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COLLECTION Identifier: MS Thr 487

Eugene Berman letters to L. Arnold Weissberger

Overview

Letters of artist and theatre designer Eugene Berman to his attorney, L. Arnold Weissberger concerning negotiations with galleries, sales of his paintings, his last will, and other business matters and documents.

Dates

  • Creation: 1947-1973

Creator

Language of Materials

Collection materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

There are no restrictions on physical access to this material.

Extent

.25 linear feet (1 box)

Letters concern business matters: negotiations with American art galleries; arrangements of exhibits and sales; design projects for Metropolitan Opera (New York, N.Y.) and New York City Ballet; problems with social security and taxes. Some letters are written on the verso of letters from various galleries that Berman was forwarding to Weissberger for his opinion and advice. Also includes list of Berman's theatre designs, invitations to Berman's exhibits in Europe and the US, drafts of Berman's last will, his American naturalization certificate, a cancelled check, and a contract.

Biographical / Historical

Eugene Berman (1899-1972) was a Russian-born American artist, theatre and opera designer, and collector. Between 1922 and 1957 he lived and worked in the United States. In 1957 he moved to Rome where he resided until his death in 1972. As a designer he is primarily known for his designs for American Ballet Theatre's Romeo and Juliet and Giselle, and for the Metropolitan Opera's Don Giovanni, La Forza del Destino, Othello, Rigoletto, and The Barber of Seville.

L. Arnold Weissberger (1907-1981) was an American theatrical lawyer who represented many prominent artists and theatrical personalities. He was Eugene Berman's friend and attorney.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.

Physical Location

b

Immediate Source of Acquisition

2003MT-160(b). Purchased with Frank E. Chase fund; received: 2003 November 12.

Processing Information

Processed by: Irina Klyagin

Title
Berman, Eugene, 1899-1972. Eugene Berman letters to L. Arnold Weissberger, 1947-1973: Guide.
Author
Harvard Theatre Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard College Library
Language of description
und
EAD ID
hou01798

Repository Details

Part of the Houghton Library Repository

Houghton Library is Harvard College's principal repository for rare books and manuscripts, archives, and more. Houghton Library's collections represent the scope of human experience from ancient Egypt to twenty-first century Cambridge. With strengths primarily in North American and European history, literature, and culture, collections range in media from printed books and handwritten manuscripts to maps, drawings and paintings, prints, posters, photographs, film and audio recordings, and digital media, as well as costumes, theater props, and a wide range of other objects. Houghton Library has historically focused on collecting the written record of European and Eurocentric North American culture, yet it holds a large and diverse number of primary sources valuable for research on the languages, culture and history of indigenous peoples of the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.

Houghton Library’s Reading Room is free and open to all who wish to use the library’s collections.

Contact:
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Harvard University
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