureen, 1920- -- 20th century  Search this
Oakie, Jack, 1903-1978 -- 20th century  Search this
Payne, John -- 20th century  Search this
Power, Tyrone, 1914-1958 -- 20th century  Search this
Taylor, Robert -- 20th century  Search this
Singer:
Cantor, Eddie, 1892-1964  Search this
Crosby, Bing, 1904-1977  Search this
Fisher, Eddie -- 20th century  Search this
Jolson, Al, d. 1950 -- 20th century  Search this
Langford, Frances -- 20th century  Search this
Merman, Ethel -- 20th century  Search this
Dancer:
Castle, Nick -- 20th century  Search this
Producer:
Grainger, Edmund -- 20th century  Search this
Director:
Taurog, Norman -- 20th century  Search this
Extent:
1 Motion picture film
3 Cubic feet (9 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Motion picture films
Motion pictures (visual works)
Motion picture stills
Passports
Contracts
Correspondence
Clippings
Business records
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Photograph albums
Songs
Writings
Scripts (documents)
Sheet music
Date:
1926-1977, undated
Summary:
Mack Gordon (1904-1959) was a prolific and successful songwriter, lyricist, and composer. He composed songs for stage and screen. He and Harry Warren won the Academy Award for Best Song in 1943.
Scope and Contents:
The papers document the life and career of songwriter Mack Gordon. They include business records, both personal and business correspondence, contracts, royalty statements, commercially published sheet music, a script for the motion picture Three Little Girls in Blue, photograph albums, a scrapbook of clippings, original music manuscripts, notes and writings that may have served as mnemonic devices for song ideas, an excerpt from the Paramount short film, The Collegians, funeral materials, name change documents, and a passport. The production and creative files give insight into Gordon's creative process, and ideas for lyrics, song titles, and word play are found throughout these files.

The collection is organized in seven series.

Series 1: Production and Creative Files, 1931-1950, undated. This series contains files relating to motion picture and theatrical productions, both produced and unproduced. This series also contains unidentified lyric notes, instrumental sketches, and themes.

Series 2: Business Records, 1931-1975, undated. This series contains business records, royalty contracts, telegrams, correspondence and other business records pertaining to Gordon and his work for theatrical and motion picture companies.

Series 3: Original Music Manuscripts, 1940-1952, undated. This series contains original music manuscripts written by Gordon.

Series 4: Commercial Sheet Music, 1928-1959, undated. This series contains commercially published sheet music. The sheet music was bound by Gordon into volumes he titled, Majors & Minors, there is also a folder of unbound sheet music.

Series 5: Personal and Family, 1935-1977, undated. This series contains personal documents such as passports, life insurance documents, name change documents, the auction catalogue from the sale of furnishings at Gordon's Pacific Palisades home. This series also contains personal correspondence from singer Sandra Werner to Gordon.

Series 6: Photographs, 1933-1956, undated

Series 7: Audio-Visual, 1926
Arrangement:
The collection is organized in seven series.

Series 1: Production and Creative Files, 1931-1950, undated

Series 2: Business Records, 1931-1975, undated

Series 3: Original Music Manuscripts, 1940-1952, undated

Series 4: Commercial Sheet Music, 1928-1959, undated

Series 5: Personal and Family, 1935-1977, undated

Series 6: Photographs, 1933-1956, undated

Series 7: Audio-Visual, 1926
Biographical / Historical:
Mack Gordon was a prolific and successful songwriter, lyricist, and composer who composed songs for stage and screen. Born Morris Gitler (he legally changed his name to Mack Gordon in later life) in Poland on June 21, 1904, his family immigrated to the United States in 1908 and settled in New York. His early career was as a performer in vaudeville and minstrel shows, but by the early 1930s he had formed a songwriting partnership with pianist Harry Revel. Gordon wrote for the Broadway stage and eventually made his way to Hollywood where he worked at a number of different motion picture studios.

