The Robert Coffman papers document Coffman’s theatrical performances in San Francisco, as well as the life he shared with his partner of over 35 years, Arthur Bamberger. There is a small amount of material related to Coffman’s career as a social worker in New York City.

Robert Coffman (1917-2005) was a social worker for the City of New York for 30 years before he and his long-time partner Arthur Bamberger (d. 1988) retired and moved to San Francisco to live openly gay lives. Coffman was an early member of Theatre Rhinoceros, where he appeared in dozens of plays, including the landmark The A.I.D.S. Show: Artists Involved in Death and Survival in 1984 and Unfinished Business: The New A.I.D.S. Show, in 1985. He was best known for his annual holiday readings of Truman Capote’s “The Thanksgiving Visitor” and “A Christmas Memory.”

7 cartons (7 linear feet)

Collection is open for research. Funding for processing this collection was provided by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR).