MS 583 - Harold Obee Collection (Bowling Green, Ohio)
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| Title | MS 583 - Harold Obee Collection (Bowling Green, Ohio) |
|---|---|
| Subject | Arts & Entertainment |
| BGSU Centennial History | |
| Introduction | The Harold Obee collection is comprised of 3.5 cubic feet of predominantly research files, student papers, printed materials, and news clippings focused upon the study of drama and theater history. Collection dates run from 1906-1989 with major concentration between 1948 and 1978. Dr. Obee was especially interested in compiling a collection of source materials relevant to the development, history, and activities of community and college theaters throughout Ohio. About half of the documents in the collection are evidence of this effort. The remainder focuses upon general theater and speech instruction. Some of the collection's earliest documents (1906-1912) include programs from both the Chidester and Everybody's Theaters in Bowling Green, Ohio. Research cards produced from Ohio theater resources located at Ohio repositories and libraries provide details about theater programs, performances, and events from the 19th into the 20th centuries at theaters in such Ohio cities as Cincinnati, Toledo, Findlay, and Bowling Green. A hand drawn floor plan made in approximately 1960 of the auditorium of the Chidester Theater (formerly the Hankey-Taber Opera House) based on the memory of Minibelle Conley will be of interest to Bowling Green historians. Season theater schedules from the Stratford Shakespeare Festival (Ontario, Canada), Cincinnati Playhouse from the 1980's, and miscellaneous tourist brochures are included among the printed materials. Dr. Obee's involvement with the Ohio Sesquicentennial Commission's 1953 stage production"Seventeenth Star" is documented in files that once comprised MS-485. The collection was donated to the CAC by Ellen Obee with the cooperation of the Popular Culture Library, March 26, 1990. No restrictions have been placed upon the use of the collection from scholarly purposes. The collection was arranged and finding aid completed by Eric Honneffer, April 2007. |
| Biographical Sketch | Dr. Harold B. Obee was professor of speech at Bowling Green State University from 1949 until his retirement in 1978. He died in 1989. He served as play director, theater technical director, and business manager of the BGSU theater program. He also directed productions at the Huron Playhouse for the University's summer theater program. Dr. Obee was born May 4, 1915 in Catawba, Ohio. He received his bachelor's degree from Adrian College in 1938. In 1946, he received a masters degree and in 1961 a PhD from Ohio State University. His manuscripts reflect his special interest in researching theater history in Ohio with a particular desire to develop and have accessible at an academic institution, a special collection comprised of source material documenting the state's theater history. |
| Scope and Content | The Harold Obee Collection's 3.5 cubic feet of research files, note cards, research papers, and printed materials and clippings document Dr. Obee's efforts to identify scholarly resources relevant to the history of Ohio's theaters. These records would be especially useful to scholars with an interest in the dramatic arts and performing artists of Ohio. Original programs from Bowling Green's Chidester and Everybody's Theaters, note cards and news clippings relevant to local stage performances and performers from the late 19th and early 20th centuries will be of interest to local historians. Dr. Obee collected documentation and printed materials concerning the location of other theater research documents and collections available at libraries and archives both in Ohio and nationwide. Student research papers are included on topics concerning stage productions over the years at BGSU and provide a useful history of dramatic arts at the university. |
| Series Description | MEMBERSHIP RECORDS MEMBERSHIP RECORDS MEMBERSHIP RECORDS MEMBERSHIP RECORDS CORRESPONDENCE CORRESPONDENCE RESEARCH FILES RESEARCH FILES LITERARY PRODUCTIONS LITERARY PRODUCTIONS PRINTED MATERIAL PRINTED MATERIALS
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| Inventory | Box 1 Folders
Box 2: Literary Productions
Dr. Obee's research cards located in Box 5 Box 3
Box 4
Box 5 Research cards for Ohio Theaters including such cities as Cincinnati, Toledo, Findlay, Bowling Green, etc. and misc. speech and playwright cards (Late 19th century-20th) |