Floyd Levin was a Los Angeles textile manufacturer who turned his passion for jazz into a second career as an influential jazz journalist and historian. The collection consists of research materials including biographical files. In addition, there are numerous photographs that were taken and collected by Levin.
Scope and Contents:
Research materials on jazz, jazz artists, jazz festivals and jazz organizations compiled by Levin over several decades. The richest portion is the series of biographical files on jazz artists, with emphasis on lesser known but influential artists, and includes such things as obituaries, memorial programs, press releases, concert programs, and newsletters. Photographs are also widely found in this series, many of them inscribed to, or taken with Levin and his wife Lucille, as well as posters, recordings, letters and other correspondence, awards and plaques, Levin's writings, business cards, newspaper articles, advertisements, and miscellaneous ephemeral items. Artists who are strongly represented include one-time Ellington Orchestra clarinetist "Barney" (Albany Leon) Bigard, who was a close personal friend of the Levins and whose personal papers are in the collection; Louis Armstrong; "Jelly Roll" (Ferdinand Lemott) Morton; "Wild" Bill Davison; "Duke" (Edward Kennedy) Ellington; Joe Darensbourg; Edward Bertram "Montudie" Garland; "Kid" (Edward) Ory; "Eubie" (James Herbert) Blake; and "Rosy" (James) McHargue.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into ten series.
Series 1, Personal Papers, 1920-2010, undated
Series 2, Correspondence, 1948-2006, undated
Series 3, Research Materials, 1914-2006, undated
Series 4, Writings, 1949-2006, undated
Series 5, Artists Files, 1880-2010, undated
Subseries 5.1, General Materials, 1880-2010, undated
Subseries 5.2, Obituaries, 1941-2004
Subseries 5.3, Interviews, 1969-2001
Series 6, Subject Files, 1916-2004, undated
Series 7, General Materials, 1908-2006, undated
Series 8, Jazz Organizations and Publications, 1943-2010, undated
Series 9, Photographs, 1939-2001, undated
Series 10, Audiovisual Materials, 1964-1997, undated
Floyd Levin (1922 - 2007) was a Los Angeles textile manufacturer who turned his passion for jazz into a second, contemporaneous, career as an influential jazz journalist and historian. His numerous reviews, profiles, and articles were published in magazines such as Down Beat, Jazz Journal International, Metronome, and American Rag. He also authored Classic Jazz: A Personal View of the Music and the Musicians (University of California Press, 2000), which –like his articles – chronicled his first-hand encounters with countless jazz musicians. In 1949, he co-founded the Southern California Hot Jazz Society, the second-oldest jazz appreciation club in the country. Levin led the drive to create the Louis Armstrong Park and statue in New Orleans in the 1970s. During his career, he conducted scores of oral history interviews with jazz musicians, which he donated to NMAH and to Tulane University's jazz archive. He received several awards for his work, including the Leonard Feather Communicator Award, given annually by the Los Angeles Jazz Society. Levin died in 2007.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center in 2011 by Floyd Levin's widow, Lucille Levin.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Only reference copies of audiovisual materials may be used.
Rights:
Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection consists of 235 pieces of music ephemera assembled by an anonymous California musicologist over several decades. The contents include such things as concert ticket stubs; show programs; handbills; publicity stills; record store posters; nightclub souvenirs; autographs; contracts, lobby cards; movie stills; postcards; fan and record industry magazines; sheet music; an oversize RKO theatre owners' advertising book for the 1942 sensation "Syncopation," starring Charlie Barnet, Benny Goodman, Harry James, Gene Krupa, et al; and miscellany such as matchbook covers and novelty promotional pieces. There are just a few letters in the collection. The collection contains materials representing both bands and band members, and individual artists. In many cases, there are only one or a few relevant items. Persons and acts represented include: Ray Anthony, Louis Armstrong, Charlie Barnet, Tex Beneke, Les Brown, Dave Brubeck, Cab Calloway, June Christy, Nat King Cole, Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Erroll Garner, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Glen Gray, Fletcher Henderson, Woody Herman, Harry James, Louis Jordan, Sammy Kaye, Stan Kenton, Gene Krupa, Kay Kyser, Frankie Laine, Peggy Lee, Guy Lombardo, Vincent Lopez, Jimmy Lunceford, Gordon MacRae, Freddy Martin, Billy May, Johnny Mercer, Glenn Miller, Vaughn Monroe, Gerry Mulligan, Red Norvo, Patti Page, Buddy Rich, Artie Shaw, Dinah Shore, Frank Sinatra, Charlie Spivak, Rudy Vallee, Sarah Vaughan, Fred Waring, Chick Webb, Ted Weems, Lawrence Welk, Paul Whiteman, Margaret Whiting, and Benny Goodman. In other cases, the collection contains an item or items (such as menus) that have been autographed. The collection contains autographs or autographed items for the following: Gene Krupa, Jess Stacy, Teddy Wilson, Blue Barron, Eddie Duchin, Shep Fields, Ziggy Elman, Glen Gray Band, Milt Gabler, Horace Heidt, Dick Jurgens, Kay Kyser, Guy Lombardo, Xavier Cugat, Hal McIntyre, Art Mooney, Buddy Morrow, Harry James and "Tiny" Timbrell.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1: Magazines, 1939-1950
Series 2: Programs, 1930-1975
Series 3: Publications, 1949-1965
Series 4: Sheet Music, 1935-1943
Series 5: Advertisements, 1932-1954
Series 6: Ephemera, 1938-1953
Provenance:
Purchased at auction by the Archives Center from Cohasco, Inc. in 2016.
