The collection of Oscar Hammerstein II (1895-1960) span the years 1864-2000, with the bulk of the material dating from 1920 to 1960. They document the life and work of this pioneering lyricist, librettist, and theatrical producer and director who was one of the major innovators responsible for ushering in a new, more complex and fully integrated form of American musical theater. Hammerstein, whose collaborations, especially with Jerome Kern and Richard Rodgers, are well-documented here, interacted with major figures in the theater, the arts, and in entertainment of the first half of the twentieth century. The papers are in English. The collection is organized into the following series: Show and Project Files, General Correspondence and Business Papers, Miscellaneous Music and Lyric Sketches, Writings, Personal Correspondence and Papers, Subject Files, Scrapbooks, Visual Materials, Awards and Citations, Programs, William Hammerstein Materials, Scripts Submitted to Oscar Hammerstein II, Books, Realia, and Miscellany.

The Show and Project Files and the General Correspondence and Business Papers series are the largest series in the collection with the bulk of materials documenting Hammerstein’s creative process and the details of producing his shows. The collection was originally organized in either chronological order or alphabetical order by topic or show, and these two series reflect both approaches. The Show and Project Files are arranged alphabetically by show and gather together various types of materials pertaining to each identifiable show that Hammerstein wrote and/or produced, or on which he considered collaborating. The General Correspondence and Business Papers, on the other hand, are arranged chronologically and relate to the totality of Hammerstein’s professional life. Each year contains correspondence and other business documents that pertain to a multitude of projects and subjects with which Hammerstein was involved at the time. Researchers are advised to consult both series for materials about particular shows.

The Show and Project Files series contains a broad array of materials, such as correspondence, lyrics and lyric sketches, scripts and screenplays, photographs, and programs that documents the range of Hammerstein’s productivity, though the quantity of material relating to each production varies. It spans 40 years of his career, beginning with Always You from 1920, his first professional show as sole librettist and lyricist, and ending with The Sound of Music , his last show (and last one with Richard Rodgers) from 1959. Materials within a given show might cover a wide chronological range and pertain to several iterations of the show, such as the original Broadway production, touring companies, the film adaptation, and revivals. Hammerstein’s musicals and operettas from the 1920s and 1930s in collaboration with Herbert Stothart, Sigmund Romberg and others are represented, as well as the Jerome Kern shows, including the groundbreaking Show Boat , and all eleven musicals with Richard Rodgers.

Hammerstein’s creative process is on display in several shows. For example, The Sound of Music and Flower Drum Song contain various lyric sketches and drafts that show the evolution of songs, how he worked out his ideas, and sculpted his characters using carefully constructed lyrics. His extensive research and careful attention to every detail of the production are evident in his explorations into dialects, recipes for clambakes, and cotton mills for Carousel ; and demonstrated by the hand-drawn map of Claremore, Oklahoma for Oklahoma! The correspondence from Sister Gregory, technical advisor on The Sound of Music and Mary Martin’s friend, provides fascinating insight into religious life that is reflected in the finished musical. Many shows contain several versions of scripts and screenplays with notes and revisions showing the progression of themes and development of characters; and “working papers” for shows such as The King and I include correspondence and other papers that chart its evolution.

The General Correspondence and Business Papers series documents Hammerstein’s relationships with collaborators, colleagues, and friends from the worlds of theater, motion pictures, and literature, as well as a wide array of artists, publishers, publicists, attorneys, and admirers. It spans his career, but is particularly strong in documenting the 1940s and 1950s. The correspondence discusses multiple projects at a time, and topics cover the entirety of Hammerstein’s professional life, shedding light on the details of his artistic collaborations and the complex process of creating works for theater and film whether or not they were brought to fruition. Adding to the richness of the collection are carbons for much of Hammerstein’s outgoing letters that provide a more complete picture of the issues at hand. In addition to correspondence, the series contains financial and business papers of various kinds, including royalty statements, contracts, earning sheets, bank statements, deposit slips, and receipts.

This series also documents Hammerstein’s involvement in a variety of theatrical, social, political, and charitable organizations (see also The Subject Files for additional materials relating to some of these organizations), such as the Dramatists Guild, Writers Board for World Government, National Conference of Christians and Jews, and Freedom House. It also contains personal letters; and correspondence from fans, the general public, and individuals (both strangers and friends) asking for advice and professional favors.

