Finding Aid for the Janet Cunningham papers LSC.2355
Finding aid prepared by Kelly Besser, 2019.
UCLA Library Special Collections
Online finding aid last updated 2019 September 17
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Title: Janet Cunningham papers
Creator:
Cunningham, Janet
Identifier/Call Number: LSC.2355
Physical Description:
25.8 Linear Feet
(53 boxes, 7 shoe boxes, 3 flat boxes, and 1 oversize flat box)
Date (inclusive): 1967-2018
Abstract: Janet Cunningham moved from New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA) to Los Angeles in 1978 with her son Beau to pursue a career as a
Hollywood writer. In 1981 she opened the Contemporary Artists Space of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) nightclub and gallery next door
to the Zero Zero Club on Cahuenga Boulevard, where she hosted punk music shows, theater, and art exhibitions; screened films
and videos; and served NOLA-inspired red beans and rice to artists and fans. Cunningham spent most of her career in Hollywood
as a casting agent with her Creative Artists Service of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) agency where she employed punks as paid extras
in films, television shows, and music videos. The Janet Cunningham papers range in date from 1967-2018 and contain Cunningham's
handwritten diaries, C.A.S.H. files, photographs, audio and audiovisual materials, personal files, punk rock memorabilia,
and NOLA files related to her documentary on the survival of African culture within New Orleans.
Language of Material: Materials are in English.
Physical Location: Stored off-site. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.
Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.
Copyright to portions of this collection has been assigned to the UCLA Library Special Collections. The library can grant
permission to publish for materials to which it holds the copyright. All requests for permission to publish must be submitted
in writing to Library Special Collections. Credit shall be given as follows: The Regents of the University of California on
behalf of the UCLA Library Special Collections.
The photograph of Beau Cunningham, Janet's son, taken by photographer Gary Leonard in box 36, folders 4 and 5 may be accessed
but shall be restricted from all duplication and publication until 2023 May 22.
Janet Cunningham's diaries, contained within boxes 1-6, are restricted from duplication and publication until 2023 May 22.
During this period, her diaries will be accessible for reading and incidental quotation.
[Identification of item], Janet Cunningham papers (Collection 2355). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research
Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Kathryn Gillum; Gift; 2018.
Processed by Kelly Besser, 2018.
UCLA Catalog Record ID:
8782820
Janet Cunningham moved from New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA) to Los Angeles in 1978 with her son Beau to pursue a career as a
Hollywood writer. In 1981 she opened the Contemporary Artists Space of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) nightclub and gallery next door
to the Zero Zero Club on Cahuenga Boulevard where she hosted punk music shows, theater, and art exhibitions; screened films
and videos; and served NOLA inspired red beans and rice to artists and fans. The same year she opened C.A.S.H., Cunningham
was invited by the University of California, San Diego graduate program of sociology to deliver her "Punk as a Social Movement"
lecture for a course on social upheaval. Cunningham spent most of her career in Hollywood as a casting agent with her Creative
Artists Service of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) agency where she employed punks as paid extras in films, television shows, and music
videos. Her casting credits for film include
Valley Girl,
Night of the Comet, and
Cafe Flesh. She also cast music video extras for the following artists: Rockwell, Billy Idol, Ramones, Stray Cats, Blue Oyster Cult,
Oingo Boingo, Josie Cotton, Bangles, Plimsouls, and Wasp. In addition to her work with C.A.S.H., Cunningham also worked as
a writer, actor, production designer, art director, and landscape designer. Between 1996 and 1998, she produced, directed,
and shot a documentary in NOLA about the survival of African culture within the city. After a battle with cancer in March
2018, Cunningham passed away at Garden Crest Rehabilitation Center in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles. Her son
Beauregard Baker predeceased her in 1986.
The Janet Cunningham papers range in date from 1967-2018 and contain Cunningham's handwritten diaries, Contemporary Artists
Space of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) files, Contemporary Artists Service of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) files, photographs, audio and audiovisual
materials, personal files, punk rock memorabilia, and New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA) files related to her documentary on the
survival of African culture within New Orleans.