Restrictions:
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.
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.
1 Photograph (lantern slide, hand-colored, 3.25 x 4 in.)
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Lantern slides
Place:
New York (State) -- Syosset
United States of America -- New York -- Nassau County -- Oyster Bay -- Syosset
Date:
[between 1914 and 1949?]
General:
Woodside acres is now a golf course.
Mount reads: "Edward Van Altena, 71-79 W. 45th St., N.Y.C."
Historic plate number: "191."
Historic plate caption: "Mrs. Tobin; [name written on plate: Beidler-Viken, colorists signature?]."
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
H. Edwin Jackson created this scrapbook of radio stars while living in Chicago, Illinois during the Great Depression.
Scope and Contents:
One homemade scrapbook created and compiled by H. Edwin Jackson. The book contains photographs, some autographed, news clippings, and commercially printed reproductions of photographs of numerous radio and entertainment personalities from 1933 forward. The arrangement of the book and its artwork was the creation of Jackson. Many pages have photographs and/or news items of additional personalities associated with the featured personality.
Subjects include: The Mills Brothers, Ruth Etting, Fred Allen with Portland Hoffa and Jack Smart, Lanny Ross, Phil Baker, Ireene [?] Wicker, The Pickens Sisters, Raymond, Knight, Clara (Louise Starkey), Lu (Isobel Carothers) n' Em (Helen King), Phil Harris and Leah Ray, Vera Van, George Burns and Gracie Allen, Gladys Swarthout, Jeanie Lang, Myrt and Marge, Helen Jepson, Jack Benny and Mary Livingston, Deanna Durbin, Helen Morgan, Jimmy Durante, Alexander Woolcott, The Boswell Sisters, Edwin C. Hill, Cornelia Otis Skinner, Paul Whiteman, Jessica Dragonette, Dave Rubinoff, Little Jackie Heller, Joe Penner, Mildred Bailey, Olga Albani, Vivienne Segal, Ed Wynn, Beatrice Lillie, Burgess Meredith, Dorothy Page, Bing Crosby, Rosa Ponselle, Stoopnagle and Budd, Grace Moore, Frank Crumit and Julia Sanderson, Frances Langford, Conrad Thibault, Ozzie Nelson and Harriet Hilliard, Bobby Breen, Jack Pearl, The Big Show, Olsen (Ole Olsen) and Johnson (Chick Johnson), Ramona, Rudy Vallee, The Easy Aces, Annette Hanshaw, Ben Bernie, Alice Faye, Charles Winninger, Ray Perkins, Eddie Cantor, Irene Rich, The Weiner Minstrels, Frank Parker, Jane Froman, Walter O'Keefe, James Melton, Al Jolson, Donald Novis, Morton Downey, The First Nighter (Charles P. Hughes), Lawrence Tibbett, Fred Astaire, Abe Lyman, Ethel Shutta, Fanny Brice, Joe Cook, Ken Murray, Jack Oakie, Tony Wans, Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians, Bob Burns, Don Ameche, Nelson Eddy, Ted Bergman, Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
H. Edwin Jackson (1907-1989) was born in Union City, Indiana, the youngest of three children. Jackson's interest in entertainment personalities began early. His father was engaged in real estate and through a land swap acquired The Star Theater in Union City, one of the town's three theaters. The Star was a mid-size theater with a screen and stage. The Jacksons ran The Star as a family business. Jackson was the assistant projectionist to his older sister Mary Elizabeth and he and his father were the janitors. The Star showed silent movies starring such personalities as William S. Hart, Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., Charlie Chaplin, and Wallace Reid. During the influenza epidemic of the teens the theater closed. The family eventually sold The Star, and Jackson went to work as an assistant projectionist at The Grand, Union City's largest and most modern movie house.
