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UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING AMERICAN HERITAGE CENTER GUIDE TO ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY RESOURCES Child actress Mary Jane Irving with Bessie Barriscale and Ben Alexander in the 1918 silent film Heart of Rachel. Mary Jane Irving papers, American Heritage Center. Compiled by D. Claudia Thompson and Shaun A. Hayes 2009 PREFACE When the University of Wyoming began collecting the papers of national entertainment figures in the 1970s, it was one of only a handful of repositories actively engaged in the field. Business and industry, science, family history, even print literature were all recognized as legitimate fields of study while prejudice remained against mere entertainment as a source of scholarship. There are two arguments to be made against this narrow vision. In the first place, entertainment is very much an industry. It employs thousands. It requires vast capital expenditure, and it lives or dies on profit. In the second place, popular culture is more universal than any other field. Each individual’s experience is unique, but one common thread running throughout humanity is the desire to be taken out of ourselves, to share with our neighbors some story of humor or adventure. This is the basis for entertainment. The Entertainment Industry collections at the American Heritage Center focus on the twentieth century. During the twentieth century, entertainment in the United States changed radically due to advances in communications technology. The development of radio made it possible for the first time for people on both coasts to listen to a performance simultaneously. The delivery of entertainment thus became immensely cheaper and, at the same time, the fame of individual performers grew. Vaudeville acts and musical groups who had previously traveled from town to town to establish a regional following could now achieve national recognition by one visit to a sound stage. Moving picture film, which could be duplicated and shown multiple times, gave theater actors a similar opportunity. The mid-century development of television in some senses combined the two media: both sound and picture could now be brought directly to the audience’s home. These new entertainment delivery systems led to important changes in the styles of entertainment and the expectations of the audience. Directors, no longer confined indoors, built huge outdoor sets or used the natural landscape. Stars learned that instant access to their audience constricted their ability to have personal lives. And everyone discovered the importance of marketing. Just as importantly, the audience learned to see the world as a much bigger place. Regional and parochial assumptions were assaulted by a stream of information from outside. A national culture emerged, built, to a very great extent, by the entertainment industry. The American Heritage Center seeks to document the importance of these developments by acquiring the papers and records of the creative minds of the entertainment industry. The Jack Benny papers are a rich record of the track a talented comedian followed from vaudeville to radio to television to a kind of celebrity status unachievable before mass media. The Ozzie and Harriet Nelson papers reflect how a big band leader transformed himself and his family into icons of the 1950s, using television to depict an idealized life. The William Boyd papers document how an actor re-created himself as the hero he played, and then used the image of Hopalong Cassidy to market everything from toy guns to tuna to an entire generation of adoring fans. The Columbia Pictures records are a series of teletypes and telegraphs between studio head Harry Cohn and his directors and producers, in which Cohn imposes his own morality on social issues such as race, religion, and sexuality in the name of making money for the studio. The Center continues an active collecting program for the entertainment industry. As the twenty-first century progresses, changes in entertainment media as radical as those of the past are evident. The national entertainment industry will continue to illuminate our common experiences as Americans, but new technologies and new ideas will continue to challenge us. We expect, however, that the collections at the American Heritage Center will retain their value to students of popular culture. D. Claudia Thompson Processing Manager, American Heritage Center 2 Guide to Entertainment Industry Resources Introduction The American Heritage Center (AHC) is the University of Wyoming’s (UW) repository for historical manuscripts, rare books, and university archives. Internationally known for its historical collections, the AHC first and foremost serves the students and citizens of Wyoming. The AHC sponsors a wide range of scholarly and popular programs including lectures, symposia, and exhibits. A place where both experts and novices engage with the original sources of history, access to the AHC is free and open to all. Collections at the AHC go beyond both the borders of Wyoming and the region, and support a wide range of research and teachings activities in the humanities, sciences, arts, business, and education. Major areas of collecting include Wyoming and the American West, the mining and petroleum industries, environment and natural resources, journalism, military history, transportation, the history of books, and 20th century entertainment such as popular music, radio, television, and film. The total archival holdings of the AHC are roughly 75,000 cubic feet (the equivalent of 18 miles) of material. The Toppan Rare Books Library holds more than 60,000 items from medieval illuminated manuscripts to the 21st century. Subject strengths include the American West, British and American literature, early exploration of North America, religion, hunting and fishing, natural history, women authors, and the book arts. Organization of the Guide Entries are arranged alphabetically and include the title, dates, collection number, collection size, and a brief description of the collection’s creator and contents. Many of these collections have more in-depth finding aids available online through the Rocky Mountain Online Archive (http://rmoa.unm.edu). Catalog records for all collections may be found at http://uwcatalog.uwyo.edu (for best results, limit search scope to “American Heritage Center”). Visitor and Contact Information Current contact information and visitor information including location and hours of operation for the AHC Reading Room and the Toppan Rare Books Library can be found at http://www.uwyo.edu/ahc. 3 Guide to Entertainment Industry Resources Guide to the American Heritage Center’s Entertainment Industry Resources Ackerman, Forrest J. Memorabilia consists of advertising and Papers, ca. 1920-1987 (bulk 1941-1987) promotional material including movie posters, 2358 lobby cards, hand bills and pressbooks for many 72 cubic ft. and 10 cubic ft. of published science fiction, fantasy and horror movies from material the silent era through the late 1980s. There are also a large number of photographs of movie Ackerman (1916- ) was an editor and writer of stars and movie and television stills. Included works on science fiction, fantasy and horror. He are scripts for the “Planet of the Apes” series of published several articles and books, and movies, and television scripts for "Lost in published the first science fiction fan magazine Space," "Star Trek," "The Outer Limits," "Circle (fanzine) in 1932. From 1958 to 1982 he edited of Fear" and "Night Stalker." the Famous Monsters of Filmland fanzine, and beginning in 1969 edited a series of science Ackerman, Harry S. fiction novels titled “Perry Rhodan.” In 1947 Papers, 1958-1973 Ackerman created a science fiction literary 4876 agency. 39.15 cubic ft. (87 boxes) Ackerman was well known for amassing the Harry S. Ackerman, a television producer, was largest collection of science fiction, fantasy and responsible for such popular shows as "The horror memorabilia including books, magazines, Flying Nun," "The Farmer's Daughter," and movie props and posters. He attended the first "Bewitched." He also worked as a writer and World Science Fiction Convention in 1939 and actor. continued to attend fan conventions annually. Ackerman helped create the "fandom" Includes production files, scripts, story ideas, subculture by starting the first science fiction fan drafts, research, and other materials for many of club in 1930. He received the first science the television shows that Ackerman produced as fiction "Hugo" award in 1953, and is credited well as unproduced shows. with coining the term "sci-fi." Adlam, Basil Collection contains materials relating to Basil Adlam papers, 1930-1970 Ackerman's long career in science fiction (1941- 9520 1987) plus a large portion of his memorabilia 41 cubic ft. (41 boxes) collection (ca. 1920-1987). Correspondence is both personal and professional with many Basil G. "Buzz" Adlam was saxophonist for the notables in the field concerning his many Ozzie Nelson band, and he conducted for ABC projects. There is a large amount of fan mail radio and television. He was with the Phil Harris mainly responding to Famous Monsters fanzine. band, and he arranged and conducted the Horace Included are photographs of Ackerman, Heidt orchestra. His musical collaborators manuscripts including some of the “Perry included Cole Porter, Nat Burton, and Billy Rose. Rhodan” books, and reel-to-reel tapes of His compositions include, "Adventure", "Say It", speeches at the 1970 Count Dracula Society "Mr. President", and "With Thee I Swing".