Schildkraut (Leonora) papers, 1867-1999

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Summary

Title:
Leonora Schildkraut papers
Dates:
1867-1999
Creators:
Schildkraut, Leonora
Abstract:
Leonora Schildraut (nee Rogers) was the third wife of actor Joseph Schildkraut. A musician and actress, she was a member of the Peter Merenblum California Junior Symphony and later appeared in a few motion pictures and acted on the stage. After Schildkraut's death, she hosted a youth and arts radio show in Los Angeles, "Through the Looking Glass". In the 1980s and 1990s, she created music and sound design for theatrical productions. The Leonora Schildkraut papers consists of mementos, scrapbooks, photographs, correspondence, audio recordings, and other material collected by Leonora Schildkraut and commemorating the acting careers of her husband, Joseph Schildkraut and his father Rudolph Schildkraut, as well as her own work as a musician and arts philanthropist.
Extent:
20.5 Linear Feet 21 boxes
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[Box/folder# or item name], Leonora Schildkraut papers, Collection no. 6048, Music Library, USC Libraries, University of Southern California

Background

Scope and content:

The Leonora Schildkraut papers consist of mementos, scrapbooks, photographs, correspondence, audio recordings, and other material collected and/or created by Leonora Schildkraut. The collection documents and commemorates the acting careers of her husband, Joseph Schildkraut, and his father, Rudolph Schildkraut, as well as her own work as a musician and arts philanthropist.

Biographical / historical:

Leonora Schildraut (nee Rogers) was the third wife of actor Joseph Schildkraut. A musician and actress, she was a member (for 10 years) of the Peter Merenblum California Junior Symphony and later appeared in a few motion pictures during the 1940s and acted on the stage. After Schildkraut's death, she hosted a youth and arts radio show in Los Angeles, "Through the Looking Glass". In the 1980s and 1990s, Leonora Schildkraut created music and sound design for theatrical productions.

Acquisition information:
Leonora Schildkraut donated the material housed in boxes 1-6 in 2007. David Epstein donated the Rudolph and Joseph Schildkraut acting scrapbook in 2017. The immediate source(s) and date(s) of acquisition for materials in boxes 9–20 are not fully documented in the USC Libraries' accession files -- though Leonora Schildkraut donated some of the photographs in these boxes in 1972.
Processing information:

Parts of the collection are minimally processed with incomplete box-level descriptions. USC Libraries Special Collections transferred custody of the Leonora Schildkraut papers to the USC Music Library in 2022.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Sue Luftschein (2014) and Bo Doub (2026)
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2026-05-11 15:12:40 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Advance notice required for access.

Terms of access:

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Music Library at music@usc.edu. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Music 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.

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

Preferred citation:

[Box/folder# or item name], Leonora Schildkraut papers, Collection no. 6048, Music Library, USC Libraries, University of Southern California

Location of this collection:
Doheny Memorial Library, Room G-24
Los Angeles, CA 90089-1822, US
Contact:
(213) 740-0183
ajustice@usc.edu
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