In addition to Revel, Gordon worked with such well-known composers as Harry Warren, with whom he won his only Academy Award for Best Song for "You'll Never Know" from Hello Frisco Hello, and Josef Myrow, to name just three. Some of his more famous songs are "Chattanooga Choo Choo," "At Last," and "Did You Ever See a Dream Walking?". He was nominated for the Academy Award nine times and became a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He died on February 28, 1959 in New York City (some biographies have his date of death as March 1), and is entombed at the Corridor of Immortality at the Home of Peace Memorial Park, Los Angeles, California.
Provenance:
Collection donated to the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution by Jack Gordon, son of Mack Gordon, in 2015.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Occupation:
Motion picture actors and actresses  Search this
Composers  Search this
Topic:
Motion pictures -- 1930-1940  Search this
Motion pictures, American  Search this
Motion pictures and music -- 1930-1970  Search this
Theater  Search this
Musicals  Search this
Music -- 20th century  Search this
Motion pictures  Search this
Musical theater  Search this
Music -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Motion pictures (visual works) -- 1930-1950
Motion picture stills
Passports
Contracts -- 20th century
Correspondence -- 20th century
Clippings -- 20th century
Business records -- 20th century
Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin -- 20th century
Scrapbooks -- 1930-1940
Photograph albums -- 20th century
Songs
Writings
Scripts (documents)
Sheet music -- 20th century
Citation:
Mack Gordon Papers, 1926-1977, undated, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1363
See more items in:
Mack Gordon Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8bd1c6908-3edc-4ab4-8ec6-757e2eb3ffe5
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1363
Online Media:

Clotilde Arias Papers

Topic:
Star-spangled banner (Song)
Donor:
Arias, Roger  Search this
Creator:
United States. Dept. of State  Search this
Arias, Clotilde, 1901-1959  Search this
Thompson, J. Walter (advertising agency).  Search this
Extent:
3 Cubic feet (8 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Immigration records
Music
Contracts
Correspondence
Compact discs
Scrapbooks
Sheet music
Parts (musical)
Songbooks
Photographs
Commercial art
Date:
1919-1957
2009
Summary:
This collection documents the life and career of Peruvian musician, composer, and translator Clotilde Arias. Her work includes a Department of State-commissioned translation of "The Star-Spangled Banner" titled "El Pendón Estrellado", advertising jingles, original compositions, and translations of music originally written in English. She also was heavily involved in numerous Pan-American organizations including La Unión de Mujeres Americanas/United American Women.This collection contains correspondence, music manuscripts, photographs,newspaper clippings and printed materials, and four compact discs.
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the life and career of Clotilde Arias, who was chosen by the U.S. State Department to write a Spanish translation to "The Star Spangled Banner," during the years of the Good Neighbor Policy. In addition to materials related to her translation of the National Anthem, entitled "El Pendón Estrellado," the collection includes music manuscripts, lyrics, composition notebooks, parts for instruments, and correspondence with the State Department. This collection also contains papers related to Arias's work in advertising, her work as a translator, and her own business records. Personal papers include correspondence, immigration and naturalization documents, printed material, and photographs as well as items from a scrapbook. Also included are compact discs containing images from items in the collection.
Arrangement:
This collection is composed of six series.

Series 1: Personal Papers, 1923-1956

Series 2. Music Materials, 1921-1953

Series 3. "El Pendón Estrellado"/"The Star Spangled Banner," 1919-1954, 2009

Series 4. "Himno de las Américas"/"Hymn of the Americas," 1939-1945

Series 5. Miscellaneous Printed Materials, 1942-1956

Series 6. Photographs and Scrapbook, 1939-1957
Biographical / Historical:
Clotilde Arias was a Peruvian-born musician, composer, and translator who lived in New York City following her migration from Iquitos, Peru, to the United States in the 1920s. Her full name was Maria Clotilde Arias and she briefly took her husband Jose Anduaga's last name during their marriage from 1929 to 1942 but was known most often as Clotilde Arias. With Jose Anduaga, Arias had one son, Roger Arias. While she is known for her Department of State-commissioned translation of "The Star-Spangled Banner" titled "El Pendón Estrellado," Arias worked diligently as a translator and musician in a variety of contexts as well as working with a variety of organizations that promoted Pan-Americanism. Prior to her life in the United States, Arias worked for the Iquitos newspaper El Oriente writing satirical pieces related to local issues. Arias died in 1959 in New York City.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, by Clotilde Arias's son, Roger Arias in 2010.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Occupation:
Composers  Search this
Topic:
Translations  Search this
Translators  Search this
Good neighbor policy  Search this
National songs  Search this
advertising  Search this
Women musicians -- 1930-1950  Search this
Women musicians  Search this
Advertising agencies  Search this
Women in the advertising industry  Search this
Women -- Peru  Search this
Women composers  Search this
Music by women composers  Search this
Women composers -- United States  Search this
Pan-Americanism  Search this
Commercial art  Search this
Jingles (Advertising songs)  Search this
Jingles (Advertising songs) -- Writing and publishing  Search this
Minorities in advertising  Search this
Music in advertising  Search this
Women translators  Search this
Naturalization records  Search this
Genre/Form:
Immigration records
Music -- Manuscripts
Contracts
Correspondence -- 20th century
Compact discs
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Sheet music -- 1920-1960
Parts (musical)
Songbooks
Photographs -- 20th century
Commercial art
Citation:
Clotilde Arias Papers, 1919-1957, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1164
See more items in:
Clotilde Arias Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8ac4199a3-dcfe-4246-bf83-82fa845a0eca
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1164
Online Media:

Bobby Tucker Papers

Author:
Tucker, Bobby, 1923-2008  Search this
Creator:
Eckstine, Billy  Search this
Jones, Quincy, 1933-  Search this
Donor:
Tucker, Irma  Search this
Extent:
36 Cubic feet (88 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Orchestrations
Programs
Sheet music
Clippings
Photographs
Date:
1883-2007, undated
Summary:
The collection documents the life and musical career of Robert "Bobby" Tucker. The collection particularly emphasizes Tucker's close collaboration with Billy Eckstine over a forty-year period from approximately 1949-1990, and includes original orchestrations of arrangements by Tucker and other arrangers, a complete set of commercial recordings by Eckstine for which Tucker served as arranger, and ephemeral material including photographs, concert programs and news clippings.
Scope and Contents:
The collection primarily documents the close collaboration between Tucker and Billy Eckstine over a forty-year period, circa 1949-1990. It articulates the growth and development of a working jazz master—Eckstine—and the diversity of the musical repertoire he performed as he cultivated new audiences throughout his career. The collection includes original orchestrations of arrangements by Tucker and other well regarded arrangers such as Billy Beyers, Quincy Jones, Bob Enevoldsen, Marty Paich, Sammy Nestico, and Artie Butler. All of these materials found their way into Eckstine's recording and concert repertoire, which is evidenced by the approximately twenty cubic feet of sheet music arrangements that form the bulk of the collection. They illustrate the pivotal role Tucker played as the arranger, who interpreted and adapted original compositions to suit Eckstine's vocal style and capabilities, resulting in one of the longest-running successful collaborations in modern American musical history.

In addition, the sheet music contains Tucker's arrangements for Quincy Jones's music score for the 1978 film The Wiz.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into three series.

Series 1: Professional Materials, 1883-1992, undated

Subseries 1.1: Music Scores, undated

Subseries 1.2: Published Sheet Music, 1883-1992

Series 2: Other Materials, 1940-2007, undated

Series 3: Audiovisual Materials, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Nathaniel "Bobby" Tucker Jr. was born in Morristown, New Jersey, January 8, 1923 and died there on April 12, 2007. He was an accomplished pianist, arranger, and accompanist. He began performing at the age of fourteen and later studied in New York at the Institute of Musical Art. In 1946, he became accompanist to jazz vocalist Mildred Bailey and later that year, to renowned jazz vocalist Billie Holiday, with whom he remained until 1949 and with whom he had a strong and enduring, platonic friendship. Tucker continued to make recordings with Holiday into the 1950s.

Beginning in 1949, Tucker embarked on a lifetime collaboration as accompanist and musical director for the great African American balladeer and recording artist Billy "Mr. B" Eckstine. After leading a highly-acclaimed band from 1944-1947, Eckstine returned to a career as a solo singer, becoming the country's most popular vocalist in 1949-1950 and signing a lucrative five-year contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Incorporated (MGM). Although his popularity waned after 1951, he continued to play in major nightclubs in the United States and abroad for the next several decades and to release several popular albums. As his piano accompanist for over forty years, Tucker helped build and sustain the singer's career, reinventing Eckstine as the nation's musical tastes changed, and the music industry evolved. During his stint with Eckstine, Tucker worked on concerts—planning, arranging music, transcribing, and transposing works for performances; on recordings—preparing written arrangements, working integrally with recording companies. Engagements included recordings and performances with the Count Basie Orchestra; recordings under the direction of Quincy Jones; performances in Las Vegas; and band tours of Europe, Australia, and Japan.

