Research Catalog
Frank Cambria and Sophie T. Cambria collection of Vincente Minnelli costume designs
- Title
- Frank Cambria and Sophie T. Cambria collection of Vincente Minnelli costume designs, circa 1925-1928 and undated.
- Author
- Cambria, Frank, 1883-1966
Items in the Library & Off-site
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3 Items
| Status | Vol/Date | Format | Access | Call Number | Item Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Available - Can be used on site. Please visit New York Public Library - Performing Arts Research Collections to submit a request in person. | Box 1 | Text | Supervised use | *T-Vim 2014-180 Box 1 | Performing Arts Research Collections - Theatre |
Available - Can be used on site. Please visit New York Public Library - Performing Arts Research Collections to submit a request in person. | Box 2 | Text | Supervised use | *T-Vim 2014-180 Box 2 | Performing Arts Research Collections - Theatre |
Available - Can be used on site. Please visit New York Public Library - Performing Arts Research Collections to submit a request in person. | Box 3 | Text | Supervised use | *T-Vim 2014-180 Box 3 | Performing Arts Research Collections - Theatre |
Details
- Additional Authors
- Description
- 1.5 linear feet (3 boxes)
- Summary
- This collection includes original drawings and renderings for costume designs for various theatrical productions created by Vincente Minnelli for the Balaban & Katz and Paramount-Publix theatre companies, under the art direction of Frank Cambria. All designs are works on paper, in a variety of media. More than half the collection are finished drawings; the remainder are unfinished sketches. Only two productions are clearly identified: Alice in Wonderland (Chicago, 1925) and Oliver Twist. Additionally, there are two portrait photographs taken by Minnelli of Cambria family members and a 1928 letter from Minnelli to Cambria describing his proposed designs for a Paramount-Publix production. This collection was compiled by Cambria and passed down to his daughter, Sophie T. Cambria, who was the aunt of the seller.
- Subjects
- Genre/Form
- Costume design drawings.
- Correspondence.
- Photographic prints.
- Source (note)
- NYPL
- Call Number
- *T-Vim 2014-180
- Author
- Cambria, Frank, 1883-1966, collector.
- Title
- Frank Cambria and Sophie T. Cambria collection of Vincente Minnelli costume designs, circa 1925-1928 and undated.
- Biography
- In 1916, A.J. and Barney Balaban joined their brother-in-law Sam Katz to create the theatrical management firm Balaban & Katz. With increasing success and larger capitalization, Balaban & Katz began more than a decade of developing new and architecturally significant movie theatres in which they developed innovative connections between motion pictures and elaborately-designed vaudeville and stage performances featuring many of the leading entertainers of the day. By 1924, Balaban & Katz was the most successful chain of movie theatres in the United States. Frank Cambria was the art director for Balaban & Katz in Chicago, later transferring to the New York offices of Paramount-Publix after it acquired Balaban & Katz in 1926.American film and stage director, Vincente Minnelli began his theatrical career as a costume and set designer in Chicago. Seeking even more dominance in film distribution and exhibition, in 1926 Paramount/Publix, a rival chain of movie theatres connected with Paramount Pictures in Hollywood, acquired Balaban & Katz. As a result, A.J. Balaban moved to New York City in 1929 to serve as vice-president of Paramount/Publix's presentation unit, which maintained creative control over the elaborate stage shows made famous by Balaban & Katz. Between 1929 and 1931, Minnelli split his time between Chicago and New York, but moved to New York to design for Paramount theatres full time in 1931.
- Note
- Purchase: NYPL, 2014.
- Connect to:
- Added Author
- Cambria, Sophie T., collector.Minnelli, Vincente, artist.Balaban & Katz.
- Research Call Number
- *T-Vim 2014-180