Finding Aid for the Buzz Kulik papers, 1942-1994

Finding aid prepared by Alessandra Amin, April 2014; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé.
UCLA Library Special Collections
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1575
(310) 825-4988
spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
©2014 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.


Title: Buzz Kulik papers
Collection number: 1867
Contributing Institution: UCLA Library Special Collections
Language of Material: English
Physical Description: 35 linear ft. (51 record cartons, 16 oversize boxes)
Date (bulk): Bulk, 1950-1992
Date (inclusive): 1942-1994
Physical Location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Language of Materials: Materials are primarily in English, with some materials in Italian, German, Spanish, French, Japanese and Farsi.
Abstract: Buzz Kulik was born Seymour Kulik in Kearny, NJ in 1922. He was an American film and television director. This collection comprises a wide variety of documents and objects related to Buzz Kulik's prolific career. The majority of these items relate to films, television shows, and miniseries directed or produced by Kulik between 1950 and 1992. Additionally, the collection includes documents related to film or television projects conceived by or pitched to Kulik that never ultimately came to fruition. Finally, the collection contains a variety of personal ephemera with no direct connection to specific projects.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Buzz Kulik Papers (Collection 1867). Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.

UCLA Catalog Record ID

UCLA Catalog Record ID: 7356557 

Restrictions on Use and Reproduction

Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Restrictions on Access

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Library Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.

Provenance/Source of Acquisition

Gift of Glen Kulik and Jennifer Kulik Perez, 2010.

Processing Information

Processed by Alessandra Amin in 2014 in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT) with assistance from Jasmine Jones.
The processing of this collection was generously supported by Arcadia. 

Biography/History

Buzz Kulik was born Seymour Kulik in Kearny, NJ in 1922. He was an American film and television director. After serving in the US Army during World War II, Kulik took a job in the mailroom of the J. Walter Thompson advertising agency, where he saw a call for directors in the burgeoning field of TV commercials. He applied and moved up in the company, where he directed commercials for several years before moving on to direct cameras in Yankee Stadium in 1947. He then took his talent to larger projects, directing numerous TV programs during what is termed "the Golden Age of television" (ranging approximately from the late 1940s until the early 1960s).
Kulik directed episodes of such critically acclaimed series as Playhouse 90 (1956-60) and The Twilight Zone (1960-63) before moving on to direct major motion pictures such as Riot (1969(. Kulik's most notable success came in the genre of made-for-TV movies, which emerged in the late 1960s; Kulik's Brian's Song (1971) was one of the most popular telefilms ever made, and was the first of its kind to be released on the big screen after premiering on television. Kulik also directed a number of TV miniseries, including the very first of the genre, Vanished (1970), and the popular George Washington (1984) which was nominated for 6 Emmy awards. Common themes in Kulik's work include American war stories (including From Here to Eternity, Campo 44, Women of Valor, Too Young the Hero), true crime (including Kill Me If You Can, The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case) and American sports heroes (including Babe, Brian's Song).
Kulik's corpus includes 74 directing and producing credits, and the prolific director continued to work on both TV and film until his death of heart failure in 1999.

Scope and Content

This collection comprises a wide variety of documents and objects related to Buzz Kulik's prolific career. The majority of these items relate to films, television shows, and miniseries directed or produced by Kulik between 1950 and 1992. Such items include production reports, background research, casting scripts, musical scores, publicity materials, and photographs, including several of notable actors Susan Sarandon, Sandra Bullock and Alan Alda. They also include oversize materials such as blueprints and set plans, film clappers, bound musical scores, scrapbooks and awards. Additionally, the collection includes documents related to film and television projects conceived by or pitched to Kulik that never ultimately came to fruition, including scripts, correspondence, and proposed budgets. Finally, the collection contains a variety of personal ephemera with no direct connection to specific projects, including correspondence with friends and family, personal photographs, and press clippings about Kulik, as well as legal documents, contracts and resumes both sent and received by Kulik, documents related to seminars and presentations given by Kulik, and documents related to the Screen Director's Guild and the Writer's Guild of America.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Kulik, Buzz--Archives.
Television producers and directors--California--Los Angeles--Archival resources.

 

Series 1: Films. 1967-1992.