Tucker was a renowned piano accompanist, and while working for Eckstine he was eagerly sought out by other singers, including Johnny Hartman, Lena Horne, Tony Bennett, and Sarah Vaughan. He also collaborated with other jazz accompanists such as Jimmy Jones, Jimmy Rowles, and John Malachi. In his autobiography, Quincy Jones says that Tucker inspired him to begin studying music after they met in Seattle, while Jones was touring with Billie Holiday. Jones attributed all of the success he garnered in his career to the core skills he developed as a result of Tucker's inspiration. Tucker worked with Jones to arrange and conduct the music for the 1978 film The Wiz, which received an Academy Award nomination for best original music score.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center

Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program Collection (AC0808)

Contains an oral history interview with Bobby Tucker, February 27-28, 2004
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center in 2008 by Tucker's widow, Irma J. Tucker.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Musical arrangers  Search this
Music -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Pianists  Search this
Musicians -- 20th century  Search this
Genre/Form:
Orchestrations
Programs -- Concerts
Sheet music
Clippings
Photographs -- 20th century
Citation:
Bobby Tucker Papers, 1883-1990, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1141
See more items in:
Bobby Tucker Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8ed6e09ea-4ba0-4ab2-9f05-94973e18ae43
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1141
Online Media:

Charlotte Cramer Sachs Papers

Creator:
Sachs, Charlotte Cramer, 1907-2004  Search this
Names:
Cramanna  Search this
Cramarc  Search this
Crambruck Press  Search this
Cramer Products Company  Search this
Joy Originals  Search this
Joy Products  Search this
Sachs, Alexander  Search this
Samuels, Donald  Search this
Extent:
4 Cubic feet (13 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Awards
Business records
Clippings
Correspondence
Notes
Patents
Patent applications
Photographs
Sheet music
Date:
1905-2002
bulk 1940-2002
Summary:
Papers relating to Charlotte Cramer Sachs's life and career as an inventor mainly of food and household-related products: correspondence, photographs, business papers, awards, patents, printed materials, notes, and miscellany. The collection primarily consists of invention-related marketing materials including invention samples and prototypes, notes, clippings, business correspondence, and customer account records.
Scope and Contents:
The records are divided into two series. Series 2 is further divided into eight subseries.

Series 1 documents the inventor's creativity through her artistic, literary, and musical records. Also included are awards and certificates received and materials related to her childhood home. This series contains few photos of Cramer Sachs herself, although a print of one of her paintings, "Portrait of a Lady," circa 1953, seems to be a self-portrait. There are no photos of her husband or daughter in the collection. Also missing is any information related to the inventor's formal education, childhood, the circumstances of her departure from Berlin, marriage, and family life.

Materials in Series 2 constitute the bulk of the collection and are primarily comprised of marketing ephemera, with very few financial and production records. This series gives a broad outline of Cramer Sachs's many inventions documenting Joy Products and wine-related inventions in the most depth.

Series 1: Creative and Artistic Papers, 1933-2002

These records include sheet music, songbooks, stories, and poetry of the inventor's own creation; photographic prints of her artwork; art exhibition materials; publishing company (Crambruck Press) records and published materials; childhood residence ("Haus Cramer") materials, and awards and certificates unrelated to inventions. Artwork and songs make up the bulk of the materials, and are arranged alphabetically by subject. Records in this series provide a context for Cramer Sachs's career as an inventor, although they do not reveal extensive information regarding her personal life or history.

Records relating to artwork include press releases, exhibition photographic prints and negatives, promotional materials, newspaper clippings, notebooks compiled by Cramer Sachs, as well as donation records of artworks given by the inventor to The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine.

Crambruck Press publishing company is a combined name which incorporates the inventor's surname, Cramer and mother's maiden name, Bruck. These records include a pre-publication notice and order form for a Crambruck Press publication, correspondence from a donor, as well as three Crambruck Press publications: From Boring Dinosaur to Passionate Computer by Livingston Welch, 1968; Poems by Helen H. Shotwell, 1970; and In Search of Harmony by Charlo, 1964.