Identified lyrics, draft lyrics, and lyric sketches, or unidentified lyrics thought to belong to a particular show are filed with their appropriate show in the Show and Project Files series. Unidentified lyric sketches and draft lyrics can be found in the Miscellaneous Music and Lyric Sketches series. These include drafts and samples of lyrics, notes about lyrics and characters, and ideas for lyrics.

The Miscellaneous Music and Lyric Sketches series also includes published sheet music, music manuscripts, and some holographs. Much of the music is for songs with lyrics by Hammerstein or songs for which the composer had hoped Hammerstein would write the lyrics. Some of the completed songs most likely had been sent to Hammerstein from friends or from individuals seeking his appraisal. The series includes manuscripts and holographs by Fred Ahlert, J. Fred Coots, Lewis Gensler, Jerome Kern, Sigmund Romberg, and Harry Ruby. Richard Rodgers' manuscripts can be found with lyric sketches or music for the particular show in the Show and Project Files. Of particular interest are a “musical autogram” of Oscar Hammerstein II for piano by Robert Russell Bennett and the piano-vocal score for Aaron Copland’s opera The Tender Land , inscribed “for Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II with the grateful appreciation of their colleague and commissionee/Aaron Copland/March 1956.” The series also includes an incomplete holograph for the work “Fantasy for Oscar,” by Jerome Kern; the song “Sweet Marie” with words and music by Oscar Hammerstein from 1901; and an early version of the Kern/Hammerstein song “Nobody Else but Me” (here titled “Kim’s Song”), written for a 1946 revival and generally considered to be the last song composed by Kern.

The Writings series is subdivided into two subseries: Writings by Oscar Hammerstein II and Writings about Oscar Hammerstein II. The first subseries contains several talks and articles that Hammerstein wrote on behalf of the United World Federalists, an organization in which he was heavily involved, including “If I thought I could write a song about world peace” and “If we are leaders, let us lead.” His support of racial tolerance and equality are evident in such pieces as “Intolerance and Negroes” from 1952 and “On segregation and integration” from 1955. There also are drafts of and materials relating to his book Lyrics , eulogies for Theresa Helburn, Gertrude Lawrence, and Canada Lee, as well as pieces on the craft of songwriting, and the future of American theater. At the end are miscellaneous unidentified speech fragments, notes and writings.

Hammerstein’s profile in the New Yorker from 1951 is included in the Writings about Oscar Hammerstein II subseries. One can also find several interviews, including a bound copy of an interview by Mike Wallace from 1958, accompanied by correspondence in reaction to the interview. The subseries includes oral histories, as well as articles about how Rodgers and Hammerstein worked as a team.

In addition, at the end of the series, there are several scripts that feature Hammerstein as a guest on radio and television programs, and as the subject of live events and an exhibit.

The Personal Correspondence and Papers series contains most of the correpondence between Hammerstein and his family. Hammerstein’s autobiographical notes and narratives for a memoir he was planning to write are here, in addition to touching letters written to his wife Dorothy. Materials related to his death include hundreds of condolence letters and telegrams, plans for his burial and memorial, and a will. His drafts and notes for a biography of his grandfather, Oscar Hammerstein I, are included, in addition to drafts of a screenplay on his grandfather’s life that Hammerstein was working on with his uncle Arthur. Please note that there is additional personal correspondence in the General Correspondence and Business Papers series, and the William Hammerstein Materials series contains many letters between William and his father.

The Subject Files series primarily focuses on organizations, people, and topics of interest to Hammerstein. Many of the organizations found here also will be represented in the General Correspondence and Business Papers series. Hammerstein was active in several liberal and socially progressive organizations, among them the Writers Board for World Government whose annotated script for “The Myth That Threatens the World” is included here. This production, in favor of strengthening the United Nations, was directed by Hammerstein. These materials also document his memberships and activities on favorite charities. Items relating to collaborators Otto Harbach and Sigmund Romberg are here, as well as correspondence with Gertrude Lawrence regarding her withdrawal from the King and I , and correspondence relating to Tevye’s Daughters which Rodgers and Hammerstein had considered adapting.

Most of the scrapbooks in the Scrapbooks series document Hammerstein's shows and professional endeavors. The Scrapbooks series is divided into two subseries: Paper Albums (with items pasted in) and Bound Volumes (professionally bound books). In the first subseries, three scrapbooks dated from 1929 to 1942 contain clippings about Hammerstein’s shows, in addition to reports about his 1929 marriage to Dorothy Blanchard Jacobson. There also is a scrapbook dated 1920-1922 containing programs with Hammerstein’s written synopses, criticisms, and notes for several plays written by others.

