Scope and arrangement
The Joseph Stein papers (1955-1993) document Stein's career as a playwright, librettist, and screenwriter, and the process of creating and revising his major stage and film works. Rags; The Baker's Wife; Carmelina; Zorba; and So Long, 174th Street are represented most extensively in this collection. Many unproduced film, television, and theatre projects are also contained in this collection, as well as shows to which Stein contributed as an unaccredited consultant or script doctor. These include The Rothschilds, Sheep on the Runway, and Minnie's Boys.
Production materials illuminate Stein's writing process with multiple drafts of revised and annotated scripts, excerpts, rewritten scenes, outlines and treatments. There are also photographs and a program from a Hebrew production of Fiddler on the Roof. Production files pertaining to Enter Laughing include programs, reviews and a letter discussing weekly grosses.
This collection also contains a small amount of business correspondence. These letters document negotiations for professional projects between Stein and various collaborators, lawyers, potential producers, and agents. Correspondence frequently discusses film rights and later productions of such shows as Rags, the Baker's Wife, and Zorba.
This collection does not contain personal materials.
Arrangement
This collection is divided into two categories: Productions and Business Correspondence.