Haus Cramer materials include photographs, newspaper clippings (many of them in German), correspondence between Cramer Sachs and Stanford University, and floor plans of the house designed in 1912 by German architect Hermann Muthesius. A framed black-and-white photographic print of Haus Cramer is fragile and is housed in a sink matte, box 9.

Poetry materials, songs, and stories are contained in bound books, published songbooks, original sheet music, and copyright records for song words, manuscripts written by Cramer Sachs, as well as correspondence records related to her writings. The song "With Love From New York" was used in the marketing of "Joy New Yorkshire Pudding Mix," and the records contain a vinyl recording which doubles as a marketing piece. Allusions to her husband, Alexander Sachs, and daughter, Eleanor, are found in some of her songs and stories.

Translation materials are comprised of correspondence (mostly in German), as well as Cramer Sachs's complete English translation of the "Stoffel Flies Across the Ocean" story, originally written in German by Erika Mann, circa 1932.

Series 2: Invention Records, 1905-2002

Invention Records contain information related to Cramer Sachs as an inventor and are divided into eight subseries. Materials include: patent related records; samples and prototypes; marketing and advertising materials; newspaper and magazine clippings; business correspondence records; customer account records; Wine Museum materials; and patent searches. These present a broad overview of Cramer Sachs's many inventions, although the majority of information is concentrated in the Household/Office, Food Products, and Wine-related series. Records are arranged chronologically by invention. The final subseries contain patent searches requested by the inventor.

Subseries 2.1: Cramer Products Company and Affiliate Company Records, 1942-2002

Materials include financial records, business correspondence, company awards and certificates, real estate materials, license agreements with outside inventors, a promotion prospectus for the company, and three company stamps (three dimensional). Also included are records of an invention for which Cramer Sachs sought copyright, "Orthodontic Device," 1954, and those having to do with products distributed—not invented—by Cramer Products Company, "Forster Longfresh," 1985. In addition, there are black-and-white photographic prints of an office opening which include images of Cramer Sachs in 1967. These records are arranged chronologically.

Subseries 2.2: Household/Office Records, 1913-1972

These records relate to seven different inventions, each with varying degrees of information. "Combination Key and Flashlight," 1940 was an improvement on previous patents and therefore consists of the earlier patent materials (1913 and 1938), Cramer Sachs's patent application materials, an official, sealed patent application (1940), prototype drawings, correspondence records related to manufacturing and distribution, photographic prints, and a newspaper article. "Cozi-Crib," 1958 and 1968, and "Joy Originals Log Cabin Furniture Set," 1957, records include marketing materials whereas "Holdit," 1972, and "Party Platter," 1962, are minimally represented by one or two photographic prints. "Gaitray" materials consist of four product samples. Materials for "Miracle Knee Tray," circa 1953 include marketing ephemera, a photograph, and two product samples. A prototype for the "Traypron," 1954, is also included. These records are arranged alphabetically by invention name.

Subseries 2.3: Food Products, 1940-1969

Records in this subseries are mostly comprised of Joy Products prepared mix materials. Two exceptions are the small, fragile recipe book, 1940, and the "Caviodka," 1962, records. Business correspondence materials contain those from a food and equipment consultant, the Colgate-Palmolive Company, and Arthur Colton Company, in addition to those relating to the incorporation of Cramer Sachs's "baking mix manufacturing plant" (1945). There are numerous packaging samples of various Joy Products, along with handwritten recipes and notes. An example of early packaging for Joy Products "Early American Muffin Mix" is in flat box 10. This subseries also includes customer surveys and comments, marketing plans and proposals, advertisements, and a marketing portfolio compiled by the inventor. A scrapbook contains Joy Products newspaper clippings, advertisements, marketing ephemera, and photographs of store displays. The scrapbook pages are extremely brittle and are housed in sleeves. Preservation copies are available for research use. These records are arranged chronologically.

Subseries 2.4: Pet Accessories, 1953-1954

This subseries consists of materials relating to three inventions: "Bonnie Stand," circa 1953-1954; "Guidog," 1953; and "Watch-Dog," 1953. Records include photographic prints, marketing materials, printing blocks (for "Bonnie Stand"), as well as a declaration of invention for, and a product sample of, "Watch-Dog." These records are arranged alphabetically by invention name.

