Norman, R.E. mss., 1912-1954
Summary Information
Repository
Lilly Library (Indiana University, Bloomington)
Lilly Library
Indiana University
1200 E. Seventh St.
Bloomington, IN 47405-5500
Phone: 812-855-2452
Fax: 812-855-3143
Email: liblilly@indiana.edu
Creator
Norman, Richard E. (Richard Edward),
1891-1961.
TitleNorman, R.E. mss., 1912-1954
Collection No.
LMC 2190
Extent
4,000 items
Language
Materials are in English
Abstract
Consists of the papers of film producer
and distributor Richard Edward Norman, 1891-1961.
Access Restrictions
This collection is open for research.
Biographical Note
Richard Edward Norman began his career as a cameraman for the Capitol City Film Co.
of Des Moines, Iowa, about 1912. He soon went into business for himself and by 1920
had made a number of short films as a travelling film producer. After 1920 Norman
established himself and his company in Jacksonville, Florida, and began producing
all‑black films. He made several of these "race" films in the 1920's and distributed
them through the 1930's. Norman continued to be involved with the motion picture
industry in one capacity or another until the mid‑1950's.
Among the films produced by Norman are
Bell Starr
(1912),
The Man at the Throttle
(1915),
Sleepy Sam the Sleuth
(1915),
The Wrecker
(1915),
The Green‑Eyed Monster
(1916 and 1920),
Pro Patria
(1916),
The Love Bug
(1920),
The Crimson Skull
(1921),
The Bull‑Dogger
(1921),
Regeneration
(1923),
The Flying Ace
(1926), and
Black
Gold
(1928).
Arrangement
The collection is organized into the following series: I. Correspondence; II.
Censorship materials; III. Orders, receipts, etc.; IV. Distribution records; V.
Publicity; and VI. Miscellaneous.
Scope and Content Note
Publicity includes heralds, lobby cards, photographs, posters, press books and
miscellaneous publicity. Miscellaneous includes catalogs, personal materials,
photographs, printed materials, a scrapbook, and files on the unproduced
Zircon
serial.
Administrative Information
Acquisition Information
Acquired: 1984
Usage RestrictionsPrior arrangements are not necessary before coming to the Library, however,
patrons from out of town are encouraged to communicate with the Library in
advance of their visits to ascertain availability of materials.
Photocopying permitted only with permission of the Curator of Manuscripts, Lilly
Library.
Preferred Citation
[Item], Norman, R.E. mss., Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington,
Indiana.
Processing InformationProcessed by Lilly Staff.
Completed in 2012
Series:
Box
1,
Folders
1-37
Correspondence
Arranged chronologically.
Concerns the making and distribution of films. Primarily between Richard E.
Norman and actors, producers, distributors, theatre owners, etc. Of
particular interest is a group of letters from Norman to his brother Kenneth
Bruce Norman, 1921-1922. Among the correspondents in the collection are:
Bert Angeles, Clarence Brooks, Anita Bush, Bessie Coleman, Shingzie Howard,
George Perry Johnson, Stella Mayo, Oscar Micheaux, Alfred Norcom, D. Ireland
Thomas, and Salem Tutt Whitney.
Series:
Box
1,
Folders
38-40
Censorship Materials, 1920-1930
Arranged alphabetically by state or city. Box 1, folders 38 - 40, unless
otherwise indicated.
Includes correspondence, forms, approvals and disapprovals, and rules and
regulations.
Chicago
City ordinances
Permits to exhibit -
The Flying
Ace
5/23/27
The Green-Eyed Monster
6/14/21
Kansas
Certificate of approval -
The Crimson
Skull
9/9/22
Permits -
The Green-eyed
Monster
5/13/21
The Bull-Dogger
9/9/22
The Crimson Skull
9/9/22
Kansas City
Certificates of Censorship -
The
Green-Eyed Monster
5/14/21
The Bull-Dogger
9/8/22
The Crimson Skull
9/8/22
Maryland
Orders of approval -
The Green-Eyed
Monster
6/24/21,
receipts
Regeneration
9/15/24
Black Gold
5/9/28
application, receipts
The Flying Ace
5/9/28 & 7/7/28
receipt
Blank applications
Correspondence concerning censorship of
The Flying Ace,
6/20/28 -
7/5/28
Maryland State Board of Motion Picture Censors; Act 1922, Chapter 390 (3)
New York
Correspondence concerning
The Crimson
Skull,
4/13/22 -
4/24/22
Includes approved lithographs
Correspondence concerning
Regeneration,
9/19/24 -
11/8/24
Includes approved advertising and license
Correspondence concerning
The Flying
Ace,
5/7/28 -
5/19/28
License for
The Flying Ace
5/19/28
Rules & regulations 1921,
1923
Blank applications
Ohio
Letter concerning
The Crimson
Skull,
9/25/22
Correspondence concerning
The Flying
Ace,
4/28/27 -
6/4/27
Certificates of censorship -
The
Flying Ace
6/13/27
Box 1 (Oversize)
The Green-Eyed Monster
6/6/21
Box 1 (Oversize)
The Crimson Skull
9/28/22
Box 1 (Oversize)
A Rodeo Star [i.e.
