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COLLECTION Identifier: MS Thr 2111

File on the military revue, Harlem Hits the Tropics Part II

Content Description

Collection is comprised of 15 items: photographs produced by the Army Signal Corps; manuscript promotional material; and programs. With original manila folder. One manuscript sheet shows information about the Harlem Sultans sextet which featured a veteran of Fletcher Henderson's orchestra. The photographs show the band and actors at work, as well as a crowd of uniformed soldiers watching from their mess hall benches. (information from dealer's description)

Dates

  • Creation: 1944 March-April

Condition Description

In good condition

Conditions Governing Access

Open for research.

Extent

.08 linear feet (1 volume)

Biographical / Historical

Material is from a touring show staged by and for Black servicemen across Hawaii. The director was Corporal Milton J. Williams, who had acted on Broadway in "Cabin in the Sky." The actors were a mix of servicemen and local talent, including actress Betty Balingit, billed as "Hilo's Shirley Temple." (information from dealer's description)

Arrangement

Arranged as received.

Custodial History

Ownership prior to this acquisition is unknown.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

2021MT-45. Purchased from Auger Down Books with the Frank E. Chase Bequest, 2021 May 14.

Processing Information

Processed minimally by Melanie Wisner, 2021 June.

Title
File on the military revue, Harlem Hits the Tropics Part II, 1944 March-April (MS Thr 2111): Guide
Status
completed
Author
Houghton Library, Harvard University
Date
2021 May 27
Description rules
dacs
Language of description
eng
EAD ID
hou03385

Repository Details

Part of the Houghton Library Repository

Houghton Library is Harvard College's principal repository for rare books and manuscripts, archives, and more. Houghton Library's collections represent the scope of human experience from ancient Egypt to twenty-first century Cambridge. With strengths primarily in North American and European history, literature, and culture, collections range in media from printed books and handwritten manuscripts to maps, drawings and paintings, prints, posters, photographs, film and audio recordings, and digital media, as well as costumes, theater props, and a wide range of other objects. Houghton Library has historically focused on collecting the written record of European and Eurocentric North American culture, yet it holds a large and diverse number of primary sources valuable for research on the languages, culture and history of indigenous peoples of the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.

Houghton Library’s Reading Room is free and open to all who wish to use the library’s collections.

Contact:
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