White (Thelma) papers, bulk 1920s-1990s

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Summary

Title:
Thelma White papers
Dates:
bulk 1920s-1990s
Creators:
White, Thelma, 1911-2005
Abstract:
Collection consists of the correspondence, memorabilia, acting files, and photographs of American actress Thelma White (1910-2005).
Extent:
6.23 Linear Feet 6 boxes
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Box/folder no. or item name], Thelma White papers, Collection no. 2683, Cinematic Arts Library, USC Libraries, University of Southern California.

Background

Scope and content:

Collection consists of correspondence, memorabilia, acting files, clippings, and photographs of American actress Thelma White (1910-2005). Materials include fan mail, biographical information, and a travel scrapbook.

Biographical / historical:

Thelma White (1910-2005) was an American vaudeville, radio, and motion picture actress. White began performing at age 2 in her family's circus performance show as a "living doll", who stood in place and began cooing and wriggling on cue. She went on to perform in Vaudeville acts at age 10 and worked with the Ziegfeld Follies. She arrived in Hollywood in 1920 and appeared in her first film A Night in a Dormitory (1930). White's best known role was as Mae in the exploitation film Reefer Madness (1936), originally titled Tell Your Children. She toured with the United Servicemen Overseas and performed as the leader of an all-woman swing band, named Thelma White and Her All-Girl Orchestra, during World War II. While performing in the Aleutian Islands, she contracted an undisclosed "crippling disease" and was bedridden for 5 years. Following her recovery White briefly returned to film, but eventually she shifted to working as an agent.

Processing information:

Collection is unprocessed

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Marissa Chavez and Sarah Jardini for History Associates Incorporated
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-03-15 17:03:08 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Advance notice required for access.

Terms of access:

Finding aid description and metadata are licensed under an Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license.

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Cinematic Arts Library at ctlibarc@usc.edu. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Cinematic Arts Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Preferred citation:

[Box/folder no. or item name], Thelma White papers, Collection no. 2683, Cinematic Arts Library, USC Libraries, University of Southern California.

Location of this collection:
Cinematic Arts Library
Doheny Memorial Library, Room G4
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0185, US
Contact:
(213) 740-8383
ctlibarc@usc.edu
Website