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FRANK SCHIFFMAN APOLLO THEATER COLLECTION, 1933- 1985 #540
(4 cu. ft.: 16 DB)
by: Danielle Snyder, 2002
History
The Apollo Theater is located in the Harlem section of New York City. A
prominent and influential institution, the Apollo Theater hosted numerous
performances by popular entertainers who were primarily African-American,
including Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Holiday, Smokey Robinson, and the Temptations
from the early 1930s to the present. It became best known as the site of
"amateur night" programs, which catapulted many of its winners (and
losers) to national and international acclaim. To this day, the Apollo Theater
remains an important fixture in both the music industry and the African-American
community.
The son of Austrian immigrants, Frank Schiffman began his career in the
promotion and distribution of motion pictures in New York City. As his career
grew, he managed various New York theaters such as the Lafayette and the Harlem
Opera House. In 1934, Frank Schiffman became the first manager of the
ApolloTheater. Soon thereafter, he became co-owner, and retained the management
position until the early 1960s. Schiffman's lack of racial bias as well as his
keen business sense helped the Apollo Theater to become a cultural icon within
the performance industry. During the late 1940s and early 1950s, Schiffman's
sons, Jack and Robert assisted him with the management of the Apollo, and later
took over management when Frank Schiffman's retired. Frank Schiffman died in
1974 at the age of 80.
Scope & Content
The Frank Schiffman Apollo Theater Collection documents the business
endeavors of Frank Schiffman, and the Apollo Theater’s contribution to
American culture. The collection includes sound recordings, personal and
business correspondence, photographs, business records, and printed material.
The collection is arranged in six series as follows:
Series 1: CORRESPONDENCE, 1938-1985: letters and
telegrams to/from Frank Schiffman, Jack Schiffman, and various business
associates and friends. Correspondence are arranged by correspondent and
thereunder chronologically.
Series 2: BUSINESS RECORDS, 1931-1974: financial
ledgers; phone books; booking cards containing names, dates, and performance
reviews; and accounting documents pertaining to the management of the Apollo
Theater.
Series 3: PUBLICITY, n.d.: includes
print media, pamphlets, scrapbooks, and flyers documenting the numerous
performances and activities at the Apollo Theater. Several of the newsprint
advertisements were reprinted in two books written about the Apollo Theater: Ted
Fox’s Showtime at the Apollo Theater, and Jack Schiffman’s Uptown:
The Story of Harlem’s Apollo Theater.
Series 4: PHOTOGRAPHS, n.d.:
primarily standard publicity stills of vocalists, comedians, musicians, and
other artists who performed at the Apollo Theater, such as Lena Horne, Bo
Diddley, Pearl Bailey, B.B. King, Jackson Five, Pigmeat Markham, Moms Mabley,
Dick Gregory, Richard Pryor, and the Nicholas Brothers. Also includes candid
shots of Frank Schiffman with business associates and friends. Similar to the
print media, many of the photographs were used as illustrations in Ted Fox’s Showtime
at the Apollo Theater, and Jack Schiffman’s Uptown: The Story of Harlem’s
Apollo Theater.
Series 5: EPHEMERA, n.d. includes
interview transcripts, various manuscripts, and architectural drawings of the
Apollo Theater.
Series 6: AUDIO RECORDINGS, 1940-1975
holds promotional broadcasts, publicity shorts, and one random music album. All
of the audio recordings in the Schiffman Collection originated on 1/4" open
reel audio tape and have cassette reference copies.
Access
The scrapbooks in Series 5 are in extremely fragile condition. They cannot be
made available for use until they are preserved.
Provenance
The Frank Schiffman Apollo Theater Collection was donated to the Smithsonian
Institution by Jack and Robert Schiffman in January 1996.
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SERIES 1: CORRESPONDENCE, 1938-1985 |
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Box
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Folder
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Description |
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1 |
1 |
Telegrams to Frank Schiffman, 1938-1949 |
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1 |
2 |
Telegrams between Frank Schiffman and Leonard Reed, 1938 |
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1 |
3 |
Telegram to "Mr. Schiffman" (probably Frank), 1965 |
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1 |
4 |
Personal and Business Correspondence to Frank Schiffman, 1938-1965 |
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1 |
5 |
Correspondence from Frank Schiffman, 1947-1949 |
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1 |
6 |
Correspondence between Frank Schiffman and the William Morris Agency
about Pearle Bailey, 1947-1949 |
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1 |
7 |
Correspondence between Frank Schiffman and Shaw Artists Co. about Harry
Belafonte, 1949 |
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1 |
8 |
Correspondence to/from Frank Schiffman about the F.E. Miller Dispute,
1947 |
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1 |
9 |
Correspondence to "Mr. Schiffman"(probably Frank), 1947-1949 |
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1 |
10 |
Correspondence to Jack Schiffman, 1980-1983 |
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1 |
11 |
Correspondence from Jack Schiffman, 1983 |
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1 |
12 |
Correspondence to "Jack," 1985 |
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1 |
13 |
Correspondence from "Jack," no date |
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1 |
14 |
Telegram to Henry Schiffman, 1983 |
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1 |
15 |
Miscellaneous Correspondence, 1938-1948 |
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SERIES 2: BUSINESS RECORDS, 1931-1974 |
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2 |
1 |
"Lafayette Theater Telephone Directory," ca. 1933 |
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2 |
2 |
Record Book, 1956-1959 |
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2 |
3 |
Record Book, 1959-1962 |
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2 |
4 |
Performer Biographies, no date |
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3 |
1 |
"Acts from August 1963," Journal (A-I) |
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3 |
2 |
"Acts from August 1963," Journal (J-P) |
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3 |
3 |
"Acts from August 1963," Journal (Q-Z) |
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3 |
4 |
"Acts from January 1968," Journal 1968-1973 (A-I) |