Organization and Arrangement

Folders are arranged in alphabetical order according to the title of the film with which they are associated.

Scope and Content

This series consists of items related to films directed and produced by Buzz Kulik, including both big-screen feature films and made-for-TV movies. It includes production reports, background research, contact sheets for cast and crew, casting notes, plot synopses, correspondence, film reviews, budget information, scripts, musical scores and cassettes, publicity material, and photographs. The series is also comprised of oversized documents and objects such as floor plans and blueprints, the film clapper from Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women and framed photographs, including one of Sandra Bullock in Lucky Chances and another of Susan Sarandon in Women of Valor.
Box 1, Folder 1

Film: Babe. 1974-1975.

Box 1, Folders 2-5

Film: Babe. 1975.

Box 2, Folder 1

Film: Babe. 1975.

Box 52, Folder 1

Film: Babe. 1975.

Box 60

Film: Babe- Nomination Award. 1975.

Box 2, Folders 2-3

Film: Bad Ronald. 1974.

Box 2, Folders 4-5

Film: Brian's Song. 1971-1972.

Box 3, Folders 1-2

Film: Brian's Song. 1971-1972.

Box 52, Folder 2

Film: Brian's Song. 1971.

Box 3, Folders 3-6

Film: Cage Without a Key. 1974.

Box 4, Folder 1

Film: Cage Without a Key. 1974.

Box 4, Folders 2-3

Film: Campo 44. 1964.

Box 4, Folders 4-6

Film: Corey, For the People. 1977.

Box 5, Folders 1-4

Film: Corey, For the People. 1977.

Box 52, Folder 3

Film: Corey, For the People. 1977.

Box 5, Folders 5-7

Film: To Find a Man. 1971.

Box 52, Folder 4

Film: To Find a Man. 1972.

Box 62

Film: To Find a Man- Framed Negatives. circa 1972.

Box 6, Folders 1-2

Film: Give Me Liberty. 1974.

Box 6, Folders 3-4

Film: Her Secret Life. 1987.

Box 6, Folders 5-6

Film: The Hunter. 1979.

Box 7, Folders 1-4

Film: The Hunter. 1979.

Box 53, Folder 1

Film: The Hunter. 1980.

Box 7, Folder 5

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1976.

Box 8, Folders 1-3

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1976.

Box 8, Folder 4

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1976-1978.

Box 8, Folder 5

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1977.

Box 9, Folders 1-2

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1977.

Box 9, Folder 3

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1976-1977.

Box 9, Folder 4

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1976.

Box 10, Folder 1

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1976.

Box 53, Folder 2

Film: Kill Me If You Can. 1977.

Box 10, Folder 2

Film: Kings of Broadway. 1962.

Box 10, Folders 3-5

Film: The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case. 1975.

Box 53, Folder 3

Film: The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case. 1976.

Box 11, Folders 1-4

Film: Lucky Chances. 1990.

Box 53, Folder 4

Film: Lucky Chances. 1990.

Box 62

Film: Lucky Chances- Framed Photograph. circa 1990.

Box 12, Folders 1-3

Film: The Man Who Came to Dinner. 1972.

Box 54, Folder 1

Film: The Man Who Came to Dinner. 1972.

Box 12, Folder 4

Film: A Man Whose Name Was John. 1973.

Box 54, Folder 2

Film: A Man Whose Name Was John. 1973.

Box 12, Folders 5-6

Film: Miles from Nowhere. 1991.

Box 13, Folder 1

Film: My Sweet Charlie. 1966.

Box 13, Folder 2

Film: My Sweet Charlie. 1965.

Box 13, Folder 3

Film: My Sweet Charlie. 1965-1966.

Box 13, Folder 4

Film: My Sweet Charlie. 1965-1966.

Box 13, Folders 5-6

Film: My Sweet Charlie. 1966.

Box 14, Folders 1-2

Film: Pioneer Woman. 1973.

Box 14, Folders 3-4

Film: Rage of Angels. 1982-1983.

Box 14, Folder 5

Film: Remember When. 1973.

Box 15, Folder 1

Film: Riot!. 1968.

Box 54, Folder 4

Film: Riot!. 1969.

