- physdesc
-
{"format"=>"simple", "value"=>"5.93 lin. ft. (16 boxes)"}
- unitid
-
{"value"=>"*T-Mss 1991-012", "type"=>"local_call"}
{"value"=>"21378", "type"=>"local_mss"}
- unittitle
-
{"value"=>"Ken Harper papers"}
- repository
-
{"value"=>"The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Billy Rose Theatre Division."}
- abstract
-
{"value"=>"Ken Harper was the producer of the popular Broadway musical <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> . The bulk of material in this collection is professional correspondence pertaining to the stage production of <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> . There is little personal correspondence and no personal papers or photographs. The rest of the collection includes contracts, legal/financial agreements and scripts."}
- prefercite
-
{"value"=>"<p>Ken Harper Papers, *T-Mss 1991-012, Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.</p>"}
- origination
-
{"value"=>"Harper, Ken, d. 1988", "type"=>"persname"}
- bioghist
-
{"value"=>"<p>Ken Harper was the producer who conceived and brought the successful, all-black musical <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> to Broadway. This L. Frank Baum adaptation ran for five years and won seven Tony awards in 1975.</p> <p>Born around 1939, Kenneth G. Harper was an adopted child who was raised in Bronx, New York. He graduated high school and entered Columbia University but later dropped out to join the army. In Korea he began his career as a disc jockey, playing music for Armed Forces radio. After his discharge in the 1960s he was hired by radio station WPIX, New York. He worked there for nearly a decade, eventually becoming the Music and Public Affairs Director.</p> <p>The concept for an all-black musical came to Harper in 1971. He originally planned to make the production into a television special. When that fell through, he initiated the campaign to seek funding for a Broadway musical. Harper contacted numerous individuals and corporations like Xerox and Warner Brothers for financial support, but his concept was rejected out of hand. Many scoffed at the idea of a production that competed against the Judy Garland film version and thought investing in this show was a huge gamble. Ken Harper eventually convinced Twentieth Century-Fox to provide $650,000 in backing in exchange for the movie, record and publishing rights.</p> <p><span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> premiered at the Morris A. Mechanic Theater in Baltimore on October 21, 1974. After performances in Detroit and Philadelphia it almost closed because of production problems and mixed reviews. The show became livelier after costume designer Geoffrey Holder was named director. <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> opened in New York at the Majestic Theatre on January 5, 1975, but did not receive critical acclaim. Only after principal backer Twentieth Century-Fox poured $120,000 into a television advertising blitz did the show's popularity and revenues begin to rise. This advertising campaign combined with word-of-mouth brought in thousands of theatergoers and contributed to making <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> one of the most popular Broadway musicals. There were several U.S. road productions along with foreign performances that included Australia and Japan.</p> <p>Ken Harper later acquired the motion picture rights for <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> from Twentieth Century-Fox. Universal Pictures then acquired the rights from Harper and produced the 1978 movie version starring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson. Ken Harper served as executive producer.</p> <p>Harper spent his remaining years searching for financial backing for another musical called <span class=\"title\">Bamboo</span>, based on a ninth-century Japanese fairy tale. He intended to have Diana Ross star.</p> <p>Ken Harper died at his home on January 20, 1988, at the age of 48.</p>"}
- custodhist
-
{"value"=>"<p>The Ken Harper Papers were donated to the Billy Rose Theatre Division in 1991.</p>"}
- scopecontent
-
{"value"=>"<p>The Ken Harper papers span the years 1972-1988. The bulk of the material is professional correspondence regarding the stage production of <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span>. Most of the letters to Harper are from company attorneys concerning contracts, financial agreements and lawsuits. There is little personal correspondence to or from Ken Harper.</p> <p>The rest of this collection consists of scripts (<span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> and <span class=\"title\">Bamboo</span>), financial statements, legal papers and one file of clippings. There are no personal papers or photographs. Three reel-to-reel audio tapes and six audio cassettes connected with the production of <span class=\"title\">Bamboo</span> have been transferred to the Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound.</p>"}