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3 |
5 |
"Acts from January 1968," Journal 1968-1973 (J-P) |
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3 |
6 |
"Acts from January 1968," Journal 1968-1973 (Q-Z) |
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3 |
7 |
Ledger, 1/3/1969 - 12/25/1970 |
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3 |
8 |
Ledger, 1/4/1971 - 12/25/1973 |
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3 |
9 |
Ledger, 1/4/1974 - 12/20/1974 |
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4 |
1 |
Ledger, ca. 1931-1934 |
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4 |
2 |
1934/1935 Apollo Theater Accounting |
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4 |
3 |
Finance Ledger, 1932-1942 |
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4 |
4 |
Ledger, 1/5/1962 - 1/5/1964 |
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4 |
5 |
Ledger, 1/3/1964 - 12/31/1965 |
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4 |
6 |
Ledger, 1/7/1966 - 12/8/1967 |
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4 |
7 |
Ledger, 1/5/1968 - 12/25/1968 |
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4 |
8 |
"R & B Singers and Hits, 1968-69" Ledger, 1968-1970 |
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5 |
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Booking Cards (A-L) |
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6 |
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Booking Cards (Mc-Z) |
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SERIES 3: PUBLICITY, n.d. |
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7 |
1 |
Print Media / newspaper clippings, flyers, etc. (reference) |
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7 |
2 |
Print Media / continued (reference) |
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7 |
3 |
Print Media / continued (reference) |
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7 |
4 |
Playbills and Pamphlets |
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7 |
5 |
Advertisement Templates |
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SERIES 4: PHOTOGRAPHS, n.d. |
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8 |
1 |
Vocalists (A-L) |
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8 |
2 |
Vocalists (A-L) James Brown |
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8 |
3 |
Vocalists (A-L) Ella Fitzgerald |
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8 |
4 |
Vocalists (A-L) Gladys Knight |
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8 |
5 |
Vocalists (A-L) Gloria Lynne |
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8 |
6 |
Vocalists (M-Z) |
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8 |
7 |
Vocalists (M-Z) Smokey Robinson |
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8 |
8 |
Vocalists (M-Z) The Temptations |
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8 |
9 |
Vocalists (M-Z) Leslie Uggams |
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8 |
10 |
Vocalists (M-Z) Stevie Wonder |
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8 |
11 |
Gospel Singers |
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8 |
12 |
Gospel Singers |
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9 |
1 |
Comedians and Theatrical Performers - miscellaneous |
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9 |
2 |
Comedians and Theatrical Performers - (Crackshot) Hackly |
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9 |
3 |
Comedians and Theatrical Performers - Jackie Mabley |
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9 |
4 |
Comedians and Theatrical Performers - Pigmeat Markham |
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9 |
5 |
Dancers |
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9 |
6 |
Instrumentalists |
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9 |
7 |
Instrumentalists: Count Basie |
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9 |
8 |
Miscellaneous |
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9 |
9 |
Frank Schiffman |
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SERIES 5: EPHEMERA, 1940-1975 |
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10 |
1 |
Transcript of 1975 interview with Robert Schiffman |
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10 |
2 |
Manuscript - Chapter XI: Memorabilia "The Way We Were" |
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10 |
3 |
Manuscript - Harlem Heyday "A Pictorial Reminiscence of
Harlem’s Showplace," by Jack Schiffman. |
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10 |
4 |
Miscellaneous notes |
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11 [OS] |
1 |
Newspaper article: Sunday News, November 14, 1965 |
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11 [OS] |
2 |
Oversized Photographs |
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11 [OS] |
3 |
Two tribute books to Frank Schiffman |
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11 [OS] |
4 |
Architectural prints of the Apollo Theater |
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12
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Scrapbooks 1940, 1941, 1942, and n.d. miscellaneous scrapbook pages
[restricted until preserved] |
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13
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Scrapbooks 1940-1949, 1955-1956, and 1958 [restricted until preserved] |
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14
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Scrapbooks 1947-1949, and 1949-1950 [restricted until preserved] |
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15
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Scrapbooks 1950-1961, 1959-1961, and house staff photo, 1950
[restricted until preserved] |
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16 |
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SERIES 6: AUDIO |
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RTC 540.1 Side 1 |
OTC 540.1 |
"The Apollo":
A NBC promotional broadcast for the Apollo Theater. The program
discusses the uniqueness and importance of the Apollo Theater to the
African-American community and American pop-culture. [25 min] |
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RTC 540.2
Side 1 |
OTC 540.2 |
[NBC Broadcast - Apollo]
A publicity short about the Apollo Theater. [4 min, 40 sec] |
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RTC 540.3-1
Side 1
RTC 540.3-2
Side 2 |
OTC 540.3-1
OTC 540.3-2 |
"Black Dialogue" Part I:
Radio Program: Discussion between radio host, Bob Law and Apollo
manager, Robert Schiffman on the history, audience, and performers of the
Apollo Theater. [38 min]
"Black Dialogue" Part II:
Radio Program continued: Bob Law and Robert Schiffman talk over the
future of the Apollo Theater. [13 min, 20 sec] |
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