Frank Schiffman Apollo Theatre Collection
Object Details
- Scope and Contents
- Collection documents the business endeavors of Frank Schiffman, and the Apollo Theater's contribution to American culture. The collection includes sound recordings, personal and business correspondence, photographs, business records, and printed material.
- Summary
- The Frank Schiffman Apollo Theater Collection contains records, correspondence, photographs, and recordings concerning Frank Schiffman's business activities and the Apollo Theater's influences on American culture.
- Restrictions
- Collection is open for research. The scrapbooks in Series 5 are in extremely fragile condition. They cannot be made available for use until they are preserved.
- Provenance
- Collection donated to the Archives Center by Jack and Robert Schiffman in January 1996. An addendum was added to the collection in 2014.
- Arrangement
- The collection is arranged into eight series. Series 1: Correspondence, 1938-1985, undated Series 2: Business Records, 1931-1980, undated Series 3: Publicity, 1927-1993, undated Series 4: Photographs, 1904-1970, undated Series 5: Background and Historical Materials, 1900-2006, undated Series 6: Audio Recordings, 1921-1986, undated Subseries 6.1: Reel to Reel Tapes, 1972, undated Subseries 6.2: Records, 1921-1951, undated Subseries 6.3: Audio Cassette Tapes, 1970s-1986, undated Series 7: Performers Materials, 1940-1976, undated Series 8: Office Files, 1926-2009, undated
- Biographical / Historical
- The Apollo Theater is located in the Harlem section of New York City, New York. A prominent and influential institution, the Apollo Theater hosted numerous performances by popular entertainers who were primarily African-American, including Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Holiday, Smokey Robinson, and the Temptations from the early 1930s to the present. It became best known as the site of "amateur night" programs, which catapulted many of its winners (and losers) to national and international acclaim. To this day, the Apollo Theater remains an important fixture in both the music industry and the African-American community. The son of Austrian immigrants, Frank Schiffman began his career in the promotion and distribution of motion pictures in New York City. As his career grew, he managed various New York theaters such as the Lafayette and the Harlem Opera House. In 1934, Frank Schiffman became the first manager of the Apollo Theater. Soon thereafter, he became co-owner, and retained the management position until the early 1960s. Schiffman's lack of racial bias as well as his keen business sense helped the Apollo Theater to become a cultural icon within the performance industry. During the late 1940s and early 1950s, Schiffman's sons, Jack and Robert assisted him with the management of the theater, and later took over management upon Frank Schiffman's retirement. Frank Schiffman died in 1974 at the age of eighty.
- Collector
- Schiffman, Frank, 1894-1974
- Donor
- Schiffman, Jack
- Archival Repository
- Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Genre/Form
- Awards
- Handbills
- Ledgers (account books)
- Photographs -- 20th century
- Publicity photographs
- Scrapbooks -- 20th century
- Identifier
- NMAH.AC.0540
- Collector
- Schiffman, Frank, 1894-1974
- Donor
- Schiffman, Jack
- Names
- Apollo Theatre (New York, N.Y.)
- Schiffman, Robert
- Type
- Collection descriptions
- Archival materials
- Awards
- Handbills
- Ledgers (account books)
- Photographs
- Publicity photographs
- Scrapbooks
- Extent
- 8 Cubic feet (23 boxes)
- Place
- Harlem (New York, N.Y.) -- 20th century
- New York (N.Y.) -- 20th century
- Citation
- Frank Schiffman Apollo Theatre Collection, 1900-1985, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
- Processing Information
- Collection processed by Danielle Synder, intern, 2002. Addendum processed by Sarah Gediman, intern, 2019; Lauren M. Janik, intern, 2019; and Savannah Hildre, intern, 2019 supervised by Vanessa Broussard Simmons, archivist, 2019.
- See more items in
- Frank Schiffman Apollo Theatre Collection
- Topic
- African American entertainers -- 20th century
- African American musicians
- Concerts -- New York (State) -- New York
- Entertainers -- 1930-1980
- Music-halls -- 1930-1980
- Theaters -- New York (State) -- New York
- Date
- 1900-2009, undated
- Rights
- Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.