Box 61

Film: Riot!- Photograph Album. circa 1969.

Box 62

Film: Riot!- Framed Photograph.

Box 15, Folder 2

Film: Remember When. 1973.

Box 54, Folder 3

Film: Remember When. 1974.

Box 15, Folders 3-5

Film: Shamus. 1974.

Box 16, Folders 1-3

Film: Shamus. 1972.

Box 16, Folder 4

Film: Shamus. 1974.

Box 16, Folder 5

Film: A Storm in Summer. 1970.

Box 17, Folders 1-2

Film: A Storm in Summer.

Box 54, Folder 5

Film: A Storm in Summer. 1970.

Box 62

Film: A Storm in Summer- Award. 1970.

Box 17, Folders 3-4

Film: Too Young the Hero. 1988.

Box 17, Folder 5

Film: Vanished. 1970.

Box 18, Folders 1-4

Film: Vanished. 1970.

Box 54, Folder 6

Film: Vanished. 1971.

Box 61

Film: Vanished- Plaque. 1970.

Box 18, Folder 5

Film: Villa Rides. 1967.

Box 19, Folders 1-3

Film: Villa Rides.

Box 20, Folders 1-6

Film: Warning Shot. 1966.

Box 21, Folder 1

Film: Warning Shot. 1966.

Box 21, Folders 2-6

Film: Women of Valor. 1985-86.

Box 54, Folder 7

Film: Women of Valor. 1986.

Box 60

Film: Women of Valor- Framed Photograph. 1986.

Box 22, Folders 1-6

Film: Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women. 1977.

Box 23, Folders 1-4

Film: Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women. 1977.

Box 24, Folders 1-5

Film: Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women. 1977.

Box 25, Folders 1-5

Film: Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women. 1977.

Box 54, Folder 8

Film: Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women. 1978.

Box 60

Film: Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women- Clapperboard. 1977.

 

Series 2: Television shows and miniseries. 1950-1989.

Organization and Arrangement

Folders are arranged in alphabetical order according to the title of the TV show or miniseries with which they are associated.

Scope and Content

This series consists of items related to television shows and miniseries directed and produced by Buzz Kulik. It includes production reports, background research, budget information, contact sheets for cast and crew, casting notes, correspondence, TV reviews, set plans, scripts, photographs, and publicity material. The series is also comprised of oversized objects such as awards, bound musical scores and scrapbooks.
Box 26, Folders 1-3

TV and Miniseries: Around the World in 80 Days. 1988.

Box 55, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Around the World in 80 Days. 1989.

Box 26, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: Chrysler Theatre. 1964.

Box 26, Folder 5

TV and Miniseries: Climax. 1956-58.

Box 27, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Climax. 1956-1958.

Box 27, Folders 2-3

TV and Miniseries: The Defenders. 1961.

Box 63

TV and Miniseries: The Defenders- Plaque. circa 1961.

Box 27, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: The Dick Powell Show. 1962.

Box 28, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Dr. Kildare. 1961.

Box 28, Folders 2-5

TV and Miniseries: Feather and Father Gang. 1976.

Box 29, Folders 1-4

TV and Miniseries: Feather and Father Gang. 1976.

Box 55, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: Feather and Father Gang. 1976.

Box 30, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Ford Star Review. 1950.

Box 30, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: Ford Star Review. 1951.

Box 30, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978-1979.

Box 30, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978.

Box 30, Folder 5

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978-1979.

Box 31, Folders 1-5

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978-1979.

Box 32, Folders 1-2

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978-1979.

Box 32, Folders 3-4

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978.

Box 33, Folders 1-3

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978-1979.

Box 33, Folders 4-5

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978.

Box 34, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1978.

Box 55, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity. 1979.

Box 58

TV and Miniseries: From Here to Eternity- Music Scores. circa 1979.

Box 34, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: George Washington. 1983-1984.

Box 34, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: George Washington. 1983.

Box 34, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: George Washington. 1983-1984.

Box 34, Folder 5

TV and Miniseries: George Washington. 1983.

Box 35, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: George Washington. 1983.

Box 35, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: George Washington. 1984.

Box 56, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: George Washington. 1988.

Box 67

TV and Miniseries: George Washington- Philadelphia Mayor Gift. 1983.

