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Creator
Frye, Charles A.
Call number
Sc MIRS Frye 1995
Physical description
9 audio_recordings. 1 video_recording
Language
English
Preferred Citation
Charles A. Frye audio and moving image collection, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division, The New York Public Library
Sponsor
An anonymous donor funded preliminary processing for this collection. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation supported a research library-wide grant for the digitization, and funded the Schomburg for the description and production of the finding aid as part of The Next Century of Black Studies Project.
Repository
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division
Access to materials
Appointment preferred: Request an in-person research appointment.

Charles Anthony Frye (1946-1994), an early proponent of Black studies, taught philosophy, religion, and literature, in addition to being a published novelist and poet. The Charles A. Frye audio and moving image collection consists of one video and nine audio recordings relating to his diverse career as an academic and writer.

Biographical/historical information

Charles Anthony Frye (1946-1994), an early proponent of Black studies, taught philosophy, religion, and literature, in addition to being a published novelist and poet.

In 1970, Frye earned an MA in African studies focused on religion and philosophy from Howard University, and a PhD from the University of Pittsburgh in higher education, curriculum development and administration in 1976. He taught at several universities, including Howard University, Hampshire College, Prairie View A and M University, and Southern University at New Orleans.

As a visiting humanities professor at Albright College (1988-1999), he co-organized a symposium on Toni Morrison's novel Beloved, which is a significant portion of this collection. Frye published seven books including the reputed Towards a Philosophy of Black Studies (1979) and From Egypt to Don Juan: The Anatomy of Black Philosophy (1988). Additionally, he wrote a novel, The Peter Pan Chronicles (1989), and a screenplay, Solina, as well as short stories and a number of poems. Frye received the Benjamin A. Mays Academy Scholars Award and the Ford Foundation Advance Study Fellowship.

At age forty-eight, Frye died of lymphoma in New Orleans leaving behind unfinished writings. His memorial service and a special tribute is included in the collection.

Scope and arrangement

The Charles A. Frye audio and moving image collection consists of one video and nine audio recordings. They are arranged chronologically. Since the collection's original format is audio cassettes, some of the items contain two parts, one for each side of the cassette. When the spelling of participants' names is unclear, they appear in square brackets in the item description.

The audio recordings include a staged reading from Frye's novel The Peter Pan Chronicles, recordings from "Beloved: A Two-Day Symposium on Toni Morrison," and Frye's memorial service in New York City in 1995. The video recording is a special tribute for Frye from faculty members, students, and friends at Southern University at New Orleans.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Gift of Claudia Menza, 1997.

Processing information

Collection inventoried by Virginia Mullaney. Collection processed and described by Ornella U. Baganizi, archivist; and Shola Lynch, curator. Finding aid published in 2024.

Separated material

See the Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Books Division for the Charles A. Frye papers, 1874-1999, Sc MG 585.

Related Material

The Peter Pan chronicles by Charles Frye, Sc D 91-188.

Using the collection

Location

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division
515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10037-1801
Third Floor

Access to materials

Appointment preferred: Request an in-person research appointment.