- physdesc
-
{"format"=>"simple", "value"=>"13.9 linear feet (8 boxes) + 10 scrapbooks"}
- unitid
-
{"value"=>"*T-Mss 1965-003", "type"=>"local_call"}
{"value"=>"21476", "type"=>"local_mss"}
- unittitle
-
{"value"=>"Ray Henderson papers"}
- repository
-
{"value"=>"The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Billy Rose Theatre Division."}
- abstract
-
{"value"=>"Ray Henderson, advance man and publicist, promoted many of the well-known actors of the early 20th century, among them George Arliss, Katharine Cornell and E. H. Sothern and Julia Marlowe. His papers document this relationship with these theatrical personalities through correspondence, press releases, clippings and tour materials."}
- prefercite
-
{"value"=>"<p>Ray Henderson Papers, *T-Mss 1965-003, Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.</p>"}
- origination
-
{"value"=>"Henderson, Ray, 1889-1937", "type"=>"persname"}
- bioghist
-
{"value"=>"<p><span class=\"persname\">Ray Henderson</span>, press agent, was born John Ray Henderson on August 25, 1889 in Saquache County, Colorado, the youngest child of Robert Louis Henderson and Willamartha Laura Harris. At an early age he developed a love of the performing arts, attending theatrical and musical performances as they toured the Colorado Springs area. He began his career as a publicity man in Colorado Springs, doing house publicity for local theaters. Later, he joined the Forbes-Robertson Company as a press agent in Omaha, Nebraska. During his career, his clients included George Arliss, E. H. Sothern and Julia Marlowe, Ethel Barrymore and finally Katharine Cornell and Guthrie McClintic.</p> <p>He started working for Katharine Cornell and Guthrie McClintic in 1931, working as both an advance man and a publicist. Henderson was well-known and well-respected in his field where he was acknowledged to be the road's number one advance man. He was the first president of the New York Theatrical Press Agents.</p> <p>In 1937, on an advance trip for an upcoming Katharine Cornell tour to Asia, Australia, Africa and Europe, he was killed in a plane crash off the coast of Athens, Greece. He was buried in Athens but through the intervention of Lillian Gish and Katharine Cornell his body was returned to the United States, aboard the ship Valconia and he was buried in the Evergreen Cemetery in Colorado Springs, Colorado.</p>"}
- custodhist
-
{"value"=>"<p>The collection was donated to the Billy Rose Theatre Division probably by Katharine Cornell sometime around 1965, though it could have been earlier.</p>"}
- scopecontent
-
{"value"=>"<p>The Ray Henderson papers consist of correspondence, personal papers and ephemera, clippings and professional materials from his career as a publicist and advance man, that document both his personal life and his work for many of the theater personalities of the early 20th century. The papers are rich in information on early 20th century <span class=\"subject\">theater</span> through the voluminous and news-filled correspondence of many <span class=\"subject\">actors</span> who were both friends and clients of Henderson. Notables include <span class=\"persname\">George Arliss</span>, <span class=\"persname\">Katharine Cornell</span>, <span class=\"persname\">E. H. Sothern</span> and <span class=\"persname\">Julia Marlowe</span>.</p> <p>The personal papers illuminate other facets of his life including his early years and his family. A <span class=\"genreform\">diary</span>, written by a young Ray Henderson, describes both the theater and the opera tours which came to Colorado and shows how his early love for performance developed into his career. There is a significant amount of personal photographs, though many are unidentifed, showing family members in Colorado in the early 20th century.</p> <p>Other professional materials include tour diaries and itineraries for publicity tours of such notables as <span class=\"persname\">Ethel Barrymore</span>, Sothern and Marlowe and Katharine Cornell. One tragic addition to the collection is the binder and papers which were found with his body after the plane crash off the Athens coast. Press releases and writings in typescript form complete this material. A series of scrapbooks contain clippings, as well as an occasional program or press release, on various productions.</p>"}
{"value"=>"<p class='list-head'>The Ray Henderson papers are arranged in five series:</p>\n<ul class='arrangement series-descriptions'>\n<li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21476#c304537'>Series I: Personal Papers</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1904-1937</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>1 box</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series contains a diary of his early years, clippings, <span class=\"genreform\">passports</span> and personal documents as well as <span class=\"genreform\">photographs</span> of his family and friends. Of special interest is a set of photographs with clippings about the destruction of the set for the <span class=\"corpname\">Forbes-Robertson Company</span> production of <span class=\"title\">Caesar and Cleopatra</span>. Other significant photographs include images of hospitals and battlefields of <span class=\"subject\">World War I</span>, with one extremely graphic photograph of a mutilated body. Other items of interest are the family photographs and obituary for his brother, Alva, who died in the influenza epidemic of 1918.