Subseries 2.5: Games, 1961-1969

The inventor created two games: "Domi-Notes," circa 1961 and "Musicards," circa 1969. "Domi-Notes" materials include an order form citing the distributor as G. Schirmer, Inc. and the addressee as Walter Kane and Son, Inc., and three games two in cardboard boxes, (fragile) and one housed in the original hard plastic case. Records relating to "Musicards" consist of two game samples including directions for playing.

Subseries 2.6: Wine-Related, 1966-2002

Wine-related records cover twenty distinct inventions and range from specialty cabinets—which make-up the bulk of the materials—to bottle accessories such as the "Bottle Bib" and the "Cramanna Bottle Ring." The type and number of records vary, with the majority concentrated in the "Cool-Safe," "Cramarc Multiple Cabinet," "Modern Wine Cellar," and "Well Tempered Systems" folders. Records in invention-specific folders are arranged alphabetically and include marketing materials, press releases, photographic prints and some negatives, cabinet drawings, brochures, order forms, correspondence, as well as product samples of "Bottle Bibs."

Customer account records are arranged alphabetically and consist of billing statements, invoices, receipts, blueprints, correspondence, cabinet drawings, customer feedback, bills of lading, and memoranda. Letters from David H. Wollins laud Cramer Sachs's cabinet as "the finest home wine storage system in the world." Examples of how the inventor handled an unsatisfied customer can be found in the Col. Charles Langley folder.

Miscellaneous wine-related materials follow the customer account records. Included are advertising ephemera, photographs, and newspaper clippings originally assembled into a binder by Cramer Sachs. Taped to the inside front cover was a cut-out from a magazine advertisement which reads, "If you stick with the herd, you could end up as a lamb chop." Miscellaneous materials also include unlabeled cabinet drawings, photographic prints, competitor materials, photocopies from Grossman's Guide to Wines, Spirits, and Beers, as well as marketing materials and newspaper clippings covering a range of wine-related inventions. These records are arranged alphabetically by subject.

The final section of the wine-related subseries documents the development and eventual dissolution of The Wine Museum of New York. Records are arranged chronologically and include a provisional charter; an extension of the provisional charter; a newspaper clipping; outreach correspondence; a binder of wine museum materials including brochures, event invitations, exhibition opening cards, board member profiles, a press release, and newspaper clippings; wine museum exhibition information; and records related to the dissolution of the museum.

Subseries 2.7: Temperature and/or Humidity Controlled Devices, 1968-2002

This subseries documents the inventor's temperature and/or humidity controlled inventions that do not relate to wine. Cramer Sachs created the "Well Tempered Cabinet" for both wine and musical instruments; it is documented in this and the wine-related subseries. These records cover eight distinct inventions which range from specialty cabinets for musical instruments, furs, and cigars to devices designed to cool the body. Records relate to marketing, invention-specific business correspondence, confidential information and competition agreements, and include photographic negatives and prints. Miscellaneous cabinet drawings, cigar-related materials, and newspaper articles are also included. Records are arranged alphabetically by invention name followed by miscellaneous materials.

Subseries 2.8: Patent Searches, 1905-1980

Records in this subseries include correspondence as well as copies of several patented inventions for which Cramer Sachs requested information.
Arrangement:
Tha collection is arranged into two series.

Series 1: Creative and Artistic Papers, 1933-2002

Series 2: Invention Records, 1905-2002

Subseries 2.1: Cramer Products Company and Affiliate Company Records, 1942-2002

Subseries 2.2: Household/Office, 1913-1972

Subseries 2.3: Food Products, 1940-1969

Subseries 2.4: Pet Accessories, 1953-1954

Subseries 2.5: Games, 1961-1969

Subseries 2.6: Wine-related, 1966-2002

Subseries 2.7: Temperature and/or Humidity Controlled Devices, 1968-2002

Subseries 2.8: Patent Searches, 1905-1980
Biographical / Historical:
Charlotte Cramer Sachs was born in Berlin, Germany on September 27, 1907. Her father, Hans Siegfried Cramer, worked as a businessman for a successful grain import and export company whose innovative enterprises included the import of soy beans from Eastern Europe. In 1903, Hans married Gertrud Bruck, one of the first women to attain her Abitur, somewhat similar to an American high school diploma, at age eighteen. Bruck's formal education ended there, as her wish to attend university was thwarted by her father Adalbert, a judge who insisted that she remain at home. The couple settled in Berlin and had two children—Frederick H., born March 2, 1906, and Charlotte. From 1913 to 1924 The Cramers lived in the Berlin Dahlem suburb occupying "Haus Cramer," a villa built in 1912 to their specifications by German architect Hermann Muthesius.

