Jeff Stookey and Jesse Bernstein papers, 1950-2010

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Stookey, Jeff, 1948-
Title
Jeff Stookey and Jesse Bernstein papers
Dates
1950-2010 (inclusive)
1974-1991 (bulk)
Quantity
7.32 cubic feet (6 boxes, 1 map folder, and 1 vertical file)
Collection Number
5734
Summary
Jesse Bernstein was a writer and performance artist associated with the Seattle Grunge scene. Jeff Stookey, a longtime friend, helped him to put this collection together prior to Bernsteins's death in 1991.
Repository
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu
Access Restrictions

Open to all users.

Languages
English

Historical NoteReturn to Top

The donor of this collection, Jeff Stookey, a life-long resident of the Pacific Northwest, met Jesse Bernstein in the fall of 1971 while they both worked at a Seattle area Goodwill store. They remained close friends until Jesse's death in 1991.

Steven J. Bernstein (Jesse) was born in Los Angeles on on Dec. 4, 1950. He was writer and performance artist associated with the Grunge scene. Jesse worked as a musician during his chaotic adolescence and early adulthood. He suffered from infantile paralysis and mental illness, and later drug and alcohol abuse as well. From 1966 on, he lived mainly in Seattle, working as a poet, playwright, novelist, singer/songwriter and performance artist, often collaborating with other Seattle artists. He often read at punk rock venues. He died at Neah Bay, Washington in 1991.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

Correspondence, artwork, photographs, audio and video recordings, and newspaper articles detailing Jesse's life, death, and artistic output at well as Jeff and Jesse's friendship. Included are papers, articles, photographs, correspondence, and ephemera related to the 2010 Bernstein documentary "I am Secretly an Important Man", two postcards to Jeff Stookey, referencing Jesse Bernstein (1986, 1995) and two postcards to Jesse Bernstein (1985).

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

Restrictions may exist on copying, quotation, or publication. Contact Special Collections, University of Washington Libraries for details.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

Organized into 2 accessions.

  • Accession No. 5734-001, Jeff Stookey and Steven J. Bernstein Collection, 1950-2010
  • Accession No. 5734-002, Jeff Stookey and Jesse Bernstein papers, 1985-1995

Related Materials

For additional Bernstein resources please see the Steven J. Bernstein Papers, 1972-2001 (Accessions 5244-001 and 5244-002).

Acquisition Information

Jeff Stookey, 2012-08-13, 2017-07-12.

Separated Materials

An art work entitled The Noodle, was separated from this collection and cataloged separately

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

 

Accession No. 5734-001: Jeff Stookey and Steven J. Bernstein Collection, 1950-2010 (bulk 1974-1991)Return to Top

cubic feet (6 boxes)

Scope and Content: Correspondence, artwork, photographs, audio and video recordings, and newspaper articles detailing Jesse's life, death, and artistic output at well as Jeff and Jesse's friendship. Included are papers, articles, photographs, correspondence, and ephemera related to the 2010 Bernstein documentary "I am Secretly an Important Man".

Restrictions on Access: No restrictions on access.

Restrictions on Use: Restrictions may exist on copying, quotation, or publication. Contact Special Collections, University of Washington Libraries for details.

Acquisition Info: Jeff Stookey, 8/13/12

General Notes: SJB = Steven "Jesse" Bernstein

Container(s) Description Dates
Series 1: Correspondence and news
Box/Folder Accession
1/1 5734-001
Birth and Death
1950-1991
1/2 5734-001
Bernstein letters to Stookey
1974-1977
1/3 5734-001
Bernstein: Correspondence
1979-1990
1/4 5734-001
Photos and Slides
1970s-1980s
1/5 5734-001
SJB portraits
1970s-1980s
1/6 5734-001
Choking on 6th, plus
1979
1/7 5734-001
Heather Hammond letters to Bernstein
1982-1984
1/8 5734-001
Bernstein letters to Stookey
1979-1990
1/9 5734-001
Original poster for "Prison" album (oversized)
undated
1/10 5734-001
"Faux Pas", featuring the work of SJB, #103 of 500
1987
1/11 5734-001
Newspapers with articles about Bernstein
1990-1991
1/12 5734-001
"Discrete Ephemera" #342 of 500
1990
1/13 5734-001
SJB archive-related material (misc)
1991-1993
1/14 5734-001
Obituaries/memorial tributes (photocopies and originals)
1991-1993
1/15 5734-001
"Extra copies for Jeff's archives"- misc SJB writings
1988-1990
1/16 5734-001
Leslie and SJB business
undated
1/17 5734-001
Leslie Fried business re: SJB archive letters and obits
undated
1/18 5734-001
SJB related correspondence
1993-2007
1/19 5734-001
"I am Secretly an Important Man" (film) related materials
2010
Series 2: Multimedia
Box Accession
2 5734-001
Hugging tube
2 5734-001
Two DAT cassettes: SJB reading "Birds" and "Hi Mom"
2 5734-001
Two DAT cassettes: Blanchard Street Studio Reading by SJB and Mali Delaney
Box/Folder
2/1 5734-001
Photos from "After Alison"
2/2 5734-001
SJB "Birds" on two audio cassettes
2/3 5734-001
SJB's interview on "Jesus Christ Made Seattle Under Protest", copy on audio cassette
August 12, 1983
2/4 5734-001
Bernstein archival Super 8 (3 rolls)
2/5 5734-001
Blanchard Street Studio Reading on 2 reels of 1/4 inch reel-to-reel tape.
2/6 5734-001
Three audio cassettes: Greg Jamrock's Panic Merchants (1984), Beaverchief, and Sue Ann Harkey's Nothing is Something
1984
2/7 5734-001
Three audio cassettes: SJB and Pete Leinonen's Words and Music, Leinonen's Saturated Peaks, and the Pete Leinonen Quintet (1984)
1984
2/8 5734-001
Two audio cassettes: SJB reads "Birds" and Bernstein reads for his mother
2/9 5734-001
Three SJB audio cassettes: "Effects" (1988), "The Sad Bag" (1990), and "Work-in-Progress #1" (1990).
1988-1990
2/10 5734-001
Audio cassette: Corsair @ SCUD meeting recoring
July 17, 1990
2/11 5734-001
Western Movements, four films by Jeff Stookey, on VHS and DVD
2/12 5734-001
SJB "Prison"- two audio cassettes, one is copy made by Jeff Stookey
2/13 5734-001
Letter from David Hines (Trigger) to Jeff Stookey
December 1992
Series 3: Art and news
Box/Folder Accession
3/1 5734-001
Bernstein Catalog
3/2 5734-001
SJB mixed portraits
3/3 5734-001
SJB art- ink and brush (undated), line drawing (1984), photo of watercolor (original retained by Stookey)
1984
3/4 5734-001
SJB's drawings, 1972-1984 (when dated) with Stookey's inventory and commentary
1972-1984
3/5 5734-001
Rickie Lee Jones note and signed photo to SJB
3/6 5734-001
SJB 1972 portraits and negatives, undated later photos (photocopies) of SJB and Alison Slow Loris
1972
3/7 5734-001
Evil Live Poetry Reading photos and negatives
July 13, 1979
3/8 5734-001
Contact sheet and negatives (color) or SJB and Alison Slow Loris wedding
Winter 1979
3/9 5734-001
SJB play "God in all her Glory" photos, negatives, and contact sheets
December 1980
3/10 5734-001
Photos, contact sheets, and negatives, including Wraith cover art
1980-1981
3/11 5734-001
Alison Slow Loris' art- color photocopy work
1980-1981
3/12 5734-001
Letters from William S. Burroughs to SJB
1982-1984
3/13 5734-001
SJB watercolors and collages (to Jeff and Pam)
1984
3/14 5734-001
Alison Slow Loris memorabilia
1984
3/15 5734-001
SJB misc, mostly undated
1979-1988
3/16 5734-001
SJB clippings, flies, and posters
1980-1996
3/17 5734-001
SJB papers- biography, resume, legal paperwork, newspaper articles/clippings
1990
3/18 5734-001
Clippings of SJB post-humous newspaper articles
1991-2003
3/19 5734-001
"I am Secretly an Important Man" related papers/ephemera
2010
3/20 5734-001
Interview magazine issue with blurb on "I am Secretly an Important Man"
October 2010
Series 4: Writings
Box/Folder Accession
4/1 5734-001
SJB songs for Seligman deposition
1974
4/2 5734-001
