J. Howard Miller papers

Access and use

Location of collection:
George Mason University
2400 Fenwick Library
Special Collections Research Center
Fenwick Library MS2FL
George Mason University
Fairfax, VA 22030
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Mieko Palazzo
Phone: (703) 993-2220
Fax: (703) 993-2669
Restrictions:

There are no access restrictions.

Terms of access:

Materials created prior to 1925 are in the Public Domain. These materials have no known restrictions.

The copyright and related rights status of materials created after 1925 have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)

Preferred citation:

J. Howard Miller personal papers, C0228, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.

Summary

Extent:
2.5 Linear Feet (6 boxes)
Creator:
Miller, J. Howard
Abstract:
The J. Howard Miller papers consist of scrapbooks and folders containing newspaper clippings, programs, photographs, telegrams, and other pieces of ephemera, most of which are related to Federal Theatre Project productions in Los Angeles, San Diego, Padua Hills, and Denver. Also included is correspondence to and from Miller and employee identification cards.
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

J. Howard Miller personal papers, C0228, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.

Background

Scope and content:

The J. Howard Miller papers contain eleven scrapbooks created by Miller. Scrapbooks are compiled around a location or play: one has general newsclippings about the Federal Theatre Project and the WPA, three are for productions from the Mayan Theatre in Los Angeles, two are for productions from the Savoy Theatre in San Diego, one is for the State Emergency Relief Administration (SERA), one covers the Federal Theatre unit in Denver, one covers the play It Can't Happen Here in it's many locations of production. There are also two scrapbooks for materials that did not originate with the Federal Theatre Project, one of these is filled with programs collected by Miller and the other is material from the Padua Players theatre group where Miller worked before joining the Federal Theatre. Also included in this collection is one folder of photographs featuring Federal Theatre sets and actors, and three folders with correspondence, miscellaneous newspaper clippings, and employee related material.

Biographical / historical:

Born on April 3, 1908 J. Howard Miller was a former actor and stage manager. He worked with the Federal Theatre Project as the Regional Director in the west, and later the Deputy National Director of the Federal Theatre Project.

The Federal Theatre Project was a division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), which provided employment for large numbers of artists, writers, and performers during the Great Depression (1929-1939). The Federal Theatre began in 1935 and, until its end in 1939, flourished as the first and only federally sponsored and subsidized theater program in the United States. Directed by Hallie Flanagan (1880-1969), it was a way for theatrical professionals to gain employment during the Depression.

Acquisition information:
Donated to Special Collections and Archives by J. Howard Miller on April 12, 1979.
Processing information:

Processing and EAD markup completed in November 2012 by Greta Kuriger Suiter.

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged alphabetically by title.

Physical location:
Map Case 9.1
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard