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Contributing Institution:
Chicano Studies Research Center Library
Title: Manazar Gamboa Papers
Creator:
Gamboa, Manazar 1934-2000
Identifier/Call Number: 88
Physical Description:
4.5 linear feet
Date (inclusive): 1939-2001
Abstract: Manazar Gamboa was a Chicano poet and playwright who had spent much of his early years in prison. This collection consists
of his plays, poems, and writing notes. It also includes research material on Chavez Ravine, the neighborhood where he grew
up, which was demolished to make way for Dodger Stadium.
Physical Location: COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Library
and Archive for paging information.
Language of Material:
English
.
Open for research.
Collection donated to the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center by Michelle Kholos Brooks. Deed on file at the Archive office.
The collection is arranged in the following series:
- Series 1. Writings by Manazar Gamboa
- Series 2. Correspondence
- Series 3. Chavez Ravine research
- Series 4. Printed material
Born in East L.A. in 1934 and raised in Chavez Ravine, Manazar Gamboa spent his youth picking crops with his family across
the Central and San Fernando Valley. As one of the first Latino students to attend Nightingale Junior High in Cypress Park
he rebelled against school authorities by speaking Spanish.
He also began to sell marijuana and steal cars. In 1954 he began his first prison term and would spend 17 of the next 23
years behind bars. In the 1970's Gamboa became a heroin addict and shortly after the woman he loved overdosed and died in
his arms. He then committed an armed robbery and was sent to Soledad State Prison.
In Soledad he began to read any literature available to him taking a particular interest in poetry. Despite the derision
of his fellow inmates he avidly read the work of the Romantics: Shelley, Keats, Coleridge and Blake. Gamboa was given the
complete works of Shakespeare which he regarded as his greatest treasure.
He began to write poetry and was published by a journal run by a University of Colorado professor. In 1977 Gamboa was released
and joined the L.A. poetry scene by working at Beyond Baroque, a literary center in Venice and edited its magazine Obras.
From 1981 to 1983 he was the Director of the L.A Latino Writers Association and editor of ChismeArte magazine.
In the 1980s he began teaching writing workshops for substance abusers, youths in juvenile halls and prison inmates often
driving over 120 miles a day to teach literacy and writing to youths across the county. In 1988 he received a Brody Arts Fund
for $2500 and replaced his 1963 Dodge. In 1989 he became the Artistic Director of the Homeland Neighborhood Cultural Center.
He turned his epic poem "Memories of a Bulldozed Barrio" into a stage performance and worked with the non-profit L.A Theater
works for over 13 years. He died in Long Beach at age 66 on Dec. 13, 2000.
*Some language for this biographical note is borrowed from the obituary "Manazar Gamboa; Poet Wrote About Chicano Experience"
by Elaine Woo,
Los Angeles Times, January 7, 2001.
[Identification of item], Manazar Gamboa Papers, 88, Chicano Studies Research Center, University of California, Los Angeles.
Processed by CSRC, 2010. Finding aid revised by Jason Lowder under the supervision of Doug Johnson, August 2021. The revision
occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic so there was no access to the physical collection.
This collection consists of manuscripts of Manazar Gamboa's poems, plays, and short stories, as well as notes showing his
creative process. There is also research material on Chavez Ravine, as well as clippings and other printed material.
These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. The user
must assume full responsibility for any use of materials, including but not limited to infringement of copyright and publication
rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.
The original authors may retain copyright to the materials.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Chavez Ravine (Los Angeles, Calif.)
American poetry--Mexican American authors
Dramatists
Los Angeles Dodgers (Baseball team)
Brooklyn Dodgers (Baseball team)