Elizabeth "Bes" Kimberly Collection

Elizabeth "Bes" Kimberly (1901-1993) Collection (1914-1993 [1926-1989])
Staff and Faculty Papers, Carnegie Mellon University Archives

Extent
Three Boxes (Boxes 1-3); 1.25 linear feet

Biographical Sketch of Elizabeth "Bes" Kimberly
Elizabeth "Bes" Schrader Kimberly (1901-1993) was a student of drama at Carnegie Tech in 1926. She joined the faculty of the drama department as a costume designer in 1928, and was a founder of Scotch n Soda in 1938. In 1939 she married Associate Professor of Drama, George B. Kimberly, and they spent nine years together before his untimely death. Fondly referred to as "the Lady in a Hurry," Kimberly supervised the costuming for over 500 plays until she retired in 1968. After her retirement, she volunteered in the Carnegie Alumni office where she edited the Drama Alumni Newsletter. Kimberly founded the Drama Alumni clans which honored her with the Distinguished Service Award in 1973, and the West Coast Drama Clan Award in 1980. Kimberly was also interested in the evolution of the drama department from its inception at the Carnegie Institute of Technology (CIT), to its development in the College of Fine Arts (CFA), and its role at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU). In 1981 Kimberly published the History of the Drama Department, 1914-81, and in 1982, Carnegie Mellon University awarded Kimberly the Doctor of Fine Arts Degree.

Scope and Content Note
The Elizabeth "Bes" Kimberly Collection is housed in three archival boxes and arranged in six series. Series have been designated for (I) Departmental Activities, (II) Drama Alumni Activities, (III) Costume Design, (IV) Programs, (V) Personal Activities, and (VI) Scrapbooks. The papers include photographs and scrapbooks of CIT/CMU Drama events, notes and scrapbooks on costume design, programs from the Studio Theatre (1981-1990), a set of memoirs by CMU/CIT Drama instructor, Fred Millett (1919-1923), and personal travelogues of her trips abroad.

The collection relates primarily to Mrs. Kimberly's activities as a drama alumni coordinator, with the bulk of the material from 1934-1989. The collection is mostly programs, clippings, and articles related to CIT/CMU alumni, including correspondence and articles from dramats Hardie Albright, Steven Bochco, Jack Brown, Robert Gill, Ann Henderson Hayes, and Coe Norton. She maintained memoirs of drama faculty Chester Wallace, Iden Payne, and Fred Millet, and research related to the publication of the History of the Drama Department, 1914-81. Also prominent in the collection is material relating to Kimberly's activities as a costume designer, including designs for The Golden Crucible, a performance commissioned for Pittsburgh's Bicentennial Celebration.

Items are arranged chronologically in each series. For some of the material it was difficult to determine if the item related to Kimberly's personal records or those of the departmental or alumni activities. There may be overlap among the records in these series. It was also difficult to determine if the photographs and memorabilia were included for institutional or personal reasons. This collection provides significant evidence of the strong personal and professional ties Kimberly nurtured and maintained with her students from the Carnegie Drama Department. Extensive preservation photocopying (will be) completed for the Kimberly collection.

Series I: Departmental Activities
In addition to student dissertations and publications this series includes items relating to the inception, development, and administration of the drama department: faculty bulletins, clippings, and articles.

Series II: Drama Alumni Activities
This series contains the bulk of documents in the collection, recording Kimberly's legacy of drama alumni events. It includes articles, clippings, and correspondence directly relating to alumni affairs, including the West Coast Clan and New York City cocktail parties. This series also includes the Alumni newsletter, founded by Kimberly in 1968, and related materials.

Series III: Costume Design
There are limited designs in this collection; however, this series includes any materials relating to The Golden Crucible, a performance commissioned for Pittsburgh's Bicentennial Celebration, Italian renderings of As You Like It, and costume ephemera.

Series IV: Programs
This series includes theatrical programs from the Carnegie Drama Department, the Nixon Theatre, the Pittsburgh Playhouse, and the Chester Wallace Players.

Series V: Personal Activities
This series includes Kimberly's personal correspondence, as well as the many publications she received as gifts throughout her tenure as student, faculty member, and alumni coordinator. This series also includes Kimberly's travelogues, journals, and exhibition brochures as well as the audio cassettes in the collection.

Series VI: Scrapbooks
This series includes Kimberly's scrapbooks, which contain production records from her residence in the drama program as a student and as a faculty designer. It also includes her personal photographs.

Provenance
Unknown.

Restrictions
None.

Separations
Researchers are referred to additional archival collections pertaining to Drama at Carnegie Mellon University including a collection of production photographs from 1914 through the present, programs, prompt books, scripts, costume designs, departmental and faculty papers, and related collections pertaining to the theatre and entertainment careers of Drama School Alumnae. At this time, two volumes are recommended for separation from the Elizabeth "Bes" Kimberly Collection: Stevens, Thomas Wood and Kenneth Sawyer Goodman. Masques of East and West; and the Hunt Institute's Botanical Art & Illustration, 1972-1973. Both are available through the Carnegie Mellon University Library System.

Processor
The Elizabeth "Bes" Kimberly collection was processed by Colleen Reilly in February 2004.

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Container List: Elizabeth "Bes" Kimberly Collection*
*Please note that to date the folder titles are not uniform. As the collection continues to be processed, a nomenclature will be developed to consistently describe the item level of the records. In the absence of a clear provenance, this appears to be a necessary step in proper description of the records and the facilitation of research access.

Box 1
Series I: Departmental Activities

Series II: Drama Alumni Activities

Series IV: Programs

Box 2
Series IV: Programs (continued)

Series V: Personal Activities

Box 3
Series VI: Scrapbooks