Descriptive Summary
Scope and Contents of the Collection
Organization and Arrangement
Related Materials
Indexing Terms
Descriptive Summary
Title: Michael J. Bowen Collection of Black Exploitation Film Posters and
Director Photographs
Dates: 1968-2000 and
undated
Collection number: H.Mss.1141
Extent:
6.2 Linear Feet
(2 oversize map folder boxes, 1 slim legal document
box)
Repository:
Claremont Colleges. Library. Special Collections, The Claremont
Colleges Library, Claremont, CA 91711.
Abstract: This collection
consists of 52 Black film posters and 25 press photographs of noteworthy Black filmmakers,
from 1968-2000. While the primary focus is "Blaxploitation" films, the collection also
represents other Black-oriented concert films, comedies, and dramas.
Physical Location: Please consult
repository.
Language of Material: Languages represented in the
collection: English.
Administrative Information
Access
Collection open for research.
Publication Rights
All requests for permission to reproduce or to publish must be submitted in writing to
Special Collections.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Michael J. Bowen Collection of Black Exploitation Film Posters
and Director Photographs (H.Mss.1141). Special Collections and Archives, The Claremont
Colleges Library, The Claremont Colleges Services, Claremont, California.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Library purchase from Michael J. Bowen, 2023.
Accruals
No additions to the collection are anticipated.
Processing Information
Posters were housed in acid-free print folders and stored flat in large archival boxes.
Photographs were sleeved in mylar, housed in acid-free folders, and stored in an archival
document box.
Biography / Administrative History
Materials in the collection were acquired by Michael J. Bowen, a film historian and
instructor of American film history in New York City.
Scope and Contents of the Collection
The Michael J. Bowen Collection of Black Exploitation Film Posters and Director Photographs
consists of 52 Black film posters and 25 press photographs of noteworthy Black filmmakers,
from 1968-2000. While the collection primarily focuses on "Blaxploitation" films, an ethnic
subgenre of the exploitation film that emerged in the early 1970s, the collection also
represents other Black-oriented concert films, comedies, and dramas. Notable films
represented in the collection include:
Uptight (1968),
The Great White
Hope
(1970),
Watermelon Man (1970),
Blacula (1972),
Shaft's Big Score! (1972),
Super Fly T.N.T. (1973), and
Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold (1975). Press photos include notable
directors and filmmakers such as Spike Lee, Sidney Poitier, and Melvin Van Peebles.
Organization and Arrangement
This collection has been organized into the following series and subseries:
- Series 1: Film posters, 1968-1986
- Series 2: Director photographs, 1971-2000 and undated
File folders are arranged alphabetically by title.
Related Materials
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
library’s online public access catalog.
Subject Terms
African Americans
African Americans in motion pictures
African Americans in the motion picture industry
Black Americans
Black motion picture producers and directors
Blaxploitation films
Genre and Form of Materials
Black-and-white photographs – 20th century
Posters