On September 12, 1924, Cramer Sachs married Donald Samuels, a top executive of the Manhattan Shirt Company and moved to New York from England where their daughter Eleanor was born on June 11, 1926. Several years later, the couple divorced. Mother and daughter lived together in London for a few years before moving back to New York around 1936. Charlotte's parents relocated to New York at the same time, after a brief stay in London following their flight from Berlin after Hitler's rise to power. In August 1945, Charlotte Cramer married Alexander Sachs, a leading economist who had introduced Albert Einstein to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and acted as advisor to the President.

Although she established her business career in America, Cramer Sachs retained fond memories of the house and extensive grounds in Dahlem. In 1977 she composed the song "A Salute to Berlin" to commemorate the designation of Haus Cramer as one of the city's historic landmarks. In 2000, she donated a painted portrait of herself from the time she had lived in Haus Cramer to the villa's new owner, Stanford University. The house retains additional significance in the context of this collection because Cramer Sachs credited its wine cellar—unusual in that it provided a separate, climate controlled environment for red and white wines—as an inspiration for her line of custom-built, vibration-free wine storage devices, which would later make Cramer Products Company a household name among wine connoisseurs.

While she did not attend university her pursuit of learning continued throughout her life as she studied poetry, musical composition, and the fine arts. Cramer Sachs often told her niece, Lilian Randall, that she wished she had received further education, although her public art exhibitions, poetry awards, numerous original songs, the establishment of Crambruck Press (her own publishing company), as well as language fluency in French, English, and German, are testaments to this inventor's intellectual curiosity and development. Evidence of Cramer Sachs's entrepreneurial spirit surfaced in her early thirties with her first patent: Improvements in Combined Key and Flashlight, July 16, 1940, patent number 2,208,498.

In 1940, Cramer Sachs completed courses from the New York Institute of Dietetics, an effort spurred by the onset of her daughter's diabetes. With financial assistance from her parents in the early 1940s, Cramer Sachs developed Joy Products prepared mixes, marking the beginning of a successful career in inventing. "We were a pioneer in that field," said Cramer Sachs of her baking mix manufacturing company, an operation that consisted of a Bronx neighborhood factory employing ninety workers. The enterprise began with corn muffin and popover mixes and expanded into frostings, puddings, and breads. Newspaper clippings from the time promoted Joy packaged mixes as ideal gifts for "the boys overseas" who were in locations where it was "impossible to get together the makings of a cake." Cramer Sachs refused an early offer to sell her mix formulas which were subsequently copied and exploited by larger, more powerful companies. Joy Products, whose name was chosen to express the inventor's delight in creativity, remained in business as a modest one-woman operation for over twenty years before succumbing to competition.

Cramer Sachs created another highly successful invention, the specialty wine cabinet, more than twenty years after she founded Joy Products. In addition to her memories of visits with her father to the wine cellar in her family's German villa, further motivation came from an interest—though she hardly drank it at all—in wine and recognition that "standard cooling and refrigerating appliances [were] too cold for wines." Reportedly, Cramer Sachs "started looking for [an appropriate device] and could not find one," and thus the impetus to invent took shape. The "Modern Wine Cellar," 1966, was an early example of over twenty wine-related inventions, most of them storage devices. A mention of her product in Grossman's Guide to Wines, Spirits, and Beers, increased demand among wine lovers and may have prompted Cramer Sachs to state that she "should find a good market" for her newest invention line. Testimony from David H. Wollins, a successful New York lawyer and customer of Cramer Sachs, lauded the cabinet as "the finest home wine storage system in the world." She framed his letter and hung it in her office at 381 South Park Avenue, her base operation where she employed one or two part-time helpers from the 1960s until her death in 2004.