The Bull-Dogger]
3/22/22
Pennsylvania
Certificates of censorship -
The
Green-Eyed Monster
12/4/20
The Love Bug
12/4/20
The Crimson Skull- not
approved, 4/6/22
reasons, blank approval form
Regeneration
9/23/24
Includes cuts to be made
The Flying Ace
5/3/28
Includes cuts to be made
Correspondence concerning
Black
Gold,
6/27/30 -
7/7/30
Includes sample and blank forms
Rules and Standards, 1918
Act and Rules, 1926
Virginia
Reports of examinations 7/24-8/24
mimeos
License for
Regeneration
9/15/24 and letter
9/16/24
Letter concerning
Black Gold
10/25/27
Blank applications
Censorship Law, and Rules and Regulations 1923
Series:
Box
1,
Folders
41-62
Orders, Receipts, etc., 1916-1953
Arranged chronologically.
This category includes orders, invoices, receipts, etc. for supplies.
Series:
Box 2
Distribution Records
Arranged alphabetically, first by state, then by city, then by theatre.
Alabama
Andalusia
Anniston
Bessemer
New Dixie
Birmingham
Champion
Brundidge
Elba
Enterprise
Evergreen
Florala
Gadsden
Lockhart
Muscle Shoals
North Birmingham
10 folders
Opelika
Opp
Ozark
Sheffield
Talladega
Tuscaloosa
Arkansas
Arkadelphia
Fort Smith
Malvern
Pine Bluff
Texarkana
Dreamland
Washington
Florida
Boynton
Chipley
Citra
Clewiston
Cocoa
Crescent City
Cross City
De Funiak Springs
Del Ray
Dunedin
Dunnellon
Eustis
Fellsmere
Fernandina
Fort Lauderdale
5 folders
Fort Pierce
Gifford
Gulf Hammock
High Springs
Lake Butler
Lake City
Liberty City
Melbourne
Monticello
Moore Haven
Mulberry
Newberry
Oakland
Pahokee, See: Azucar
Panama City
Pensacola
Perrine & Homestead
Pierce
Box 3
Plant City
3 folders
Pompano & Hammondsville
Reddick
South Miami
Tavares
Wabasso
Webster
Wensdale
West Palm Beach
3 folders
Yaloha
Misc. White Schools
Georgia
Athens
Atlanta
Theatre "81"
Augusta
Palace
Bainbridge
Blackshier
Brunswick
Columbus
Dublin
Gainsville
Marietta
Quitman
Savannah
Statesboro
Washington
Illinois
Chicago
Delphi
Lincoln
Oeol
State
Western
East St. Louis
Broadway
Lincoln
Olympia
Love Joy
Indiana
Indianapolis
Dunick
Kentucky
Henderson
Lexington
Louisville
Madisonville
Paducah
Louisiana
Alexandria
Baton Rouge
Melba
Lake Charles
Box 4
New Orleans
Iroquois
Saenger Amusement Co.
