The collection contains clippings, correspondence, legal agreements, scrapbooks, and photographs. The photograph series consists of biography and subject photographs.

William "Buster" Collier Jr. (1902-1987) was born in New York City, the son of Paula Marr, an actress, and Charles F. Gall, a theater manager. He began acting early in life, appearing on stage under the name Buster Marr as early as 1909. In 1910 Paula Marr married the renowned stage actor William Collier. Collier adopted her son, who took on the new surname. The young Collier soon began acting in his father's plays, and in 1916 was given his first film role as the juvenile lead in THE BUGLE CALL (1916). Over the next two decades he appeared in more than 80 films and became one of the leading romantic actors of the 1920s. He worked with some of Hollywood's most prominent directors, doing SO THIS IS LOVE (1928) for Frank Capra, THE DEVIL'S CARGO (1925) for Victor Fleming, WINE OF YOUTH (1924) with King Vidor, and THE WANDERER (1925) for Raoul Walsh. Collier was also known for his social activities and received much press coverage due to his relationships with William Randolph Hearst, Constance Talmadge, and others. In 1934 Collier married Marie Stevens, a featured performer in the Ziegfeld Follies. After THE PEOPLE'S ENEMY (1935), Collier retired from acting and began a career as a producer. Moving to England in 1937, he worked at the Teddington studios of Warner Bros. and with the Rank Organization, for which he was the associate producer on LONDON TOWN (1946). He also was a television producer in the United States in the 1950s, although only the short-lived WHITE HUNTER seems to have been realized as a series. Collier worked sporadically as an agent.

1.3 linear ft. of papers 1.5 linear ft. of photos

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