Julius Monk papers

1906-1991 [bulk 1935-1979]

The Julius Monk papers date from 1906 to 1991 (bulk 1935-1979). Approximately half the collection consists of scripts and scores for Monk's revues from the 1950s and 1960s. The rest of the collection consists of memorabilia and correspondence related to Monk's career, such as newspaper and magazine clippings, programs, promotional material, photographs, and letters. Most of the this material is mounted in scrapbooks, but some is loose.

Material predating 1941 documents Monk's work as a pianist and nightclub manager in New York and Europe, especially in Paris. Material dating 1941 to 1968 chiefly concerns Monk's revues at Le Ruban Bleu, the Downstairs Room, Upstairs at the Downstairs, and Plaza 9-. One scrapbook documents Monk's 1953 revue, Stock in Trade, performed in Bermuda, and another scrapbook documents his 1963 Chicago revue, Struts and Frets. Material from after 1968 is mostly clippings regarding performers and writers who Monk worked with. Other material from after 1968 includes programs for revues, and a small number of letters from Monk's colleagues.

The earliest material in the collection is a set of colored costume designs from 1906, identified as being for "The Blue-Belles" in London.

The collection also contains scripts, scores, and lyrics for songs and sketches, most of which were featured in Monk's revues from 1956 to 1968. Unproduced songs and sketches are also present, as are some songs that were originally written for other productions. Scripts and scores are identified only by their title and author, and not by the revues that they pertained to. Sketch writers, composers, and lyricists represented in the collection include Michael Brown, William F. Brown, Dee Caruso, Lesley Davison, Clark Gesner, Bud McCreery, William Roy, and G. Wood. The majority of the scores are manuscripts. Scripts are mostly clean copies. The collection includes a shooting script for "Julius Monk's Plaza 9," a revue that was televised as an episode of NET Playhouse.