Corbitt (Wayne) Videotapes, 1992-1994

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Scope and content:: This collection consists of the master videos for “Blackbird’s Boogie in the Black Moonlight,” a theater piece written and performed by black San Francisco poet, performance artist and playwright Wayne Corbitt in the early 1990s. A flyer for the show describes it as a “provocative, moving collection of poetry” that “explores Corbitt’s creative sources -- his experiences in the South of Market scene in the 1980’s, his battle with HIV, and his childhood as the son of a ‘preacher woman.’” The video was produced and directed by Gary Shepard. Corbitt was born in 1952, moved to San Francisco from Indianapolis in 1976 and died of AIDS in 1997. Videotape formats include VHS, Betacam SP, Umatic 3/4”; there is also a reel-to-reel audiotape of music for the performance. The collection also includes materials related to “Blackbird’s Boogie,” including a script, some autobiographical writings, promotional materials and video logs. GSSO linked terms: http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_003728; http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_007675; http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_001039; http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_001601; http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_004301; http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_006371; http://semanticscience.org/resource/SIO_000297; http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/GSSO_000521; http://purl.bioontology.org/ontology/MESH/D008091

Subjects:: Black people
AIDS (disease)
Theater
Motion pictures
Literature
African Americans
People of color
AIDS Activism
Performance
Film/Video
Literature and Poetry

Collection Guide Author:: Finding aid created by GLBT Historical Society staff.
Date Prepared:: 1992-1994
Date Encoded:: This finding aid was produced using Record Express for OAC5 on July 14, 2025, 2:55 p.m.

Access and use

Location of this collection:: GLBT Historical Society

989 Market Street, Lower Level

San Francisco, CA 94103, US