When Jackson graduated from high school, the family moved to Chicago, Illinois. The Jackson family's first radio was "The Freshman" and the family eventually owned an Atwater Kent. Jackson became an avid radio fan listening to local Chicago stations WKYW, WENR, and WBBM as well as the national radio networks. Some of Jackson's favorite shows were The Shadow, Amos n' Andy and the Lux Radio Theater. Jackson was laid off from his job in 1933 and spent a great deal of his time listening to radio. His mother gave him money to purchase materials to make a scrapbook of radio and entertainment personalities. He began his book in January 1933, entitling it "Ed Jackson's Book of Radio Personalities." Jackson wrote to many of the personalities he featured in his scrapbook asking for autographed photographs which he put into the book along with clipped photographs and other items of interest from magazines and newspapers, radio show ticket stubs, and programs. Jackson included comics, singers, commentators (both news and social), and stars of popular radio programs. He revised/repaired the book in January, 1982 but Jackson did not detail his revisions.
Jackson was employed by the Lindberg Steel Treating Co. in Melrose Park, Illinois, for thirty years. He married Louise LaJeunesse in 1935 and had two children. Louise died in 1947, and Jackson married Eugenia McDougald in 1951. At the time of his death in December 1989 he was living in Walden, New York.
Sources
Oral History by H. Edwin Jackson, Archives Center Control File
Memorial Obituary for Edwin Jackson, The Newburgh News, December 14, 1989.
Bello, Paul. "Local scrapbook to be displayed at the Smithsonian". Times Community Papers, May 17, 2006.
E-mail message from Annette Smith to Cathy Keen, June 2, 2009.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
George H. Clark Collection Radioana Collection, 1880-1950 (NMAH.AC.0055)
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana: Radio, Motion Pictures, 1896-1963 (NMAH.AC.0060)
National Bureau of Standards Radio Collection, 1917-1933 (NMAH.AC.0217)
Jean Clairmook Radio Scrapbook, 1930-1932 (NMAH.AC.0674)
Provenance:
Donated to the National Museum of American History, Archives Center by Annette L. Smith (H. Edwin Jackson's daughter) in June, 2004.
Donated to the Archives Center by Edwin Jackson's daughter, Ms. Annette Smith.
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.
Program bears the Presidential seal. Event took place in 1998. Claude Williams received the award that year.
Local Numbers:
AC0909-0000012.tif (AC Scan No.)
Collection 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.
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.
The collection, which dates from circa 1812-1895 and measures .06 linear feet, is comprised of correspondence from Liberian elected officials and diplomats, and other individuals involved in the American Colonization Society. The primary recipient of these letters is Benjamin W. Austin, an American autograph collector and historian. The collection also includes a lithograph image of Joseph James Cheeseman, the president of Liberia from 1892 until his death in 1896; a collection of autograph cards bearing the signatures of other members of the Liberian government; and a newspaper clipping of an article on the American Colonization Society.
Scope amd Contents note:
The collection which dates from 1862 to 1895, bulk dates 1880-1889, documents an artificial grouping of letters, visiting cards, and articles that address the personalities of various early government officials of what was then the Republic of Liberia. Of particular interest are the series for letters addressed to Rev. Ben W. Austin who was at one time the secretary of the Northwestern Literary and Historical Society in Sioux City and later, the secretary of the Trinity Historical Society in Dallas, Texas. There is also an interesting letter from Joseph J. Roberts, the first President of Liberia.
Arrangement note:
The papers are arranged into two series. Folders are arranged alphabetically within series, while documents are organized chronologically.