The second subseries is comprised of bound volumes devoted to individual Hammerstein shows. Articles, clippings, photographs, programs, scores and sheet music, and scripts and screenplays are included, but the variety and quantity of material pertaining to each show varies. The scrapbooks primarily focus on original productions, but also may include touring company and film versions. Of note is the presence of a published score for Bizet’s Carmen with Hammerstein’s lyrics for his adaptation Carmen Jones pasted in. Researchers are advised to look for additional scrapbooks in the following series: Show and Project Files, Personal Correspondence and Papers, and Programs.

There is a small number of photographs in the Hammerstein collection, and sets of photographs that document a particular show are filed with that show in the Show and Project Files. Researchers also should look for photographs in the General Correspondence and Business Papers, Subject Files, and Scrapbooks series. The Visual Materials series contains a modest number of photographs and photocopies of unidentified Hammerstein family and friends. There are black and white formal portraits of Hammerstein and of Hammerstein with Rodgers; and shots of Hammerstein alone and with others at various events. A set of informal photographs taken during Columbia Records recording sessions for Cinderella , Flower Drum Song , and South Pacific feature Julie Andrews, Mary Martin, and others.

The number of awards and citations given to Hammerstein and the breadth of organizations bestowing them attest to how highly regarded he was, not only as an influential master in his field, but as a socially conscious individual. The Awards and Citations series contains hundreds of honors conferred upon Hammerstein individually and with Rodgers as a team, nearly spanning his career. It includes citations for his Tony Awards, Academy Awards, and Screen Writers Annual Awards. After his death, both ASCAP and the NAACP honored Hammerstein with “in memoriam” awards. There are several honorary academic degrees, as well as citations from the state of Oklahoma and one from a favorite Hammerstein charity Welcome House.

Programs can be found in several different series within the collection. Whenever possible, individual programs for Hammerstein shows were placed with that show in the Show and Project Files series. Many of the bound volumes in the Scrapbooks series also contain programs for his shows. In addition, one can find programs in the General Correspondence and Business Papers, Personal Correspondence and Papers, Subject Files, and William Hammerstein Materials series. The Programs series documents primarily non-Oscar Hammerstein II shows from the stages of New York, London, and Europe. There are early playbills and programs from Oscar Hammerstein I’s Victoria Theatre, and there also are scrapbooks of programs from the 1920s and 1930s that were compiled by Hammerstein’s son William. Plays and events that Hammerstein attended are represented by programs; and there is a smattering of programs for events that celebrate Rodgers and Hammerstein.

Oscar Hammerstein II’s eldest child William had a long theatrical career in his own right that lasted from the 1940s until his death in 2001. In addition to William’s personal correspondence, the collection contains materials related to his career as a theatrical and television producer and director. The William Hammerstein Materials series contains extensive correspondence to and from William, including a significant amount while he was in the U. S. Navy during World War II. There are letters from his father in which they discuss various personal and professional topics, including the elder Hammerstein’s latest show.

The professional materials contain several theatrical and television production scripts for projects that William Hammerstein either directed or produced. These scripts may be accompanied by correspondence, clippings, promotional materials, contracts, and financial papers. The series is rounded out by a handful of songs composed by William, three of which contain lyrics by his father.

The Scripts Submitted to Oscar Hammerstein II series contains several scripts having no clear connection to Hammerstein. Friends and colleagues probably sent these to him for professional advice and guidance. It is also possible that Hammerstein considered some of them as source material for potential shows or collaborations. The scripts are arranged alphabetically by title. The Books series contains several works that provided the source material for Hammerstein shows, including Edna Ferber’s Show Boat , C.Y. Lee’s The Flower Drum Song , and James Michener’s Tales of the South Pacific , all of which are annotated. A small group of artifacts in the Realia series includes a patent model for a cigar press belonging to Oscar Hammerstein I, who made his early fortune in cigar manufacturing. It also includes such items as an engraved Tiffany pocket watch and two engraved silver cigarette boxes. The Miscellany series includes Hammerstein’s collection of autograph letters from actors, playwrights, theatrical producers and critics, and literary figures, mostly from the late 19th and early 20th centuries; and letters from a Civil War soldier.