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Latinos in Film collection

 Collection
Identifier: MSS 286 large

Scope and Contents

The collection is focused primarily on portrayals of Latino/a characters in film and includes materials about major Latino stars, such as Lupe Vélez and Dolores Del Rio (both strongly represented in this collection). However, many of the great Latino movie stars in Hollywood films -- Rita Hayworth, Anthony Quinn, Lupe Vélez, Cesar Romero, for instance -- portrayed many different kinds of roles during their long careers, and this collection reveals some of the diversity of their work. Although the bulk of the items here are associated with Hollywood movies, there are some examples of Cuban, Mexican, and South American film, as well as a collection of campaign sheets and posters from Britain, Italy, Mexico, Cuba, and other countries (based on Hollywood releases). The collection contains approximately 590 pieces of rare movie ephemera: promotional photographs, posters, lobby cards, photoplay book editions, campaign books, press kits and television/movie scripts ranging from the silent film era to 2005.

Dates

  • Creation: 1916-2005

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright is retained by the authors of the items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. For photocopy and duplication requests, please contact the Stephen O. Murray and Keelung Hong Special Collections, Michigan State University Libraries.

Biographical / Historical

Latinos are acknowledged to be the fastest growing population group in the United States, and this sizeable collection allows us to study the varying ways in which Latinos have been depicted in film over the past ninety years, and how Latino stars were marketed and promoted via Hollywood’s public relations machine.

Even in the silent era, there were major Latino stars, such as Lupe Velez and Dolores Del Rio (both strongly represented in this collection). In the nineteen-thirties and early nineteen-forties, actors such as Cesar Romero and Carmen Miranda often portrayed Latino characters, usually in lighter comedies and musicals. In the post-World War II era, Latino actors such as Ricardo Montalban and Fernando Lamas emerged as legitimate stars in a wide range of films, some of which (like BORDER INCIDENT, in this collection) attempt a more realistic view of social problems. Early television icons like THE CISCO KID of the nineteen-fifties gradually yielded to the gentle but more reality-based character of Chico in the nineteen-seventies’ CHICO AND THE MAN.

The collection is focused primarily on portrayals of Latino characters in film. However, many of the great Latino movie stars in Hollywood films – Rita Hayworth, Anthony Quinn, Lupe Velez, Cesar Romero, for instance – portrayed many different kinds of roles during their long careers, and this collection reveals some of the diversity of their work. Although the bulk of the items here are associated with Hollywood movies, there are some examples of Cuban, Mexican, and South American film, as well as a collection of campaign sheets and posters from Britain, Italy, Mexico, Cuba, and other countries (based on Hollywood releases).

Extent

4 Linear Feet (8 boxes, plus oversized materials in map cases) ; Box 1: 27 x 14 x 32 cm Boxes 2-4: 9.5x12x5x3 inches Boxes 5-8: 21x16x3 inches

Language of Materials

English

Arrangement

Items are listed chronologically by their film release year and alphabetically by title there under. Entries usually include a synopsis of the film, information about a particular star, and descriptions and other information about the items. Individual items have been physically arranged and housed based on their size. All books have been assigned call numbers and are housed in the Special Collections stacks.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Purchased with funds provided by the MSU Class of 1994 Library Endowment Fund in 2006

Processing Information

This collection was processed November 2006-March 2007 by Anne-Marie Rachman based on an earlier inventory of the collection.

Title
Finding Aid for the Latinos in Film collection
Status
4 Published And Cataloged
Author
Anne-Marie Rachman
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

Repository Details

Part of the Stephen O. Murray and Keelung Hong Special Collections Repository

Contact:
MSU Libraries
366 W. Circle Drive
East Lansing MI 48823 USA