Series 1: Correspondence
Series 2: Printed Material
Biographical/Historical note:
The roots of the country of Liberia can be traced to the American Colonization Society. The society was instrumental in the founding of the colony of Liberia in 1821. Controversial even at its beginnings, it advocated the removal of free people of color from the United States, where they suffered restrictive legislative rights, to Africa. It was thought in Africa, African Americans would enjoy freedoms that would always be denied to them by free whites in the Americas.
Originally begun as a colony of the United States, Liberia was governed by white agents until the appointment of Joseph Jenkins Roberts in 1842. In 1847 Liberia's legislative body voted to declare independence from the United States and elected Roberts as the first President.
Restrictions:
Use of the materials requires an appointment. Please contact the archivist to make an appointment: ACMarchives@si.edu.
Rights:
The Correspondence from the Republic of Liberia collection is the physical property of the Anacostia Community Museum. Literary and copyright belong to the author/creator or their legal heirs and assigns. Rights to work produced during the normal course of Museum business resides with the Anacostia Community Museum. For further information, and to obtain permission to publish or reproduce, contact the Museum Archives.
Eight commercial 33-1/3 r.p.m. recordings of music produced by Duke Ellington, with album covers autographed by Ellington to Judge Quealy; and a Christmas card from Ellington addressed to Judge Quealy.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Judge and collector of Duke Ellington ephemera.
Provenance:
Collection donated by William H. Quealy, December 27, 1988.
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research use on site.
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.
Portrait by Sarony of New York. Phbotographer's imprint with date at lower right. Signed in ink in lower margin, "Compliments of Nikola Tesla."
Local Numbers:
AC0047-0000019.tif (AC Scan No.)
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research use on site by appointment. Photographs must be handled with cotton gloves unless protected by sleeves.
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.
The records of modernist New York City Kootz Gallery measure 7.1 linear feet and date from 1923-1966. They consist of scattered correspondence and exhibition files; photograph files of artists, including ones for Picasso, William Baziotes, and Hans Hofmann, among many others; 23 scrapbooks; photographs and slides of the gallery and exhibitions; and scattered personal papers of Samuel M. Kootz.
Scope and Contents note:
The records of modernist New York City Kootz Gallery measure 7.1 linear feet and date from 1923-1966. They consist of scattered correspondence and exhibition files; photograph files of artists, including ones for Picasso, William Baziotes, and Hans Hofmann, among many others; 23 scrapbooks, photographs and slides of the gallery and exhibitions; and scattered personal papers of Samuel M. Kootz.
There are two folders of scattered routine incoming letters. Three folders of exhibition files contain limited documentation of the 1952 Kootz Gallery exhibition "To South America," and printed material related to the 1951 exhibition "Art for a Synagogue" held at the Synagogue of Congregation B'nai Israel in Millburn, New Jersey.
Artists' Photograph Files contain mostly photographs of 52 artists, their artwork, and their exhibitions. In addition to photographs, there is one folder of artists' autographs. Pablo Picasso and Hans Hofmann's close friendship with Kootz is reflected in this series, as numerous informal personal photos are found in their respective files. A few folders also contain documents, such as transcript notes for a lecture and other writings by Hans Hofmann and a brief review of the work of Georges Braque and David Hare.
Printed Material consists of exhibition announcements and catalogs, advertisements, and newspaper and magazine clippings on the gallery and artists associated with the gallery. There are catalogs for Kootz Gallery exhibitions, including "The Intrasubjectives" show of 1949.
Twenty-three scrapbooks date from 1931 through 1966 and include exhibition announcements, catalogs, photographs, clippings, and miscellaneous printed material. Scrapbook 1, 1947-1948, focuses on Pablo Picasso. Scrapbooks 2-21 document approximately one year of Kootz Gallery events and press coverage from 1945 to 1966, and Scrapbooks 22-23, 1950-1958, focus on architectural models and exhibitions.
Photographic material includes photographs, transparencies, and slides of Kootz Gallery New York and Kootz Gallery Provincetown; interior design photographs showcasing Kootz Gallery artwork hanging in office and residential spaces; group and unidentified exhibitions; group and unidentified artists/artwork; and informal photographs of Samuel Kootz and of his wife, Jane.
Samuel Kootz Personal Papers consist of a cocktail party invitation and a copy of the 1923 Phi Epsilon Pi Quarterly, Vol. 6, No. 1.
