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Time Inc.

 Series

Scope and Contents

This series consists of time spent by Dr. Wharton as a board member of Time Inc. Two events are the main focus of the series. In 1989 Time Inc. merged with Warner Communication Inc. Dr. Wharton was on the board of Time Inc. during this event. The papers include stock holder reports, annual reports, committee reports, lawsuits stemming from the merger, and correspondence between Time Inc. management to the board of directors. Much of this material that related to the merger is marked for removal by Dr. Wharton. This series also included the Time Inc. tour of the Pacific, called the Pacific Rim News Tour. This tour was organized by Time Inc. and Dr. Wharton, as a board member, was invited and he attended. Papers included advanced reading material, and background information on each country visited. There are some photographs included, some that look personal, and some taken by Time Inc. staff. There are also a large quantity of newspaper clippings. There are several Asian news magazines included with these papers. These include articles from all of the major daily newspapers and include the subjects of both main topics within this series. There is some personal information about Dr. Wharton found in this series. Mostly to do with his passport and visa applications. This includes health information and a photo copy of his passport. The photographs were arranged by country visited. They all have a coding/cataloging/organizational system written in pen and pencil on the back of most of the photographs. There are different sizes of the same photo throughout, some in black and white, some in color. Sizes include 8x10, 4x5, 3.5x5. All the photos appear to have been taken by Time Inc. staff photographers. There are copies of some photo’s reproduced in different sizing as noted above. The photographs have been restricted/copyrighted in Aspace-they can be viewed but no reproduction.

Dates

  • Creation: 1943 - 2017

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research. Restricted folders are noted in the collection inventory.

Extent

From the Collection: 470 Cubic Feet

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

General

For a researcher looking for background information on the 1989 Time/Warner merger there is much to look through. Dr. Wharton being on the board of directors was included in all correspondence; including SEC stock proxy’s-drafts and final versions. Lawsuits - including discussion correspondence between Time management and the board (Wharton). The processing archivist could see no reason for sections note by Dr. Wharton, to be removed. However, it was decided to put everything into Aspace, but not publish it. More information is needed to ascertain whether or not the information within these sections need to be removed. As for the Pacific News Tour-there is good well researched background information on the Asians countries visited. Many big name CEO’s were along on this trip. They met with top business leaders in government and business. This material could give a good snap shot of nascent business relations between the U.S. and Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, China, and Taiwan. Included are several publications, such as magazines from Asian countries, company material, and a Time/Life publication of the tour given to all the participants. I made more detailed notes on the inventory list that could help with future processing if the research value of this series is considered high. The list is in box 6114.

Repository Details

Part of the University Archives and Historical Collections Repository

Contact:
Conrad Hall
943 Conrad Road, Room 101
East Lansing MI 48824 US
517-355-2330