"Easy Pickin's" by Jack Saunders (1979) and "Exposed to the Elements" by Karen Waring (1976).
1976-1979
4/3 5734-001
"Fear of Piano Keys" (1976), "Message from the Sun", "Your Tricycle's on Fire!" and "How I met my Present Wife" (1987)
1976-1987
4/4 5734-001
Poetry collection chap books: "Choking on 6th" (Outlaw Press #1, 1979), "Exotic Disasters" (Outlaw Press #2, 1979), and "A Ghost of His Former Self" (Outlaw Press #3, 1981)
1979-1981
4/5 5734-001
"Choking on 6th" (copy)
1979
4/6 5734-001
"Pleasure on Platforms" and "After TV"
1979
4/7 5734-001
"The Sanctuary
1980
4/8 5734-001
"The Wraith", inscribed to Jeff
1984
4/9 5734-001
Vagabond Press White Paper series, all by John Bennett: "In the Course of Human Events", "Crime of the Century", and "HIJACK!"
1982
4/10 5734-001
"Hermione", copy of original manuscript
1982
4/11 5734-001
"Frozen Sapphire" and letters from SJB to David Hines (Trigger)
1987-1991
4/12 5734-001
SJB's work collected post-humously by Stookey: "Letting the Horses Go" (1988), "Party Balloon" (1990), "Blood and Smoke" (1989), "Howard and Shirley" (1987).
1987-1990
4/13 5734-001
Short pieces and songs used in public performance: "No More Censorship"
1989-1990
4/14 5734-001
"The Noodle"
1990
4/15 5734-001
"Popo and Ginger"
1990
4/16 5734-001
"Personal Effects" first draft, Stookey personal copy
1990
4/17 5734-001
"Personal Effects" first draft copy
1990
4/18 5734-001
"Personal Effects", copy of original final draft
1990
4/19 5734-001
"Short Skirt"
1991
4/20 5734-001
John Harter gallery fliers (photocopies)
1978-1991
4/21 5734-001
Photos of SJB's artwork taken for Pete Sillen (director of "I am Secretly an Important Man")
4/22 5734-001
Contact sheets and photocopies for Pete Sillen
4/23 5734-001
Misc small pieces, copies and originals
1970-1987
Series 5: Miscellaneous
Box Accession
5 5734-001
Framed photo of SJB's grandfather
5 5734-001
Crocheted pouch with bone/antler closure, contains 3 rocks
5 5734-001
Blank Seattle Post-Intelligencer notebook with SJB's address written on cover and provenance note by Jeff Stookey
5 5734-001
2 copies "The Rocket" newspaper July 1988 edition featuring SJB interview of William S. Burroughs
July 1988
5 5734-001
Triangular poster for "Words and Music: Jesse Bernstein and Pete Leinonen"
1984
Box/Folder
5/1 5734-001
"After the Break-Up, Alison/Jesse 1985"
1985
5/2 5734-001
Western Movements premier poster
Box
6 5734-001
SJB mixed media, drawings, and collages
1979-1987
6 5734-001
Posters for SJB's performaces/readings: Battle of Heavyweight Prose, Mitsu: the man who has had too much experience, and Evil Live poetry reading with Mali Delaney.
1979-1980
Box/Folder
6/1 5734-001
SJB artwork- ink, graphite, pastel and/or watercolor. Only dated pieces are 1988
1988
Series 6: Oversize
mapcase:oversize Accession
7 5734-001
"I am Secretly an Important Man" film poster, screenprinted
2010
7 5734-001
Seattle Art Museum Mike Spafford exhibit poster
1982
7 5734-001
SJB mixed media (graphite, pastel, and paint) male torso and genitalia
undated

Accession No. 5734-002: Jeff Stookey and Jesse Bernstein papers, 1985-1995Return to Top

1 vertical file

Scope and Content: Two postcards to Jeff Stookey, referencing Jesse Bernstein (1986, 1995) and two postcards to Jesse Bernstein (1985).

Restrictions on Access: No restrictions on access.

Restrictions on Use: Creator's copyrights transferred to the University of Washington Libraries Special Collections.

Acquisition Info: Jeff Stookey, 2017-07-12.

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Art--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Composers--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Grunge music--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Musicians--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Performance art--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Performance artists--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Poets, American--Washington (State)--Seattle

Personal Names

  • Bernstein, Steven J., 1950-1991--Archives
  • Stookey, Jeff, 1948---Archives

Form or Genre Terms

  • Ephemera
  • Personal correspondence
  • Photographs

Other Creators

  • Personal Names
    • Stookey, Jeff, 1948-   creator (creator)

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Personal Papers/Corporate Records (University of Washington)