Sony Pictures Entertainment collection

Special Collections
Margaret Herrick Library © 2015


Descriptive Summary

Title: Sony Pictures Entertainment collection
Date (inclusive): circa 1920s-1960s
Collection number: 1533
Creator: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Extent: 7 linear feet of papers. 22.5 linear feet of photographs. 343 artworks.
Repository: Margaret Herrick Library. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Languages: English

Important Information for Users of the Collection

Access

Available by appointment only.

Publication rights

Property rights to the physical object belong to the Margaret Herrick Library. Researchers are responsible for obtaining all necessary rights, licenses, or permissions from the appropriate companies or individuals before quoting from or publishing materials obtained from the library.

Preferred Citation

Sony Pictures Entertainment collection, Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Sony Pictures Entertainment, 2010

Biography

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is an American film production and distribution company located in Culver City, California. SPE is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, which in turn is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation.

Collection Scope and Content Summary

The Sony Pictures Entertainment collection spans the years circa 1920s-1960s and encompasses more than 5 linear feet of manuscripts, 22.5 linear feet of photographs and 343 set plans and other artworks. The collection includes MGM documents, lot maps, and technical drawings; "Hollywood Studio Club" memorabilia and blueprints by architect Julia Morgan; a DeMille Studios transfer ledger book covering 1927 to 1940; Columbia and RKO set plans; Hugh Hunt correspondence and other papers; and a drawing and storyboards by illustrator Bill Herwig for "Ethan Frome," an unproduced film to have been art directed by Anton Grot. There are also casting photographs as well as photographs from films released, but not produced, by Columbia Pictures. The collection includes set plans from the Columbia Ranch back lot for titles such as: AUTUMN LEAVES (1956), BORN YESTERDAY (1950), CARGO TO CAPETOWN (1950), THE GOOD HUMOR MAN (1950), MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON (1939), YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU (1938), and others. It also includes set plans from television productions, including DENNIS THE MENACE, THE DONNA REED SHOW and GIDGET. There are also several general plans for the back lot.

Arrangement

Arranged in the following series: 1. Graphic Arts, subseries A-D as follows: A. Production files - Produced ; B. Production files -- unproduced; C. Television files -- produced; D. Subject files.

Indexing Terms

Sony Pictures Entertainment