The inventor took great joy in music, expressed in her own numerous compositions and her creation of the games "Domi-Notes" and "Musicards" in 1961 and 1969. Her fondness for music also prompted the expansion of her specialty cabinets to include temperature and humidity controlled devices for storing a variety of items, most notably the "Well Tempered Cabinet for Musical Instruments," which Cramer Sachs first designed for legendary violinist Isaac Stern. Soon the inventor began producing similar cabinets for the storage of cigars, furs, and documents.

Described by her niece as "shy with people but a great admirer of talent, intellect, and humanity," Cramer Sachs also "harbored a great love for animals." She invented several pet accessories in the early 1950s, including: "Watch-Dog," a dog collar with a time piece; "Bonnie Stand," a holder fashioned to accommodate disposable food bowls; and "Guidog," an early version of a retractable dog leash.

In 1972, Cramer Sachs suffered the loss of her only child, Eleanor, and in the summer of the next year her husband Alexander passed away. She continued her "business of creating new product ideas" for the remainder of her life. The most recent invention materials represented in the collection are those for the "Conservator" from 2002, a temperature and humidity controlled device with compartments to store a variety of items. In her last telephone conversation with her niece, on March 10, 2004, Cramer Sachs expressed her hope that she would feel "strong enough to get to the office the next day or so." The inventor died the following day at the age of 96.

Patents issued to Charlotte Cramer Sachs:

United States Patent: 2,208,498, "Combined Key and Flashlight," July 16, 1940

United States Patent: 2,509,423, "Wedge Heel Shoe," May 30, 1950

United States Patent: 2,808,191, "Lap Tray," October 1, 1957

United States Patent: Des. 363,618, "Cabinet," October 31, 1995
Related Materials:
Materials in Other Organizations

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum

Related materials on husband Alexander Sachs's political and professional life found in the Papers of Alexander Sachs

Art Gallery of Ontario, E. P. Taylor Research Library and Archives, Toronto Ontario, Canada

Correspondence between Cramer Sachs and Sam and Ayala Zacks dating from the 1970s and relating to Zionist art found in the Sam and Ayala Zacks Fonds.

Columbia University Libraries, Avery Drawings & Archives Collections Haus Cramer architectural records and papers, 1911-2004, (bulk 1911-1955)

This collection primarily contains original and reprographic architectural records, photographs, correspondence and personal and professional records related to the design, construction, and ownership of the Haus Cramer in Dahlem, Berlin, Germany, designed by German architect Hermann Muthesius in 1911-1913 for Hans and Gertrud Cramer, with later additions by Muthesius and other architects. A significant portion of the collection also documents the Cramer family's efforts to obtain restitution after World War II for the seizure of the house in the 1930s. Also included are records documenting the restoration and reuse, an effort led by noted architectural historian Julius Poesner.

Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections

Cramer papers, 1938-1954

Cramer, Frederick Henry, 1906-1954; historian and college teacher. Mount Holyoke College faculty member, 1938-1954. Papers consist of writings, biographical information, and photographs; primarily documenting his scholarly activities and his interest in automobile racing.

German Historical Institute

Charlotte Cramer Sachs in the Immigrant Entrepreneurship: German-American Business Biographies, 1720 to the Present.

The collaborative research project Immigrant Entrepreneurship: German-American Business Biographies, 1720 to the Present sheds new light on the entrepreneurial and economic capacity of immigrants by investigating the German-American example in the United States. It traces the lives, careers and business ventures of eminent German-American business people of roughly the last two hundred and ninety years, integrating the history of German-American immigration into the larger narrative of U.S. economic and business history.
Provenance:
The papers were donated to the Archives Center at the National Museum of American History in the spring of 2005 by Lilian Randall (niece), Erich Cramer (nephew), Aileen Katz (niece), Elisabeth Weissbach (niece), and John Cramer (nephew).
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use. Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Baked products  Search this
Food mixes  Search this
Inventors -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Wine -- Storage  Search this
Women inventors  Search this
Women inventors -- 20th century  Search this
Works of art  Search this
Genre/Form:
Advertisements
Awards
Business records -- 20th century
Clippings -- 20th century
Correspondence -- 20th century
Notes
Patents
Patent applications
Photographs -- 20th century
Sheet music
Citation:
Charlotte Cramer Sachs Papers, 1905-2002, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0878
See more items in:
Charlotte Cramer Sachs Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep80e9d7739-dea1-4c9b-82cb-6fcf17e24b00
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0878
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