This collection has been arranged in the following series:
- Series 1: Diaries, 1967-2008
- Series 2: Contemporary Artists Space of Hollywood and Creative Artists Service of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) files, 1980-2010
- Series 3: Personal files, 1970-2018
- Series 4: New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA) files, 1996-2018
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
COLLECTION CONTAINS PROCESSED AND UNPROCESSED AUDIO AND AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: Special equipment will be required for viewing.
All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
PORTIONS OF THIS COLLECTION HAVE BEEN DIGITIZED. Please consult digital facsimiles instead of originals.
COLLECTION CONTAINS UNPROCESSED DIGITAL MATERIALS: Special equipment or further processing may be required for viewing. All
requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
The American Hotel and Al's Bar Project records (Collection 2305). Available at UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
Darby Romeo collection of zines (Collection 1746). Available at UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
Punk zines and ephemera collection (Collection 2276). Available at UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
S.A. Griffin collection of underground poetry, Scott Wannberg, and The Carma Bums (Collection 2248). Available at UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
Razorcake/Gorsky Press, Inc. records (Collection 2284). Available at UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Punk culture and art -- United States
Nightclubs -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archives
Alternative spaces (Arts facilities) -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archives
Alternative rock music -- California -- Los Angeles
Cunningham, Janet -- Archives
box 2, box 3, box 4, box 5, box 6
Series 1 Diaries
Cunningham's diaries are handwritten within composition books and detail her personal life and life as a writer in New York,
New Orleans, and Los Angeles.
Copyright to portions of this collection has been assigned to the UCLA Library Special Collections. The library can grant
permission to publish for materials to which it holds the copyright. All requests for permission to publish must be submitted
in writing to Library Special Collections. Credit shall be given as follows: The Regents of the University of California on
behalf of the UCLA Library Special Collections.
Janet Cunningham's diaries, contained within boxes 1-6, are restricted from duplication and publication until 2023 May 22.
During this period, her diaries will be accessible for reading and incidental quotation.
box 7, box 8, box 9, box 10, box 11, box 12, box 13, box 14, box 15, box 16, box 17, box 18, box 19, box 20, box 21, box 22, box 23, box 24, box 25, box 26, box 27, box 28, box 29, box 30, box 31, box 32, box 33, box 34, box 35, box 36, box 37, box 38, box 39
Series 2 C.A.S.H. files 1980-2010
The C.A.S.H. files include documentation of Cunningham's Contemporary Artists Space of Hollywood nightclub and gallery and
her casting agency of the same acronym, Contemporary Artists Service of Hollywood.
Audio and audiovisual materials include two 7-inch vinyl records, forty-one CDs, sixteen VHSes, 6 Hi8s, ten Video8s, three
8mm films, 2 U-Matics, 2 MiniDVs, and 5 Video8s.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
SERIES CONTAINS PROCESSED AND UNPROCESSED AUDIO AND AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: Audio and audiovisual materials in this collection
will require assessment and possible digitization for safe access. All requests to access special collections materials must
be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
SERIES CONTAINS DIGITAL MATERIALS: Special equipment or further processing may be required for viewing. All requests to access
special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
The photograph of Beau Cunningham, Janet's son, taken by photographer Gary Leonard in box 36, folders 4 and 5 may be accessed
but shall be restricted from all duplication and publication until 2023 May 22.
Existence and Location of Copies
Digital copies of the
Aliendog Archives Herr Schadel Im Der Haus CD-RW in Box 34, the U-Matics and Video8s in Box 37 and the 8mm films in Box 39 are available. All requests to access special
collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located on this page.
box 7, box 8, box 9, box 10, box 11, box 12, box 13
Contemporary Artists Service of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) casting cards
Contemporary Artists Service of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) casting cards, each handwritten by the artists and including polaroid
photographs of each person taken by Cunningham. Artists include Lisa Flores, Ron Athey, Suzanne Gardner, Tequila Mockingbird,
Iris Berry, Tomata du Plenty, Bozo Monroe, Arma Lou Devine, Perry Farrell, Courtney Love, Pleasant Gehman, Nickey Alexander,
Michael "Spider" Sanders, Doug Knott, Barb Wire, Mike Mollett, Victoria Willams, and Simone Gad.
