Ira and Leonore S. Gershwin Trust archive, 1895-2012

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Administrative History

Date	Event
1950s-1970s	Ira Gershwin donated numerous original music manuscripts, lyric sheets, sound recordings, and other materials in his possession to the Library of Congress. However, he kept for his own use a great number of correspondence files, photographs, programs, business records, and other documents, maintaining a business office/archive in his Beverly Hills home.
1953	Lawrence Stewart, a professor of English literature from Illinois, came to work for Ira, serving as his assistant for some 15 years. His responsibilities included organizing materials for donation to the Library as well as compiling information for Ira’s lyrical memoir, Lyrics on Several Occasions.
1977	Michael Feinstein became Ira’s assistant. He began his work by cataloging Ira’s vast collection of recordings.
1982	Feinstein introduced Mark Trent Goldberg to Ira and Leonore Gershwin, who asked him to help out at the office in their home.
1983	Goldberg began work with Ira and Leonore Gershwin, initially assisting with Ira’s business files and scrapbooks.
1983 August 17	Ira Gershwin died in Beverly Hills, aged 86.
1987	Leonore Gershwin established the Ira and Leonore S. Gershwin Trusts to function as a philanthropic fund endowing organizations in areas such as the arts, education, and medical research. The Trusts also maintained an office to handle the day-to-day business concerning licensing, royalties, and other matters.
1990	Michael Strunsky became trustee of the Ira and Leonore Gershwin estates.
1991 August 20	Leonore Gershwin died in Beverly Hills, aged 90.
1991	Goldberg became Executive Director of the Gershwin Trusts and the operation moved to an office on Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills.
2000	The Gershwin Trusts moved into new quarters in downtown San Francisco.
2005 May 18	Mark Trent Goldberg died in San Francisco, aged 49.
2005	Michael Owen became the archivist for the Gershwin Trusts.
2010 December 31	The Gershwin Trusts San Francisco archive closed.
2011 February	The Gershwin Trusts transferred the bulk of its archival materials to the Library of Congress.