Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
John Emerson fonds
General material designation
- graphic material
- moving images
- sound recording
- textual record
- multiple media
Parallel title
Other title information
Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
- Variations in title: Title based on the contents of the fonds.
Level of description
Fonds
Reference code
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
-
1922-1965, 1969; predominantly 1950-1964 (Creation)
- Creator
- Emerson, John, 1911-1968
Physical description area
Physical description
ca. 218 audio reels and other material
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
Other title information of publisher's series
Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
Numbering within publisher's series
Note on publisher's series
Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
John Emerson (1911-1968) was a prominent Vancouver musician, actor and entertainer who also arranged and conducted musical shows for radio and the stage. He started his musical career in the late 1920s while a student at the University of British Columbia, leading his own band. In the 1930s, he played aboard CNR coastal steamships, in Vancouver nightclubs, and in various radio programs on CJOR and CRCV (the forerunner of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's Vancouver station, CBR). As Emerson's career progressed, he expanded from performing into accompanying, arranging, conducting, acting, producing musical theatre, and working with developing actors and singers. He was highly regarded within the Vancouver entertainment community as a raconteur and a (sometimes acerbic) wit. In the 1950s and 1960s (until a debilitating stroke in 1964), he was considered as the complete "entertainer's entertainer".
Custodial history
Scope and content
The fonds consists of: audio recordings of John Emerson's radio, nightclub, stage and television performances and rehearsals; oral history interviews about John Emerson; Emerson's papers; a collection of theatrical, publicity, and family photographs; and a kinescope of the CBC Vancouver television musical variety program, "John Emerson Presents" (1959).
Notes area
Physical condition
Immediate source of acquisition
Donated to the BC Archives in October 1987 by Mrs. Mary Ida Emerson, the widow of John Emerson.
Arrangement
Language of material
Script of material
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
- No access restrictions apply.
- Conservation restriction: material in cool or cold storage requires special retrieval and handling.
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Copyright to be determined.
Finding aids
- A finding aid for the sound recordings (which also includes a listing of the unprocessed papers) is available on file and in the archives reference room.
- Item-level descriptions of the sound recordings are available on-line.
Associated materials
Accruals
No further accruals are expected.
General note
Archives code(s): 88-131 ; 199001-001; 90-1483 ; 91-1328 ; F1987:36 ; T4352.
General note
Accession number(s): 88-131; 199001-001; 90-1483; 91-1328; F1987:36; T4352
Conservation
Sound recording and moving image originals may be in cool or cold storage. Contact staff for specific details.
Physical description
Includes 13 audio cassettes, 1 m of textual material, 288 photographs, and 1 film reel.
Alternative identifier(s)
Standard number area
Standard number
Access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Emerson, John, 1911-1968 (Subject)
- Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (Vancouver, B.C.) (Subject)