box 14, box 15, box 16, box 17, box 18, box 19, box 20
Contemporary Artists Space of Hollywood (C.A.S.H.) flyers, listings, press, photographs, and ephemera
box 21, box 22, box 23
SCRATCH Magazines
Cunningham's collection of
SCRATCH Magazine which was "created as a collector's remembrance of Hollywood's night life at this point in time." Box 21 also includes
C.A.S.H. photo albums and Cunningham's address book. Box 23 contains a signed catalog for the
First Los Angeles Erotic Mail Art Show organized by Richard A. Meade at the Zero Zero gallery.
box 24, box 25, box 26, box 27
Casting files
box 28, box 29, box 30
box 31, box 32, box 33, box 34, box 35, box 36, box 37, box 38, box 39
Casting files
Casting files include scripts and production notes. Box 31 contains four photograph albums and crew lists for various productions.
Box 34 contains
Destroy All Movies!!! The Complete Guide to Punks on Film which is inscribed by the editors to Cunningham. Box 35 contains Cunningham's Rolodex and business cards.
Audio and audiovisual materials in box 34 include
Chocolate Orgasm,
Why Work?,
Hollywood Fantasy,
Hooray for Hollywood,
The Black Flag Returns, "Headshots," and
Aliendog Archives Herr Schadel Im Der Haus.
Box 34 also contains twenty-three 3.5 inch floppy disks and 2 flash drives.
Audio and audiovisual materials in box 37 include C.A.S.H. auditions,
No Thanks!: The '70s Punk Rebellion,
Punk Agents: The Buttheads and
The Punkization of Hollywood.
Box 39 contains the following audiovisual materials: Faye Dunaway interview, Maggie interview, and Beau's "Jump" B-Day.
box 40, box 41, box 42, box 43, box 44, box 45, box 46, box 47, box 48, box 49, box 50, box 51, box 52
Series 3 Personal files 1970-2018
The personal files contain Cunningham's correspondence, photographs, ephemera, and memorabilia.
Audio and audiovisual materials include three 7-inch vinyl records, seventy-seven audiocassettes, and twenty-five microcassettes.
Digital materials include one CD-R.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
SERIES CONTAINS UNPROCESSED AUDIO AND DIGITAL MATERIALS: Materials will require assessment and may need further processing
for safe access. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.
box 40, box 41, box 42, box 43, box 44, box 45, box 46, box 47, box 48, box 49, box 50
Correspondence, photographs, ephemera, and memorabilia
In addition to personal files which include photographs, programs, and ephemera from Cunningham's memorial, boxes 40-50 contain
Cunningham's C.A.S.H. flyers, signs, photographs, and original collage artwork for C.A.S.H. punk casting flyers.
Audio materials include two 7-inch vinyl records,
The Hollywood Hillbillys and
The Mower Compilation #2 in box 41 and one 7-inch
The Euge vinyl record in box 42.
Digital materials include one "Photos for Janet Cunningham" CD-R in box 49.
box 51, box 52
box 53, box 54, box 55, box 56, box 57, box 58, box 59, box 60, box 61, box 62, box 63, box 64
Series 4 NOLA files 1996-2018
The NOLA files contain Cunningham's research notes, subject files, editing logs, audio recordings of interviews, master film
and video footage, and trailer for her documentary film which focuses on the survival of African culture through NOLA jazz
funerals, second line parades, Mardi Gras festivals, and REBIRTH. This includes two audiocassettes, eighty-four VHSes, seven
MiniDVs, six VHSes, four Betacam (SP) videocassettes, nineteen Video8s, forty-four Hi8s, and one DVD-R of Cunningham's NOLA
documentary.
Box 64 contains Cunningham's own Mardi Gras mask which she made by hand.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
SERIES CONTAINS AUDIO AND AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: Audio and audiovisual materials in this collection will require assessment
and possible digitization for safe access. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using
the request button located on this page.