Finding Aid for the Collection of Material Relating to Jake Zeitlin, ca. 1930-1989
Processed by Dan Luckenbill; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé
© 2003
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Finding Aid for the Collection of Material Relating to Jake Zeitlin, ca. 1930-1989
Collection number: 485
UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections
Manuscripts Division
Los Angeles, CA
- Processed by:
- Dan Luckenbill, November 1997
- Encoded by:
- Caroline Cubé
- Online finding aid edited by:
- Josh Fiala, October 2003
© 2003 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: Collection of Material Relating to Jake Zeitlin,
Date (inclusive): ca. 1930-1989
Collection number: 485
Extent: 1 box (0.5 linear ft.)
1 oversize box
Repository:
University of California, Los Angeles. Library.
Dept. of Special Collections.
Los Angeles, California 90095-1575
Abstract: Jacob Israel Zeitlin (1902-1987) was a bookseller, poet and book reviewer in Ft. Worth, Texas before moving to Los Angeles
(1925). He was employed by the Holmes Book Company and the book departments of the May Company and Bullock's before opening
his first shop (1927) which he relocated in 1929 and 1948. He sold rare books, prints and paintings, lectured widely on subjects
related to rare books and the history of science, and represented many collectors of the history of science. Zeitlin was also
instrumental in bringing many collections to UCLA including the Grunewald Graphic Arts Collection, and he personally donated
several manuscript collections to the Department of Special Collections. The collection consists of works by and about Zeitlin
including articles, clippings, mimeographs, and obituaries. There are also book catalogs and book lists, and items collected
by him, some relating to Aldous Huxley.
Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library, Department
of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Language:
English.
Administrative Information
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections. Literary rights, including
copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds
the copyright and pursue the
copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
Restrictions on Access
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Library, Department
of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Gift of Sam Zeitlin, 1996.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Collection of Material Relating to Jake Zeitlin (Collection 485). Department of Special Collections,
Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
UCLA Catalog Record ID
Biography
Jacob Israel Zeitlin was born on November 4, 1902, in Racine, Wisconsin; worked as a bookseller, poet and book reviewer in
Ft. Worth, Texas; moved to Los Angeles in 1925; began career in bookselling when employed by Holmes Book Company and the book
departments of the May Company and Bullock's; published his first book of poems and began as an independent bookseller in
1927; opened his first shop, designed by Lloyd Wright, in 1927; Wright designed a more elaborate shop in 1929 that became
a meeting place for the city's intellectuals; Zeitlin and friends published
Opinion, an influential but short-lived magazine; he ran Primavera Press from 1929-33 in collaboration with Lawrence Clark Powell,
Carey McWilliams, Phil Townsend Hanna, and Ward Ritchie; Zeitlin was one of the founders of the Rounce & Coffin Club in 1931;
in collaboration with his wife, Josephine Ver Brugge, moved his shop into a large red barn on La Cienega Blvd. in 1948, selling
rare books, prints, and paintings; lectured widely on subjects related to rare books and the history of science, and represented
many collectors of the history of science; was instrumental in bringing many collections to UCLA, including the Grunewald
Graphic Arts Collection, and personally donated several manuscript collections to the Department of Special Collections; received
Doctor of Letters from Occidental College in 1981; died in August 1987.
Scope and Content
Collection consists of materials relating to Los Angeles antiquarian bookseller Jake Zeitlin. Includes works by and about
Zeitlin, including articles, clippings, mimeographs, and obituaries. Also includes book catalogs and book lists of Jake Zeitlin,
as well as items collected by him, some relating to Aldous Huxley.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Subjects
Zeitlin, Jake, 1902- --Archives.
Antiquarian booksellers--California--Los Angeles--Archival resources.
Related Material
Note
Zeitlin, Sam Papers, 1930s-1980s [All Relate to His Brother, Jake Zeitlin]
Box 1
Newspaper clippings about Jake Zeitlin, including obituaries. ca. 1960s-1980s.
Physical Description: [Oversize box].
Box 2, Folder 1
Folder kept by SZ. Works by and about JZ, including printed
obituary tributes, etc. 1970s-1980s.
Box 2, Folder 2
Works about booksellers (not by JZ). v.d.
Box 2, Folder 3
Portraits of JZ. By Robert Borrow, etc., photograph of bust
by Jane Ullman, etc. 1970s.
Box 2, Folder 4
Articles and clippings about JZ. 1970s-1980s.
Box 2, Folder 5
Articles and offprints by JZ. 1950s-1980s.
Scope and Content Note
Includes mimeograph(?) text of obituary of John Valentine (1895-1955), sent(?) Millikin University, Decatur, Illinois.
Box 2, Folder 6
Articles sent SZ by JZ. About LCP, etc. 1970s.
Box 2, Folder 7
Lecture announcements, etc. v.d.
Box 2, Folder 8
Items collected by JZ and sent to SZ. 1960s.
Scope and Content Note
Miscellaneous,
e.g. about Huxley, copies of letters to Josephine Ver Brugge Zeitlin, etc.
Box 2, Folder 9
Zeitlin book catalogs, book lists, etc. (small file). 1950s-1960s.
Scope and Content Note
Includes information on John Valentine (first business in Decatur, Illinois).