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21476#c304558'>Series II: Correspondence</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1905-1937</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>4 boxes</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series contains letters from friends and clients of Ray Henderson during his career as publicity agent and advance man. Many are informative letters on the theater and personal news. Correspondents include <span class=\"persname\">George Arliss</span>, <span class=\"persname\">Mary Daly</span> (employee of Sothern and Marlowe), <span class=\"persname\">Maxine Elliott</span>, <span class=\"persname\">Burns Mantle</span>, <span class=\"persname\">H. T. Parker</span>, <span class=\"persname\">Julia Marlowe</span>, <span class=\"persname\">E. H. Sothern</span> and <span class=\"persname\">Blanche Yurka</span>. Of special note are a few missives from <span class=\"famname\">Henderson family</span> members.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21476#c304655'>Series III: Publicity Agent Materials</a></div>\n<div class='series-extent'>2 boxes</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series consists of professional papers documenting Henderson's career and is comprised of two sub-series.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21476#c304693'>Series IV: Clippings</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>ca. 1915-1936</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>1 box</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series consists of clippings about Henderson clients as well as things in which he was interested. Topics include <span class=\"persname\">George Arliss</span>, <span class=\"persname\">Ethel Barrymore</span>, <span class=\"persname\">Walter Hampden</span>'s production of <span class=\"title\">Hamlet</span>, <span class=\"persname\">James K. Hackett</span>'s production of <span class=\"title\">Macbeth</span>, and <span class=\"corpname\">Sothern and Marlowe.</span> General interest topics include <span class=\"subject\">opera</span> and <span class=\"subject\">theater</span>.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/the/21476#c304708'>Series V: Scrapbooks</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1934-1938</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>10 boxes</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>This series contains scrapbooks of clippings, with the occasional press release and program, on the listed play titles. The scrapbooks were more than likely kept by Katharine Cornell and donated by her. Most ot these scrapbooks are very fragile, some are unbound, please handle with extreme care.</p></div></li></ul>\n", "type"=>"arrangement"}
- arrangement
-
{"value"=>"<p> <ul> <li>Series I : Personal Papers</li> <li>Series II: Correspondence</li> <li>Series III: Publicity Agent Materials <ul> <li>Sub-series 1 - Tour Materials</li> <li>Sub-series 2 - Press Releases, Articles and Other Writings</li></ul></li> <li>Series IV: Clippings</li> <li>Series V: Scrapbooks</li></ul></p>", "supress_display"=>true}
- separatedmaterial
-
{"value"=>"<p> <ul> <li>George Arliss (2)</li> <li>Ethel Barrymore</li> <li>Katharine Cornell</li> <li>Maxine Elliott</li> <li>George Hayes</li> <li>Jane Houston</li> <li>Julia Marlowe (2)</li> <li>Edith Wynne Matthison (2)</li> <li>E. H. Sothern</li></ul> <ul> <li>Ethel Barrymore in <span class=\"title\">The Kingdom of God</span> (4)</li></ul></p>"}
- processinfo
-
{"value"=>"<p>Processed by Mary Ellen Rogan.</p>"}
{"value"=>"<p>The collection was originally in the papers of Katharine Cornell. However, in 2000 the papers were separated out of that collection, organized, processed and cataloged. Some of the paper in the collection is brittle.</p>"}
- accessrestrict
-
{"value"=>"<p>Photocopying prohibited.</p>"}
- userestrict
-
{"value"=>"<p>For permission to publish, contact the Curator, Billy Rose Theatre Division.</p>"}
- note
-
{"value"=>"Robert Louis Henderson, b. January 4, 1846, Mason County, Kentucky; d. March 25, 1939 in Omaha, Nebraska Married May 30, 1872, probably in Virginia, Willamartha Laura Harris, b. July 29, 1853, Montgomery County, Virginia; d. July 17, 1909 in Colorado Springs, El Paso County, Colorado. Children: 1 - Bertha Virginia Henderson, b. Richardson County, Nebraska on February 25, 1873; d. April 15, 1924; m. George Farrington, ch. Willamartha Farrington (1909-1984), George Louis Farrington 2 - George Samuel Henderson, b. November 16, 1874 in Richardson County, Nebraska; d. 1904 in Colorado 3 - Robert Louis Henderson, b. October 12, 1876 in Richardson County, Nebraska; d. July 1963 in Colorado Springs, El Paso County, Colorado; m. Georgia Gertrude Yorke 4 - Alva Willie Henderson, b. March 25, 1887 in Saguache County, Colorado; d. December 18, 1918 in Colorado Springs, El Paso County, Colorado; m. Irene Thomas, ch. Frederick Louis, Alva, Doris. 5 - John Raymond Henderson, b. August 25, 1889 in Saguache County, Colorado; d. October 1, 1937, off the coast of Athens, Greece."}
- unitdate
-
{"value"=>"1904-1937", "type"=>"inclusive", "normal"=>"1904/1937"}
- date_inclusive_start
-
1904
- date_inclusive_end
-
1937
- acqinfo
-
{"accession_number"=>"MWEZ nos"}
{"date"=>"1965", "source"=>"Katharine Cornell?", "address"=>"See donor file", "method"=>"Gift", "value"=>"Gift, Katharine Cornell?, 1965"}
- keydate
-
1904
- date_start
-
1904
- date_end
-
1937