Robert Gentry papers, 1964-2006, bulk 1983-1999

Printable guide [HTML]

Summary

Creators:

Abstract:

This collection comprises the political and professional papers of Robert F. Gentry, the first openly gay elected official in southern California and first openly gay mayor in the state of California. Gentry served as mayor and a city councilmember in the city of Laguna Beach, California, serving from 1982 to 1994, and also served as Associate Dean of Students at the University of California, Irvine. Materials include correspondence and hate mail, awards, and clippings by and about Gentry as well as the AIDS-related death of his longtime partner Gary Burdick.

Extent:

0.8 Linear Feet (2 boxes) and 2.4 unprocessed linear feet

Language:

Collection materials are in English.

Preferred citation:

Robert Gentry papers. MS-R167. Special Collections and Archives, The UC Irvine Libraries, Irvine, California. Date accessed.

For the benefit of current and future researchers, please cite any additional information about sources consulted in this collection, including permanent URLs, item or folder descriptions, and box/folder locations.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection comprises the political and professional papers of Robert F. Gentry, the first openly gay elected official in southern California. Gentry served as mayor and a city councilmember in the city of Laguna Beach, California, serving from 1982 to 1994, and also served as Associate Dean of Students at the University of California, Irvine. Materials include correspondence and hate mail, awards, and clippings by and about Gentry as well as the AIDS-related death of his longtime partner Gary Burdick.

While a considerable amount of Gentry's materials were destroyed in the Laguna Beach fire of 1993, this collection provides strong evidence of his role as an advocate for gay rights, environmental protection, and neighborhood preservation.

Biographical / historical:

Robert F. Gentry was born in 1938 in Massachusetts. In the 1970s he moved to California, and in 1982 he was elected the mayor of Laguna Beach, becoming the first openly gay elected official in southern California and first openly gay mayor in the state of California. Gentry served as mayor and a city councilmember in Laguna Beach, serving the local community from 1982 to 1994. He was also Associate Dean of Students at the University of California, Irvine. During his time as mayor, he spearheaded efforts to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation, and to allow same-sex couples the rights of married heterosexual couples. Gentry led the city's effort to pass a domestic partnership ordinance granting gay and lesbian couples some of the same rights as heterosexual married couples and a law prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation. Gentry and his spouse Dennis Amick Gentry benefited from these efforts as they were the first registered domestic partners in Laguna Beach in 1992; subsequently, they legally married in California in 2008. Gentry was also involved in many environmental projects around the Laguna Beach area.

Acquisition information:

Gift of Bob Gentry, 2013 and 2019.

Processing information:

Processed by Audra Eagle Yun, Alix Norton, and student assistants; 2013.

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged in 3 series:

Series 1. Professional papers, 1983-1989
Series 2. Awards, 1990-1994
Series 3. Clippings and programs, 1964-2004

This collection also contains one unprocessed addition:

Accession 2019.001. LGBTQ materials unprocessed addition, 1970-2006. 2.4 linear feet.

Rules or conventions:

Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Indexed terms

Subjects:: Environmentalists -- California -- Orange County
Gay rights -- California -- Orange County -- History -- Sources
Laguna Beach (Calif.) -- Politics and government -- 20th century
Domestic partner benefits -- California -- Laguna Beach
Names:: University of California, Irvine. Office of the Dean of Students

Access and use

Restrictions:: Processed components of the collection are open for research.
Terms of access:: Property rights reside with the University of California. For permissions to reproduce or to publish, please contact the Head of Special Collections and Archives.