Marilyn Wurzburger, Hayden Library Special Collections Librarian, was hired as an ASU Library cataloguer in 1960. The early part of the interview covers growing up in Illinois, participating in the Pillsbury Bakeoff and being a CBS tele-visitor reporter. Marilyn describes working in both Matthews and Hayden Libraries under a variety of head librarians. Marilyn talks about the creation of six Special Collections (see notes below for more details): Kelmscott Press, Batchelor Press, Doris & Marc Patten Herbal Books, Fritz Scholder, and Helmut Gernsheim. The interview wraps up with a discussion of some disappointments and highlights of Marilyn’s career.
Details
- Wurzburger, Marilyn
- Haefer, Richard (Interviewer)
- Arizona State University Retirees Association (Producer)
- Barry McNeill, Editor; David Scheatzle, Videographer; Linda Van Scoy, Audio; Linda Van Scoy, Chair Video History Project.
- ASU Special Collections The ASU Special Collections research unit in the Department of Archives and Special Collections, houses the Libraries' general collection of rare books and manuscripts and numerous special-interest collections centered around particular persons or topics of interest to scholars. By assembling an array of primary source materials and by conserving these materials under controlled conditions, Special Collections contributes to the growing reputation of the Libraries and the University as top-ranked teaching and research organizations. This note is copied from following link https://www.asu.edu/lib/speccoll/index.html, opens in a new window which has more detail about ASU’s Special Collections.
- The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood aka Pre-Raphaelites In 1848, as revolutions swept continental Europe and an uprising for social reform, known as Chartism, unsettled Britain, seven rebellious young artists in London formed a secret society with the aim of creating a new British art. They called themselves the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Read more from this MET article at: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/praf/hd_praf.htm, opens in a new window See ASU collection at https://www.asu.edu/lib/speccoll/prb/index.html, opens in a new window
- William Morris (1834-1896) & Kelmscott Press William Morris was an English artist, craftsman, socialist activist. In 1891 Morris set up three printing presses in a cottage near Kelmscott House - the start of the Kelmscott Press. The press’s best offering, “The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer”, was printed just before he died. You can read more about Morris and the Kelmscott Press at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Morris, opens in a new window and http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/morris/kelmscott.html, opens in a new window
- Patten Collection The Patten Collection of Herbals and Early Gardening Books includes items from the 15th century. The collection catalogue is online, indexed by Author, Subject, and Title and is available at: https://www.asu.edu/lib/speccoll/patten/index.html, opens in a new window,
- Thomas Bird Mosher (1852-1923) Thomas Bird Mosher was a publisher and founder of the Mosher Press located in Portland Maine. His first book, “Modern Love” by George Meredith, was published in 1891. By 1923 the Mosher Press had produced 783 books. More information about Thomas Bird Mosher and the Mosher Press can be found at http://www.thomasbirdmosher.net, opens in a new window.
- Child Drama Collection The Child Drama Collection began in 1979 with the gifts of the papers of Rita Criste, children's theatre professor at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois and the records of the Children's Theatre Association of America (CTAA), the national theatre for youth association. In 1985 Katherine Krzys became Curator of the Collection. It has grown to become the largest repository in the world documenting the international history of theatre for youth back to the 16th century – copied from Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pg/ChildDrama/about/?ref=page_internal, opens in a new window
- Fritz Scholder (1937-2005) Fritz Scholder was an American Artist. Scholder was one-quarter Luiseño but often said he was not Indian. His revolutionary painting broke away from stereotypical roles and forever changed the concept of “Indian artist”. For more information visit the Fritz Scholder website: http://fritzscholder.com/index.php, opens in a new window
- Helmut Gernsheim (1913-1995) Helmut Gernsheim was a historian of photography, collector, and photographer. In 1952 Gernsheim, through his research and help of his wife Alison, discovered that the world’s first photograph was created by Joseph Nicephore Niepce and not Louis Daguerre. For more information on Gernsheim see http://iphf.org/inductees/helmut-gernsheim/, opens in a new window
Personal Background
1. Growing up in Illinois @ 0:01:25
2. Pillsbury Bake Off @ 0:03:34
3. CBS Tele-visitor Reporter @ 0:07:16
Working in ASU Library 1960-1971
1. Getting Hired as Cataloger @ 0:13:21
2. Cataloguing under Harold Batchelor @ 0:19:35
3. Converting from Dewey Decimal to Library of Congress @ 0:30:19
4. Creating Staff Association @ 0:35:45
5. Moving to Hayden Library @ 0:37:38
Special Collections and Collectors
1. Becoming Head of Special Collections @ 0:40:30
2. William Morris & Kelmscott Press @ 0:51:32
3. Basilisk Press @ 0: 54:26
4. Doris & Marc Patten Herbal Books @ 0:56:13
5. Thomas Bird Mosher Press @ 1:06:37
6. Child Drama Collection @ 1:08:34
7. Leaf from Gutenberg Bible @ 1:13:14
8. George Gershwin song book @ 1:15:18
9. Fritz Scholder @ 1:16:47
10. Helmut Gernsheim @1:23:09
11. Loss of Alfred Knight Collection @ 1:28:00
Citation and reuse
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Wurzburger, Marilyn. Interview. 28 Mar. 2012. ASURA Video History Project. © Arizona Board of Regents. https://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.I.44710