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COLLECTION Identifier: T-97: T-125: Phon-7

Audio collection of Betty Friedan, 1963-2007

Overview

Audio collection of Betty Friedan, feminist, activist, teacher, and author includes radio broadcasts, speeches, etc.

Dates

  • Creation: 1963-2007

Creator

Language of Materials

Materials in English.

Access Restrictions:

Access. Unrestricted except for T-125, reels 29-43, which are closed until January 1, 2029, and T-125, reels 54-57, which are closed until January 1, 2019. An appointment is necessary to use any audiovisual material.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright in the audio materials created by Betty Friedan is held by her heirs. Copyright in other audio materials in the collection may be held by their authors, or the authors' heirs or assigns.

Copying. Audiovisual materials may be copied in accordance with the library's usual procedures.

Extent

148 audiotapes
3 phonograph records

Audio materials included in other finding aids from the library's collection have been re-listed here in chronological order within each series, maintaining original reel numbers. Some items from previous finding aids may have been removed because they were duplicates or deemed unrelated. Materials are in audiocassette format unless otherwise noted.

Series I, Radio broadcasts, 1963-1995, includes radio broadcasts that feature Friedan in interviews and delivering speeches at national conferences such as the National Organization for Women (NOW) and the 1972 Democratic National Convention.

Series II, Speeches, 1974-1999, includes Friedan speaking to groups as diverse as the Girl Scouts Council of Northwest Cook County, Illinois, women in Iran and Montana, the Commonwealth Club of California, and American Society of Aging, as well as a debate between Friedan and Phyllis Schlafly at Armed Forces Staff College.

Series III, Lectures and symposia, 1967-1991, includes university lectures by Friedan, as well as Economic Think Tank for Women and Women, Men, and Media symposia, etc.

Series IV, Miscellaneous,1960-2007, includes a variety of material such as recordings for personal research, an oral history with Friedan, recordings of her 65th and 75th birthday parties, her mother's memorial service, and friends' remembrances after Friedan's death.

BIOGRAPHY

Feminist, activist, and author Betty Goldstein Friedan (1921-2006) helped found the National Organization for Women [NOW], and served as its first president (1966-1970). Her first book, The Feminine Mystique, was published in 1963. Afterward, Friedan quickly became a leading advocate for change in the status of women in the United States. Her subsequent books include It Changed My Life (1976), The Second Stage (1981), and The Fountain of Age (1993). Friedan was active in many feminist and political organizations, taught at several universities, lectured widely, and published numerous articles on gender and aging related issues until her death.

ARRANGEMENT

The collection is arranged in four series:

  1. Series I. Radio broadcasts, 1963-1995
  2. Series II. Speeches, 1974-1999
  3. Series III. Lectures and symposia, 1967-1991
  4. Series IV. Miscellaneous, 1960-2007

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Accession numbers: 96-M122, 96-M141, 97-M94, 97-M160, 99-M137, 2004-M79, 2005-M17, 2006-M13, 2007-M34.

These audio materials were given to the Schlesinger Library by Betty Friedan and Marlene Sanders from 1996 through 2007.

Related Material:

There is additional material at the Schlesinger Library; see Betty Friedan Papers, 1952-1993 (MC 576), Betty Friedan Papers, 1933-1985 (MC 575), Betty Friedan Papers, 1941-2006 (MC 577), and Betty Friedan Video collection, ca.1970-2006 (Vt-1, DVD-34).

Processing Information

Processed: November 2010

By: Melissa Dollman

Title
Friedan, Betty. Audio collection of Betty Friedan, 1963-2007: A Finding Aid
Author
Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America
Language of description
eng
EAD ID
sch01317

Repository Details

Part of the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute Repository

The preeminent research library on the history of women in the United States, the Schlesinger Library documents women's lives from the past and present for the future. In addition to its traditional strengths in the history of feminisms, women’s health, and women’s activism, the Schlesinger collections document the intersectional workings of race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and class in American history.

Contact:
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