Arrangement note:
The collection is arranged as 7 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Correspondence, 1950-1962 (Box 1; 2 folders)
Series 2: Exhibition Files, circa 1944-1966 (Box 1; 3 folders)
Series 3: Artists Photographs Files, 1936-1966 (Boxes 1-2, 5; 1.5 linear feet)
Series 4: Printed Material, circa 1944-1966 (Boxes 2, 5; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 5: Scrapbooks, 1931-1966 (Box 3, BV 6-23; 4 linear feet)
Series 6: Photographic Material, circa 1944-1966 (Boxes 4-5; 11 folders)
Series 7: Samuel Kootz Personal Papers, circa 1923-1957 (Box 4; 2 folders)
Biographical/Historical note:
Samuel M. Kootz officially opened the Kootz Gallery in 1945 in New York City. In 1953, he opened a satellite gallery in Provincetown, Massachusetts that closed one year later.
Samuel M. Kootz (1898-1982) received his law degree from the University of Virginia in 1921 and practiced law briefly before moving to New York City to accept a job as an advertising account executive. While still in law school, he began visiting New York art galleries and was particularly drawn to works by modern artists that were showing at the Stieglitz Gallery and the Charles Daniel Gallery. In 1930, he independently published his first book, Modern American Painters and began to regularly contribute articles on painting and photography to various periodicals, including The Times. In 1942, he curated an abstract expressionist showcase for Macy's and published New Frontiers in American Painting one year later. Kootz's second book was one of the first to examine the emerging abstract expressionist movement and marked the beginning of his full transition into the art world.
In 1944, Kootz resigned from his advertising job to represent Robert Motherwell and William Baziotes as a professional art dealer. He officially opened the Kootz Gallery opened in 1945 and showcased the work of both American and European abstract expressionists, including Hans Hofmann and Adolph Gottlieb. In 1946, during the Kootz Gallery's preparation for Pablo Picasso's first one man exhibition in America, Picasso became quite friendly with Kootz and his wife Jane. Upon the artist's suggestion, Kootz agreed to close his gallery and represent Picasso and his other artists as a private dealer. Although this was a successful venture, Kootz missed the structure of an office and decided to reopen his gallery on Madison Avenue in 1949. The gallery's first show at the new location was "The Intrasubjectives," a term Kootz had coined for abstract expressionists. The exhibition included four artists from his stable, William Baziotes, Robert Motherwell, Adolph Gottlieb, and Hans Hofmann, along with Jackson Pollock, Arshile Gorky, Willem de Kooning, Mark Rothko, Ad Reinhardt, Morris Graves, Mark Tobey, and Bradley Walker Tomlin.
In 1953, Kootz opened a satellite gallery in Provincetown, Massachusetts that was managed and operated by gallerist Nathan Halper. In 1954, they mutually agreed to dissolve their partnership and Kootz focused his energies on his New York gallery, which grew to include Herbert Ferber, David Hare, Philippe Hosiasson, Ibram Lassaw, Conrad Marca-Relli, Georges Mathieu, Raymond Parker, William Ronald, Gerard Schneider, Emil Schumacher, and Pierre Soulages.
A number of factors, including competition from new galleries, commoditization of art by investment collectors, and the public's interest in emerging pop art, influenced Kootz's decision to close his gallery in 1966.
Related Archival Materials note:
Also found among the holdings of the Archives of American Art are oral history interviews with Samuel M. Kootz by John Morse on March 2, 1960 and by Dorothy Seckler on April 13, 1964. Records of Kootz Gallery are also interspersed among the records of Nathan Halper's galleries.
Separated Materials note:
Records loaned for microfilming in 1965 included eight articles from the publication Modern Artists in America (1951) which were not included in the later donation and are now available on microfilm reel NY65-1.
Provenance:
Samuel M. Kootz donated the gallery records in two increments in 1971. Nearly all of the same records had been loaned in 1965 for microfilming.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. All scrapbooks are restricted due to their fragile condition; #1-#5 have been digitized and are available on the Archives of American Art's website, and #6-#23 are only available for use on microfilm reels 1318-1320 and 1322-1323.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Topic:
Artists -- United States -- Exhibitions Search this
Function:
Art galleries, Commercial -- New York (State)
Genre/Form:
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Signatures (names)
Notes
Citation:
Kootz Gallery records, 1923-1966. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
A diverse collection of papers assembled by Duke Ellington's road manager, Al Celley. The collection includes correspondence, photographs of Ellington and his orchestra at various times and locations; concert ephemera; handwritten notes; business and financial documents, primarily receipts; and travel ephemera.
Scope and Contents:
The collection was assembled by Duke Ellington's road manager, Al Celley and includes correspondence, photographs of Ellington and his orchestra at various times and locations; concert ephemera; handwritten notes; business and financial documents, primarily receipts; and travel ephemera.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1: Personal Materials, 1943-1962
Subseries 1.1: Al Celley, 1943-1962
Subseries 1.2: Duke Ellington, 1948
Series 2: Correspondence, 1945-1963
Subseries 2.1: Chronological, 1945-1963
Subseries 2.2: Alphabetical, 1949-1961
Series 3: Subject Files, 1948-1963
Series 4: Financial Materials, 1944-1964
Subseries 4.1: Payroll/Salary Ledgers, 1944-1962
Subseries 4.2: Expense Notebooks, 1946, 1959
Subseries 4.3: Receipts and Bills, 1945-1964
Series 5: Photographs, 1947-1967
Series 6: Audio Visual Materials, 1945-1957
Subseries 6.1: Moving Image, 1957
Subseries 6.2: Audio Discs, 1945-1946
Biographical / Historical:
Albert "Al" Joseph Celley (1909-1994) was Duke Ellington's road manager from 1944 to 1964. Celley handled the band's business affairs, such as concert bookings, logistics, staging shows, and organizing tours. Celley also handled the weekly payroll, contracts, collecting money from promoters, paying road expenses, and sending weekly reports to Bill Mittler, an accountant.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Duke Ellington Collection (AC0301)
Duke Ellington Oral History Project (AC0368)
This project includes an interview with Al Celley, July 12, 1989.
Provenance:
Purchased at auction by the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, May 2011.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Reference copies for audio discs and moving image do not exist. Use of these materials requires special arrangement with the Archives Center staff. Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives.
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.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Jacques Seligmann & Co. records, 1904-1978, bulk 1913-1974. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Processing of the collection was funded by the Getty Grant Program; digitization of the collection was funded by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
Indians of North America -- Southwest, New Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Letters
Signatures (names)
Date:
bulk 1904
Scope and Contents:
Geronimo's signature on a small scrap of paper. One letter, authored by Roy Bunten in 1972, describes the signature of Geronimo that he obtained at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis (also known as the Louisiana Purchase Expedition) for ten cents. The letter describes Geronimo as a prisoner of the U.S. Government, brought to the 1904 Fair from Fort Sill as part of an "Indian exhibit." The second letter is from Odie B. Faulk (Head, Dept. of History, Oklahoma State University) to Mrs. Keith Campbell of Steven's Point, WI (Bunten's daughter), stating that Genonomo was known to have sold signatures at the 1904 World's Fair, and gives suggestions of names of individuals who Campbell might speak to for additional information.
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 2000-03
Genre/Form:
Signatures (names)
Citation:
Manuscript 2000-03, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
One sheet bearing Hillary's signature, along with a line drawing of two figures climbing a mountain, both in black ink.
Arrangement:
Organized in one file folder.
Biographical / Historical:
Sir Edmund Percival Hillary (1919-2008) was New Zealand mountaineer and explorer. As part of the ninth British expedition to Everest, Hillary and his Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay were the first men to reach the summit of Mt. Everest, the highest point on Earth, on May 29, 1953. For this feat, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, while Tenzing received the George Medal, one of Britain's highest civilian awards. Hillary would go on to participate in other expeditions in the Himalayas, as well as an expedition to the South Pole. In 1985, he was appointed New Zealand High Commissioner to India. Hillary also devoted much of his time and energy to various philanthropic causes, particularly those dedicated to preserving the ecology of the Himalayas and improving the living conditions of the Sherpa people. In 1998, Hillary was the recipient of the James Smithson Bicentennial Medal in honor of his "monumental explorations and humanitarian achievements." This autograph drawing was made by Hillary during a press conference at the Freer Gallery on November 16.
Local Numbers:
FSA A1998.09
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.
The collection, which measures 1.18 linear feet and dates from circa 1961-2004, documents the personal life and professional activities of Rev. H. Rhett James. The collection is comprised of awards, photographs, books, newspaper clippings, correspondence, invitations, newsletters, oral histories, resumes, audio- and videocassettes, and ephemera.