6 folders
Shreveport
Maryland
Baltimore
Carey
Dunbar
Goldfield
Lincoln
Lincoln #2
Queen
Roosevelt
Royal
Michigan
Detroit
Castle
Dunbar
Holbrook
North Carolina
Greenville
Series:
Box 4
Publicity
Subseries:
Box 4, Folders 72-74
Heralds
Bell Starr
The Flying Ace
The Green-Eyed Monster
The Man at the Throttle
Pro Patria
Regeneration
Sleepy Sam the Sleuth
The Wrecker
Her Unborn Child [non-Norman film]
Roar of the Crowd [non-Norman film]
20,000 Leagues under the Sea [non-Norman film]
Subseries:
Box 5, Folders 1-3
Lobby Cards
all 11"x14"
Black Gold
Poster
Six men, one aiming gun, in front of oil well
Composite: hero and heroine embracing villain, heroine and horse, Steve Reynolds and other man
Man with two guns and Steve Reynolds holding off three men; inset: two men drawing guns on each other
Composite: three fight scenes, the largest has group of onlookers
Heroine, Steve Reynolds and two wounded men; inset: man with gun drawn and horse
Composite: villain and horse, hero and heroine embracing, Steve Reynolds
Man in prison, inset: group of men fighting
The Flying Ace
Poster
Kathryn Boyd, Lawrence Criner and Steve Reynolds standing in front of airplane
Criner and unidentified man talking in office
Boyd and Criner standing with backs to each other; inset of villain trying to embrace Boyd
Cop arresting station master, Boyd protesting
Criner shaking station master's hand, cop holding gun on villain
Villain attacking hero by plane, unconscious heroine in plane
Composite: villain in plane, heroine escaping up rope ladder; insets of hero and heroine Regeneration
Regeneration
Poster
Heroine tied to tree, villain attacking hero, Steve Reynolds attacking villain with crutch
Hero and villain fighting, heroine trying to restrain hero
Villain leering at frightened heroine
Silhouette of girl on beach; insets: portraits of hero and heroine
Hero and heroine sitting together
Villain approaching sleeping heroine; inset of hero fighting villains
Heroine on boat holding gun on four men, hero unconscious; inset of young couple with sick old man
Subseries:
Box 5, Folders 4-6
Photographs
Black Gold
all 11"x14"
Poster
Steve Reynolds pulling gun from inside crutch
Kathryn Boyd and Lawrence Criner embracing
Boyd, Criner & horse
Villain with horse
Criner aiming gun and holding horse
Criner hoisting man onto his back
Criner fighting with and being choked by other man
Criner and another man drawings guns
Sheriff standing by horse, aiming gun
Man behind prison bars
Fight scene with crowd of onlookers
Villain, heroine, and horse
Criner and Reynolds fighting two villains
Criner kneeling, aiming gun
Regeneration
11"x14", unless otherwise noted
Heroine tied to tree, villain attacking hero, Steve Reynolds attacking villain with crutch
Heroine on boat holding gun on four men, hero unconscious
Cropped version of #2, with inscription: "Washington Theatre/Tuesday Jan. 15th"
Poster
Man and girl on raft, washed up on beach
9½"x12"
Villain leering at frightened heroine
Villain learing at frightened heroine, different pose
Dying man in bed, young couple
Young couple seated together
Silhouette of girl on beach; insets: portraits of hero and heroine
Reynolds, hero and heroine with two villains on beach
Two men ready to fight with heroine trying to restrain hero
Hero hitting villain while heroine cowers on bed
Villain sneaking up on sleeping heroine
Four villains fighting with hero in burning room
Part of poster - different from #16
6"x14"
Poster featuring Steve Reynolds
The Wrecker
Hero, heroine, villain standing, talking
8"x10"
Hero and heroine seated, villain looking on
8"x10"
Subseries:
Box Map Case
Posters
Black Gold
27"x41"
41"x81" in two sheets
The Bull-Dogger
9 ¼"x24"
28"x42"
The Crimson Skull
27"x41"
41"x81" in three sheets
28"x44"
The Exile [non-Norman film]
14"x22"
Explorers of the World [non-Norman film]
14"x22"
The Flying Ace
27"x41"
41"x81" in three sheets
The Green-Eyed Monster
28"x42"
11"x14"
Joe Louis vs. Primo Carnera [non-Norman film]
14"x22"
Joe Louis vs. King Levinsky [non-Norman film]
14"x22"
Joe Louis vs. James J. Braddock [non-Norman film]
14"x22"
Sleepy Sam the Sleuth
6"x15"
Subseries:
Box 2 (Oversize)
Pressbooks
Black Gold
The Crimson Skull
The Flying Ace
The Love Bug,
The Green-Eyed Monster,
The Crimson Skull, and
The Bull-Dogger
(in one pressbook)
Regeneration
Subseries:
Miscellaneous Publicity
Box 4, Folder 75
Flyers for Superior Film Mfg. Co., The Multiscope Studios, Magic Slide Mfg. Co., Superior Slide Mfg. Co.; Norman Film Co.
