Elizabeth Wheeler hip hop research collection

1981-1984

Elizabeth Wheeler, a former editor of St. Martin's Press, is an Associate Professor in the Department of English at the University of Oregon. She also is the Director of Disability Studies Minor. She teaches and researches in the fields of disability studies, young adult and children's literature, comics studies, post-1945 U.S literature and popular culture, and community-based education. She wrote HandiLand: The Crippest Place on Earth about young people with disabilities. Steven Hager is a journalist and the author of Hip-Hop: The Illustrated History of Rap Music, Break Dancing and Subway Graffiti (1984), the first book documenting hip hop music and culture. He is a former reporter for the New York Daily News and former editor of High Times (1988-2003). This collection provides information on the development of hip hop and the individuals who made its rise possible, as recorded by journalist Steven Hager and collected by Elizabeth Wheeler. Documenting hip hop during the early 1970s to mid-1980s, the collection covers the emergence and recognition of this then-new subculture. Included are an outline, manuscript draft, and photocopies of Hager's published writing, along with notes from the initial meeting with the publisher to discuss the publication of Hager's book, Hip-Hop: The Illustrated History of Rap Music, Break Dancing and Subway Graffiti. Marketing and promotional correspondence for the book, as well as articles and reviews of films and books on hip hop, are in the collection. The process, from the decision to publish Hager's manuscript to the marketing of the book, is highlighted in the correspondence to and from the editor, Elizabeth (Betsy) Wheeler of St. Martin's Press.