Collection context
Summary
- Creators:
- Alexander Media Services and Alexander, Daniel
- Abstract:
- The Alexander Media Services videotape collection consists of 88 boxes of videotapes of television programs, documentaries, television commercials, public service announcements (PSAs), and corporate videos produced by Alexander Media Services between 1974-2000. Alexander Media Services Inc. was a video production company based in Sacramento, California. Founded in 1981 by Daniel Alexander, it was one of the first video production companies in Sacramento. The company created television commercials for a variety of businesses in Sacramento including auto dealerships, banks, department stores, restaurants, and grocery stores. It also produced local television programs, documentaries, educational, and corporate videos for television stations, state and local government agencies, corporations, and nonprofits in the Sacramento area. Alexander Media Services produced the California Lottery's first television game show, The Big Spin, when it was filmed at KTXL Studios in Sacramento between 1986-1998.
- Extent:
- 87 Linear Feet (87 cartons)
- Language:
- English and Languages represented in the collection: English
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item and/or item number], [box and folder number], Alexander Media Services Videotape collection, MS0060, Center for Sacramento History.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
The Alexander Media Services videotape collection consists of 87 boxes of videotapes of television programs, documentaries, television commercials, public service announcements (PSAs), and corporate videos produced by Alexander Media Services between 1974 and 2000. The collection is broken up into series based on the type of video: entertainment, commercials, government and politics, sports, California State Lottery, landscapes, aerials, personal, demos and resumes, and corporate. The last series consists of papers and photograph to supplement the videotapes. Highlights include a 1998 documentary on the Burning Man Festival Into the Heart of the Fire: A Psycho-Documentary of the Burning Man Festival and two documentaries featuring pioneering African American cartoonist Morrie Turner interviewing Peanuts creator Charles Shultz. There are numerous commercials featuring national and Sacramento-area businesses such as grocery stores, auto dealerships, hotels, radio stations, farmer's markets, and restaurants. The government and politics series includes public service announcements and government training videos on a number of topics including fire prevention, drunk driving, air pollution, and highway safety. Also included are a small number of videos containing raw footage of speeches delivered by visiting politicians Ross Perot, Jesse Jackson, Al Gore, Bill Clinton, and Mikhail Gorbachev. The corporate videos were mostly produced by Alexander Media Services and feature training videos for Weinstocks, First Commercial Bank, B&H Manufacturing, Sacramento Campbell's Soup Plant, and several cultural videos on Saudi Arabia.
- Biographical / historical:
-
Alexander Media Services Inc. was a video production company based in Sacramento, California. Founded in 1981 by Daniel Alexander, it was one of the first video production companies in Sacramento. The company created television commercials for a variety of businesses in Sacramento including auto dealerships, banks, department stores, restaurants, and grocery stores. It also produced local television programs, documentaries, educational, and corporate videos for television stations, state and local government agencies, corporations, and nonprofits in the Sacramento area. Alexander Media Services produced the California Lottery's first television game show, The Big Spin, when it was filmed at KTXL Studios in Sacramento between 1986-1998.
- Acquisition information:
- Donated by Daniel Alexander in 2003 (accession #2003/098).
- Processing information:
-
Inventory created by Mahlon Picht and Chris Lango, 2015. Finding aid created by Sean Heyliger, 2019. Finding aid edited by Kim Hayden, 2021.
- Arrangement:
-
The collection is arranged into 11 series:
- Series 1. Entertainment
- Subseries 1.1. Television
- Subseries 1.2. Musicals
- Subseries 1.3. Comedy
- Subseries 1.4. Children's programming
- Series 2. Commercials
- Subseries 2.1. Automobile Dealerships
- Subseries 2.2. Products, Businesses, and Banks
- Subseries 2.3. Denio's Auction/Farmer's Market
- Subseries 2.4. Composite spot reels
- Subseries 2.5. Assorted
- Series 3. Government and politics
- Subseries 3.1. Agencies, Commissions, and Conferences
- Subseries 3.2. Political spots and advertisements
- Subseries 3.3. Public Service Announcements (PSAs)
- Subseries 3.4 Speeches and rallies
- Series 4. Sports
- Subseries 4.1. Football
- Subseries 4.2. Boxing
- Subseries 4.3. Basketball
- Subseries 4.4. Skiing
- Subseries 4.5. Racing, Skating, Fishing, and Wrestling
- Series 5. California State Lottery
- Subseries 5.1. Big Spin
- Subseries 5.2. Lotto drawings
- Subseries 5.3. Graphic elements
- Subseries 5.4. News stories and interviews
- Series 6. Landscapes
- Subseries 6.1. Sacramento and Sacramento County
- Subseries 6.2. Cal Expo and California State Fair
- Subseries 6.3. Folsom
- Subseries 6.4. Rivers, Lakes, Nature, and Ocean
- Subseries 6.5. Assorted
- Series 7. Aerials
- Series 8. Personal
- Subseries 8.1. Weddings
- Subseries 8.2. Parties
- Subseries 8.3. School Plays, Awards, and Ceremonies
- Subseries 8.4. Assorted
- Series 9. Demos and resumes
- Subseries 9.1. On-air talent
- Subseries 9.2. Producers/Directors/Photographers
- Subseries 9.3. Alexander Media Services corporate reels
- Subseries 9.4. Other agencies
- Subseries 9.5. Graphic/Animation/Logos
- Subseries 9.6. Stock Footage/Still Images
- Subseries 9.7. Assorted
- Series 10. Corporate
- Series 11. Papers and photographs
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Indexed terms
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
Collection is open for research use.
- Terms of access:
-
All requests to publish or quote from private collections held by the Center for Sacramento History (CSH) must be submitted in writing to csh@cityofsacramento.org. Permission for publication is given on behalf of CSH 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 by the patron. No permission is necessary to publish or quote from public records.
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item and/or item number], [box and folder number], Alexander Media Services Videotape collection, MS0060, Center for Sacramento History.
- Location of this collection:
-
551 Sequoia Pacific Blvd.Sacramento, CA 95811, US
- Contact:
- (916) 808-7072