proof ad for
Photoplay Magazine; and "Have You Talent?" booklets
Box 3 (Oversize)
Promotional materials for non-Norman films:
The Water Lily,
Fruits of Passion, and
Who Shall Take My Life
Map Case
Proof ads for "Fame and Fortune" newspaper contest
Series:
Box 4
Miscellaneous
Subseries:
Box 4, Folders 76-78
Catalogs
Includes catalogs for films and supplies
Subseries:
Box 4, Folder 79
Passi-Kola
Recipe and labels for Passi-Kola soft drink
See also: Correspondence, 1912-1915
Subseries:
Box 4, Folder 80
Personal
Includes bank savings books, driver's license, draft card
Subseries:
Box 4, Folder 81-82; 4 (Oversize)
Photographs
See also: Scrapbook
Box 4, Folder 81
Pure Oil Company
all 8"x10"
Man seated on running board of Pure motion picture sound car
Man operating mike over woman in swimming suit
Color test for woman
Actress at make-up table with script girl and technicians
Actors and technicians on set of Pure gas station
Actors and technicians on set of Pure gas station, with view of billboard
Woman in swimming suit posing in front of Pure gas pump
Movie set - interior of gas station, with technicians
Movie set - office with two men, with technicians
Movie set - office scene, close in
Movie set - boudoir, with technicians
Exterior - men working on telephone pole
Movie set - grocery store, with technicians
Cameraman and woman at boudoir table, close
Woman at boudoir table, cameraman, script girl, and Mr. Grant
Movie set - seated man using phone, with cameraman and lights
Movie set - overhead shot of living room (?), with technicians
Cameraman, director, other man with camera and light
Movie set - shoe store
Men preparing shoe store set
Boy dancing, with cameraman
Box 4, Folder 82
Miscellaneous Photographs
Snapshot of two people outside of building under construction
3 ½"x5"
Snapshot of two people inside building under construction
3½"x5"
Still from
The Girl from Chicago
8"x10"
Poster for
The Girl from Chicago
8"x10"
Resynchronizer
Portrait of unidentified woman
8"x10"
Two stills from unidentified movie(s)
8"x10"
Box 4 (Oversize)
Studio, 1924
all 11"x14"
Scenery room with ladders, doors and windows
Prop room, with various pieces of furniture
Prop room, with shelves of bottles, vases, and other small items
Room with large machine
Complex of buildings, water tower in background
Same complex of buildings, different view
Same complex of buildings, in-ground structure in foreground
Same complex of buildings, water tower and car
Closeup of in-ground structure
Subseries:
Box 4, Folders 83-97; 5 (Oversize)
Printed
Magazines, newspapers, tickets and articles
Moving Picture World, July 18, 1925
(incomplete)
The Theatre Bulletin of Oklahoma City, Okl'a, vol. 4, no. 4, Dec. 6, 1919
Moving Picture World, vol. 29, no. 12, Sept. 16, 1916
Dream World, vol. III, no. 6, Jan. 1925
Motion Picture Herald, vol. 17, no. 10, Dec. 8, 1934
Abbott's, vol. II, no. 4, April 1931
White Shadows, vol. I, no. 3, March 1923
Theatre Catalog, 1958
Newspapers and clippings
26 items
Subseries:
Box 4, Folder 88
Scrapbook, 1912-1919
Contains clippings concerning Norman's motion picture activities and films, and samples of stationery and legal forms. Also
includes the photographs listed below.
Man with camera surrounded by crowd on street of Cedar Rapids; car and trolley with ads on sides: "Taking Pictures of the
City of Cedar Rapids" and "Get in the movies"
8"x10"
Closeup of above car
8"x10"
Man standing in car with camera, ad on car: "We are taking moving pictures of Perry...", crowd nearby
3½" x 5½"
Man standing in car with camera, children and adults nearby
3½" x 5½"
Man with camera standing in snow
3½" x 5½"
Three stills from
The Green-Eyed Monster
5"x7"
Man filming crowd, firemen and smoke in front of The Aurora [Illinois] Theater
5"x7"
Man filming three men in car
3¼"x5½"
Man filming four men running on snow-covered street
3¼"x5½"
Man filming eight men in front of building, herd of sheep in foreground
3½"x5½"
Sequence of three shots of man on street
7¼"x4"
Sequence of three shots of man and woman on wooden swing
7¼"x4"
Three photographs of Superior Film Mfg. Co. building in Des Moines, Iowa
4"x5"
Subseries:
Box 4, Folder 89
Stationery
Blank stationery, envelopes, and business cards for various Norman enterprises.
Subseries:
Box 4, Folders 90-91
Zircon
Correspondence and financial files concerning Norman's unproduced black serial film Zircon.