{"value"=>"<p class='list-head'>The Ken Harper papers are arranged in five series:</p>\n<ul class='arrangement series-descriptions'>\n<li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21378#c297842'>Series I: General Correspondence</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1972-1987</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>7 boxes</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>The general correspondence includes letters from corporations and individuals rejecting Ken Harper's requests for financial backing for <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> and <span class=\"title\">Bamboo</span>. Most of the correspondence concerns legal matters-financial and contractual agreements, lawsuits, labor arbitration, and copyright infringement. Box 1 includes correspondence to and from <span class=\"persname\">Josephine Baker</span> about her possible role as the Wicked Witch and three letters from writer William F. Brown concerning problems with scenes, staging, songs, and re-writes. Box 2 contains Harper's notification of <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span>'s Tony nomination and subsequent congratulatory letters and notes.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21378#c297944'>Series II: The Wiz</a></div>\n<div class='series-extent'>6 boxes</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series contains documents regarding the stage production of <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span>. The material is arranged in chronological order and mostly includes business correspondence and legal papers.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21378#c298028'>Series III: The wiz (Motion picture)</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1974-1983</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>.41 linear feet (1 box)</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series contains contracts, correspondence, royalty payments and financial statements regarding the motion picture.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21378#c298037'>Series IV: Bamboo</a></div>\n<div class='series-extent'>2 boxes</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series contains papers regarding another production of Ken Harper's entitled <span class=\"title\">Bamboo</span>, based on a ninth-century Japanese fairy tale.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21378#c298060'>Series V: Miscellaneous writings</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1979</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>2 folders</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series contains two short stories with similar themes, <span class=\"title\">Down the Sky</span> written by Jeremy Lucas, and <span class=\"title\">Nightride and Sunrise</span> by John Jobe and Ken Harper. Ken Harper anticipated developing these stories into screenplays.</p></div></li></ul>\n", "type"=>"arrangement"}
- arrangement
-
{"value"=>"<p> <ul> <li>Series I: General Correspondence</li> <li>Series II: <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> (Musical) <ul> <li>Sub-series 1 - Business Correspondence</li> <li>Sub-series 2 - Legal Papers</li> <li>Sub-series 3 - Production Files</li> <li>Sub-series 4 - Scripts</li> <li>Sub-series 5 - Tours</li></ul></li> <li>Series III: <span class=\"title\">The Wiz</span> (Motion picture)</li> <li>Series IV: <span class=\"title\">Bamboo</span> <ul> <li>Sub-series 1 - Production Files</li> <li>Sub-series 2 - Legal / Financial Papers</li></ul></li> <li>Series V: Miscellaneous Writings</li></ul></p>", "supress_display"=>true}
- separatedmaterial
-
{"value"=>"<p>Sound recordings have been separated to the Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound.</p> <p>Audiovisual materials separated from archival collections are cataloged individually and can be found in the Library catalog. Search CATNYP, The New York Public Library catalog.</p>"}
- processinfo
-
{"value"=>"<p>Processed by Rodney Hoffner.</p>"}
{"value"=>"<p>The collection was conserved, rehoused, and processed in 1996. Clippings were photocopied on acid-free paper for conservation purposes.</p>"}
- accessrestrict
-
{"value"=>"<p>Photocopying prohibited.</p>"}
- userestrict
-
{"value"=>"<p>For permission to publish, contact the Curator, Billy Rose Theatre Division.</p>"}
- unitdate
-
{"value"=>"1972-1988", "type"=>"inclusive", "normal"=>"1972/1988"}
- date_inclusive_start
-
1972
- date_inclusive_end
-
1988
- acqinfo
-
{"accession_number"=>"THE910706"}
{"date"=>"1991", "source"=>"Stanley Szaro, Attorney", "address"=>"See donor file", "method"=>"Gift", "extent"=>"5.93 o", "value"=>"Gift, Stanley Szaro, Attorney, 1991"}
- relatedmaterial
-
{"value"=>"<p>Ken Harper papers and sound recordings</p>", "type"=>"host"}
- keydate
-
1972
- date_start
-
1972
- date_end
-
1988