Archives Center, National Museum of American History

G. Charles Niemeyer Motion Picture Research Papers

Summary

Collection ID:
NMAH.AC.0679
Creators:
Niemeyer, G. Charles, Dr. (Grover Charles)
Dates:
circa 1960-1990
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
0.3 Cubic feet
1 box
Repository:
G. Charles Niemeyer was a Broadway actor and later a professor at the University of Maryland, College Park. In the 1960s he began to research and write a new history of motion picture technology entitled From Shadow Play to Photoplay. It was never published.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
This collection includes manuscript and slides for a book on the early history of motion pictures, From Shadow Play to Photoplay, which was never published. Many of the slides are of objects in the museum's Division of Photographic History, ordered from the Smithsonian Photographic Services Division.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged in two series.
Series 1, Original Manuscripts, 1967-1981, undated
Series 2, Slides, 1972-1975

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
As a young man, Niemeyer was a professional actor on Broadway in New York, appearing in the original production of, The Cradle Will Rock, Golden Boy, and Mother, among other productions between the years of 1935-1938. He obtained his Ph.D., from Yale University. Later he was a professor of Speech and Drama at the University of Maryland, College Park where he directed numerous productions. He was also an associate professor of film. In the 1960s he began work on a new history of motion picture technology, inspired by the work of Gordon Hendricks, and relying on the motion picture collections of the NMAH Division of Photographic History, as well as the Library of Congress motion picture history collections.

Administration

Author
Amy Bergseth
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Collection donated by Dr. G. Charles Niemyer, Date Unknown.
Processing Information
Processed by Amy Bergseth, Intern, June, 2007; supervised by Franklin A. Robinson, Jr., Archives Technician.

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
G. Charles Neimeyer Motion Picture Research Papers, ca. 1960-1990, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Terms Governing Use and Reproduction
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Motion pictures -- History Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Research Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Cultural History Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Archives Center, National Museum of American History
P.O. Box 37012
Suite 1100, MRC 601
Washington, D.C. 20013-7012
Business Number: Phone: 202-633-3270
Fax Number: Fax: 202-786-2453
archivescenter@si.edu