Scope and Contents note:
The Reverend H. Rhett James papers, which date from 1961 to 2004, document the personal and professional life of Reverend H. Rhett James. Very notable are the letters and correspondence between Reverend H. Rhett James and the United States of America President, Lyndon B. Johnson, and his cabinet. The papers include an oral history, a C.V., letters and correspondence, awards, black-and-white photographs, books, clippings. color photographs, ephemera, invitations, newsletters, photographic prints, signatures, audio cassettes, and videocassettes.
Arrangement note:
The collection is organized into four series: Series 1, Biographical, Series 2, Correspondence, Series 3, Writings, Series 4, Sound Recordings, and Series 5, Photogrpahs. One box contains Series 1, 2, and 3. Box 2 contains Series 3, and Box 4 contains Series 5.
Series 1, Biographical, 1961-2004, is comprised of a typed oral history interview with Dr. H. Rhett James, on December 21, 2002, for the Dallas Public Library's Oral History Project (Box 1/Folder 1), a typed C.V. (Box 1/Folder 2), and other biographical information in the form of newsletters, booklets, certificates, visitor passes, and card invitations.
Series 2, Correspondence, 1962-1999, is arranged alphabetically by correspondent's last name. It is comprised of typed correspondence and letters on various political and community issues. Members of Lyndon b. Johnson's administration figure prominently in this series. The miscellaneous folders contain reproduced correspondence and letters from the Lyndon B. Johnson museum. A set of original envelopes are at the end of folder 15.
Series 3, Writings, 1972, 1992, 1997, is comprised of two books and a NAACP position paper on Dallas Public Schools by Reverend H. Rhett James. The books are titled, The Audacity to Survive and Stamp your own Passport.
Series 4, Sound Recordings, 1972, 1975, 1981, undated, is comprised of 60 audio cassettes in a box. Three notable cassettes in the box contain Jesse Jackson sermons on Civil Rights, "Silver" Rights, social justice, the black church's role in Black Amerca, and religion's role in America. A majority of the tapes are sermons by H. Rhett James on mind consciousness, spiritual regeneration, empowerment, the Gospel, civil rights, social justice, and ecomonic betterment.
Series 5, Photographs, is comprised of autographed photographs by political personage, family photographs, and other photographs including H. Rhett James with prominent figures, notably one with Martin Luther King Jr. Autographed photographs include Lyndon B Johnson, Benjamin Hoover, ans Hubert Humphrey.
Biographical/Historical note:
Reverend H. Rhett James was an ardent pastor,African-American educator, and community activist, who played a role in Dallas and the larger Texas community during the Civil Rights era.
Reverend H. Rhett James (1928-2004) was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on December 1, 1928. He received his early education in the public schools of Topeka, Kansas, Nashville, Tennessee and San Antonio, Texas, he enrolled at Virginia Union University, Richomond Virginia. Upon graduation (Bachelor's 1950), he accepted a teaching position in San Antonio, and became the first African American to receive the Masters of Education Degree from Our Lady of the Lake College (1951).
Returning to his Alma Mater, Virginia Union, he taught in the Department of Education and Psychology and received his Masters of Divinty Degree (1958). Moving to Dallas to accept the pastorate of New Hope Baptist church, he enrolled in the Brite College, T.C.U. and became the first African American to receive the Masters of Theology Degree (1961). He rceived his Ph.D. degree in Urban Administration frm the University of Texas at Arlingotn (1981). He served as pastor of New Hope Baptist church until his retirement in 1986.
As a political and community activist, he headed scores of local organizations working for desegregation and human rights causes. He headed the N.A.A.C.P through severe local desegregation and human rights causes; founder and twelve year Board President of the Dallas O.I.C. (Opportunities Industrialization Center); the first black president of the Dallas War on Poverty (DCCAC); founding Board member of the Dallas Urban League and Board and Budget committee member for the Dallas United Way, ACLU, Southern Historical Association, UNCF and YMCA boards.
Rverend H. Rhett James died on March 14, 2004. He left one daughter and three sons.
Rights:
Use of the materials requires an appointment. Please contact the archivist to make an appointment: ACMarchives@si.edu.
Restrictions on access. No duplication allowed listening and viewing for research purposes only.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Restrictions on access. No duplication allowed listening and viewing for research purposes only.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Restrictions on access. No duplication allowed listening and viewing for research purposes only.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Restrictions on access. No duplication allowed listening and viewing for research purposes only.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
