| Accession Number: | SC U:16 |
| Location: | RB-M (shelve with 920.07) |
| Dates: | c.1942 – c.1964 |
| Size: | 1 scrapbook in slip cover |
| Creator/Collector: | Collected by Charles “Charlie” Brandon? |
| Acquisition info: | Unknown |
| Accruals: | No accruals expected |
| Custodial history: | Unknown |
| Language: | English |
| Processed by: | Sarah Cain, February 2014 |
| Conservation notes: | Archival scrapbook |
| Scope and Content: | Most of the photos are of African-American entertainers (musicians, singers, and performers) that performed at Chicago theaters. Other photos are of African-American male athletes. All photos are inscribed and/or autographed. The Regal Theater opened in 1928 and closed in 1968. The building was later demolished in 1973. It stood at the corner of East 47th and South Park Boulevard (now South Martin Luther King Drive; 4710 S. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Chicago, IL 60615). The block that the Regal Theater was on also included the legendary Savoy Ballroom. This stretch of South Parkway in Bronzeville was popularly known as the Harlem of Chicago for its important cultural and social contribution to the African-American community in Chicago. The Theater hosted some of greatest African-American entertainers such as Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, among many others. It is also said that Bronzville native Nat King Cole got his start at one of the Regal’s popular Amateur Night contests. The Southway Hotel was located on the South Side of Chicago at 6012 S. Park Ave. The Tivoli Theater was built in 1921, closed in September of 1963, and demolished shortly thereafter. It stood at 6325 South Cottage Grove Avenue in the Woodland neighborhood of Chicago. Persing Hotel was located at 64th & Cottage Grove on the South Side of Chicago (6400 Cottage Grove Avenue). It is thought to have been closed in the late 1970s and demolished during the 1980s. Chicago Theater is located on North State Street in the Loop (175 N State St, Chicago, IL 60601). It is a landmark theater that opened in 1921. Hotel Sherman or the Sherman House Hotel was at the northwest corner of Randolph & Clark Streets in Chicago (100 W. Randolph Street; in the Loop). The most recent rebuild of the hotel was in 1911. A 23-story expansion was added in 1925. The Sherman House Hotel was demolished in 1980 and replaced by the State of Illinois Center/ James R. Thompson Center. |
| Arrangement: | None |
| Restrictions: | Unrestricted. Permission required to reproduce images. |
| Remarks: | Jean Gosebrink Acc. # 003370. |
African-American Entertainers and Sports Figures Album
c.1942 – c.1964
1 scrapbook in box; 0.45 cu. ft.
| Box/Page | Description |
| 1/1 | Finding aid |
| 1/- | Billie Holiday |
| 1/- | Dinah Washington |
| 1/- | Dolores Parker (Regal Theater; June 5, 1963) |
| 1/- | Ella Fitzgerald (Regal Theater; February 10, 1952) |
| 1/1 | Nicholas Brothers. Harold Nicolas, Fayard Nicolas (Regal Theater; October 15, 1953) |
| 1/2 | King Cole Trio. Nat King Cole, Oscar Moore, Johnny Miller (c.1942-1947) |
| 1/3 | Dorothy Donegan. (1940s) (adhered to photo of Joey Bishop, unsigned) |
| 1/4 | Louis Armstrong |
| 1/5 | Earl Hinds and His Orchestra |
| 1/6 | Duke Ellington and His Orchestra |
| 1/7 | Ivie Anderson (Southway Hotel; January 1951) |
| 1/8 | Count Basie (Southway Hotel; January 1954) |
| 1/9 | Louis Jordan and His Tympany Company (Tivoli Theater; July 23, 1959) |
| 1/10 | Roy Eldridge “Little Jazz” and his Orchestra |
| 1/11 | Marie Bryant (Persing Hotel; 1954) |
| 1/12 | Ray Robinson |
| 1/13 | Bob Montgomery, World’s Lightweight Champion (1943-1947) |
| 1/14 | The Ink Spots featuring Billy Kenny (signed by Kenny) |
| 1/15 | Erskine Hawkins and His Orchestra |
| 1/16 | Cabin in the Sky (1943) stars: Lena Horne, Eddie "Rochester" Anderson, John William Sublett as “Bubbles” Domino Johnson |
| 1/17 | Eartha Kitt (Chicago Theater; July 7, 1954). Photo from “Santa aby” music video (1953) |
| 1/18 | Johnny Hodges (Hotel Sherman) |
| 1/19 | Maria Louis; Joe Louis (Marva’s Home, 4320 Michigan Ave.; July 195?). Joe was the World Heavyweight Champion from 1937 to 1949 |
| 1/20 | Jesse Owens (c. 1964). At the upper left hand corner of this picture, a one-quarter seated portrait of Owens in a suit has been added. Below this portrait reads, “Jess Owens, Selected in National Poll as Greatest Track Athlete of Twentieth Century.” The lower right hand corner has the following list of track records: 100 yards, 9.4; 100 meter, 10.2; 200 meter, 20.01; 220 yards, 20.3; broad jump, 26’81/4”. |
| 1/21 | Jackie Robinson (November 13, 1947). The lower right hand corner of this picture has a “Jackie Robinson Black Heritage USA 20¢” stamp |
| 1/22 | Sugar Ray Robinson [born Walker Smith, Jr.] (Como? Hotel, Chicago, Ill.; December 15, 1952) |
| 1/23 | Lionel Hampton (Regal Theater; June 1952) |
| 1/24 | Cab Calloway and his Cotton Club Orchestra |