Box 35, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: The Great Adventure. 1963.

Box 35, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: Gunsmoke. 1957.

Box 35, Folder 5

TV and Miniseries: Have Gun--Will Travel. undated.

Box 35, Folder 6

TV and Miniseries: Hotel de Paree. 1960.

Box 35, Folder 7

TV and Miniseries: Kane and Abel. 1984-1985.

Box 36, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Kane and Abel. 1985.

Box 36, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: Kane and Abel. 1984-1985.

Box 56, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Kane and Abel. 1985.

Box 36, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: Kentucky Jones. 1964-1965.

Box 36, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: Kentucky Jones. 1965.

Box 36, Folder 5

TV and Miniseries: Kentucky Jones. 1964-1965.

Box 59

TV and Miniseries: Kentucky Jones- Scrapbook. circa 1965.

Box 37, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Kraft Theatre. 1951.

Box 37, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: Kraft Theatre. 1963.

Box 37, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: The Lieutenant. 1963.

Box 37, Folders 4-5

TV and Miniseries: Lux Video Theatre. 1954.

Box 38, Folders 1-4

TV and Miniseries: Lux Video Theatre. 1954.

Box 39, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Lux Video Theatre. 1955.

Box 39, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: Lux Video Theatre. 1955-1956.

Box 39, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: Lux Video Theatre. 1966.

Box 39, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: Lux Video Theatre. 1955.

Box 39, Folder 5

TV and Miniseries: Lux Video Theatre. 1954.

Box 56, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: Lux Video Theatre. 1952-1956.

Box 40, Folders 1-3

TV and Miniseries: Matt Helm. 1975-1976.

Box 40, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: The Naked City. 1960.

Box 40, Folder 5

TV and Miniseries: The Naked City- Album. 1960.

Box 40, Folder 6

TV and Miniseries: Owen Marshall. 1971.

Box 40, Folder 7

TV and Miniseries: Owen Marshall. 1970.

Box 41, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Owen Marshall. 1971.

Box 41, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: Perry Mason. 1958.

Box 41, Folders 3-5

TV and Miniseries: Playhouse 90. 1959.

Box 41, Folder 6

TV and Miniseries: Playhouse 90. 1956-1959.

Box 57, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: Playhouse 90. 1958-1960.

Box 57, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: Pre-1960 Projects. circa 1950-1960.

Box 41, Folder 7

TV and Miniseries: Pursuit. 1958.

Box 57, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: Pursuit. 1958-1959.

Box 42, Folder 1

TV and Miniseries: The Richard Boone Show. 1963.

Box 42, Folder 2

TV and Miniseries: The Saints and the Sinners. 1961.

Box 42, Folder 3

TV and Miniseries: The Twilight Zone. 1960-1961.

Box 42, Folders 4-5

TV and Miniseries: The Twilight Zone. 1962.

Box 57, Folder 4

TV and Miniseries: The Twilight Zone. 1960-1963.

 

Series 3: Unfinished projects. 1962-1991.

Organization and Arrangement

Folders are arranged in alphabetical order according to the title of the project with which they are associated.

Scope and Content

This series is comprised of items relating to film or television projects conceived by or pitched to Buzz Kulik that were never ultimately produced. It includes scripts, correspondence, proposed budgets, and background research.
Box 43, Folder 1

Unfinished Projects: The Achilles Affair. 1962.

Box 43, Folders 2-4

Unfinished Projects: The Boy Who Invented the Bubblegun. 1973.

Box 44, Folders 1-2

Unfinished Projects: The Boy Who Invented the Bubblegun. 1973.

Box 44, Folder 3

Unfinished Projects: Call Cotton. 1965.

Box 44, Folder 4

Unfinished Projects: The Chalk Circle. undated.

Box 44, Folder 5

Unfinished Projects: Deadly Force. 1975.

Box 44, Folder 6

Unfinished Projects: Dr. Bravo. 1966.

Box 45, Folder 1

Unfinished Projects: Going to Oregon. undated.

Box 45, Folders 2-3

Unfinished Projects: The Gold Robbers. 1973.

Box 45, Folder 4

Unfinished Projects: Grand Slam. 1963.

Box 45, Folder 5

Unfinished Projects: Harold and the Rabbit. 1994.

Box 45, Folder 6

Unfinished Projects: Hoofbeats. 1965.

Box 45, Folder 7

Unfinished Projects: Kelley's Country. 1966.

Box 46, Folder 1

Unfinished Projects: Kilimanjaro. 1965.

Box 46, Folders 2-3

Unfinished Projects: Lawyer Lincoln. 1962.

Box 46, Folder 4

Unfinished Projects: Long Gone. 1980.

Box 46, Folder 5

Unfinished Projects: Luzon. undated.

Box 46, Folder 6

Unfinished Projects: Maria. 1965.

Box 46, Folder 7

Unfinished Projects: Minnie Valdez and Her Difficult Family. undated.

Box 47, Folder 1

Unfinished Projects: Miscellaneous Script Synopses. undated.

Box 47, Folder 2

Unfinished Projects: The Nurses. 1963.

Box 47, Folder 3

Unfinished Projects: Our Sister. 1965.

Box 47, Folder 4

Unfinished Projects: Prince Charming, Go Home!. 1966.

Box 47, Folder 5

Unfinished Projects: Sir Geoffrey. 1965.

Box 47, Folder 6

Unfinished Projects: Tensleep Smith. 1965.

Box 47, Folder 7

Unfinished Projects: Undercover. 1966.

Box 47, Folder 8

Unfinished Projects: Until One of Us Is Dead. undated.

Box 47, Folder 9

Unfinished Projects: Untitled. 1966.

Box 48, Folders 1-2

Unfinished Projects: The Warden. 1991.

 

Series 4: Personal ephemera. 1950-1995.

Organization and Arrangement

Folders are arranged in alphabetical order according to their category (i.e., awards, contacts and resumés, personal correspondence).

Scope and Content

This series consists of personal items with no direct connection to any of Kulik's film or television projects. It is comprised of items such as awards, personal correspondence with family members, friends and colleagues, professional correspondence unrelated to specific films, shows or miniseries, personal photographs, and press clippings about Kulik. They also include legal documents, contracts and resumés both sent and received by Kulik, and documents related to seminars and presentations given at the American Film Institute and at a Docu-Drama Symposium, as well as documents related to the Screen Director's Guild and the Writer's Guild of America. This series also contains oversized objects such as awards, framed caricatures, framed pictures, and other personal items such as a decorative plate presented to him by the mayor of Philadelphia.
Box 48, Folder 3

Personal Ephemera: American Film Institute. 1971.

Box 48, Folder 4

Personal Ephemera: Awards. 1956-1982.

Box 66

Personal Ephemera: Awards.

Box 64

Personal Ephemera: Awards and Photographs.

Box 48, Folder 5

Personal Ephemera: Contracts and Resumes. 1956-1977.

Box 48, Folder 6

Personal Ephemera: Contracts and Resumes. 1978-1980.

Box 49, Folder 1

Personal Ephemera: Docu-drama Symposium. 1979.

Box 65

Personal Ephemera: Framed Items.

Box 49, Folder 2

Personal Ephemera: Legal Proceedings. 1955-1978.

Box 49, Folder 3

Personal Ephemera: Permanent Charities. undated.

Box 49, Folder 4

Personal Ephemera: Personal Correspondence. 1986-1988.

Box 49, Folder 5

Personal Ephemera: Personal Correspondence. 1962-1990.

Box 50, Folder 2

Personal Ephemera: Press. 1961-1966.

Box 49, Folder 6

Personal Ephemera: Photographs. undated.

Box 50, Folder 1

Personal Ephemera: Press. 1963-1972.

Box 50, Folder 3

Personal Ephemera: Professional Correspondence. 1965-1969.

Box 50, Folder 4

Personal Ephemera: Professional Correspondence. 1975-1980.

Box 50, Folder 5

Personal Ephemera: Professional Correspondence. 1954-1965.

Box 51, Folder 1

Personal Ephemera: Professional Correspondence. 1965-1968.

Box 51, Folder 2

Personal Ephemera: Screen Directors' Guild. 1961-1966.

Box 51, Folder 3

Personal Ephemera: Writers' Guild of America. 1970-1973.