Steven J. Bernstein papers, 1960-2010

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Bernstein, Steven J., 1950-1991
Title
Steven J. Bernstein papers
Dates
1960-2010 (inclusive)
Quantity
11.42 cubic feet (22 boxes, 19 folders, and 8 audiocassettes)
Collection Number
5244
Summary
Correspondence, photographs, notebooks, sketchbooks, manuscripts, poems, articles, event fliers and posters, drawings, paintings, published books, published audio tape cassettes of poetry and music, published vinyl record of poetry, artifacts, and sound cassette recordings of interview excerpts of a musician, poet, playwright, novelist, singer/songwriter and performance artist
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.

Request at UW

Languages
English

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Born in Los Angeles, Steven J. Bernstein (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 such as Pete Leinonen, Susy Schneider, Roberto Valenza and Kathleen Hunt. He often read at punk rock venues. He died at Neah Bay, Washington in 1991.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

Sound recordings; writings, artworks, and songs created by or relating to Bernstein; correspondence; photographs and other materials connected to Steven J. Bernstein.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

Some restrictions exist on copying, quotation or publication. Contact Repository for details.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

Organized into 4 accessions.

  • Accession No. 5244-001, Steven J. Bernstein papers, circa 1990
  • Accession No. 5244-002, Steven J. Bernstein papers, 1972-1991, 2001
  • Accession No. 5244-003, Steven J. Bernstein papers, 1960-2010
  • Accession No. 5244-004, Steven J. Bernstein papers, 1989-1992

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

 

Accession No. 5244-001: Steven J. Bernstein papers, circa 1990Return to Top

0.21 cubic feet (1 box)
4 sound cassettes

Scope and Content: Sound cassette recordings. One cassette consists of National Public Radio interview excerpts with Bernstein (11/20/1990)

Restrictions on Access: Open to all users.

Acquisition Info: Donor: Leslie Fried, June 27, 1996

Accession No. 5244-002: Steven J. Bernstein papers, 1972-1991, 2001Return to Top

5.21 cubic feet (14 boxes and 4 folders)

Scope and Content: Prose, poetry, letters, plays, songs, ephemera, and other materials created by or relating to Bernstein.

Restrictions on Access: Open to all users.

Acquisition Info: Donor: Leslie Fried, February 13, 2012

General Notes: A portion of the material written by Bernstein is also dated 2001

Container(s) Description Dates
Collections Published/Unpublished
Box/Folder Accession
1/1 5244-002
Choking on Sixth
1979
1/2 5244-002
Diary of a Mad God
n.d.
1/3 5244-002
Exotic Disasters
1979
1/4 5244-002
A Ghost of His Former Self
1981
1/5 5244-002
Holy Night
1990
1/6 5244-002
Popo and Ginger
1990
Ephemera
Box/Folder Accession
2/1 5244-002
AA Notes
1991
2/2 5244-002
AA Work Notes
n.d.
2/3 5244-002
Bernstein: Autobiology
1991
2/4 5244-002
Big Score
n.d.
2/5 5244-002
Corrections for Jesse Bio Intro
n.d.
2/6 5244-002
Dear Dad and Andrey
1991
2/7 5244-002
Dear Bill
1991
2/8 5244-002
Hand Drawn Notebook
1991
2/9 5244-002
Hands
n.d.
2/10 5244-002
I Act As Though I Don't Have a Life
1990
2/11 5244-002
I Will Not Lay Among Weapons
1991
3/1 5244-002
Jesse Bernstein: Biographical Note
n.d.
3/2 5244-002
Les Fleurs D'Amour
1988
3/3 5244-002
Miscellaneous Fragments
ca. 1991
3/4 5244-002
Molesh
1986
3/5 5244-002
Notebook
1991
3/6 5244-002
Notebook with Biography
ca. 1991
3/7 5244-002
Re: Self-Treatment
1991
3/8 5244-002
Remember the Lord!
1991
3/9 5244-002
So Easy Lord
n.d.
3/10 5244-002
Statement of Purpose
1988
3/11-3/12 5244-002
Steven J. Bernstein: Autobiology
1991, n.d.
3/13 5244-002
What Happens
1989
Letters
Box/Folder Accession
4/1 5244-002
27 July
1979
4/2 5244-002
17 December
1987
4/3 5244-002
19 December
1983
4/4 5244-002
21 December
1987
4/5 5244-002
22 December
1987
4/6 5244-002
24 December
1987
4/7 5244-002
25 December
1987
4/8 5244-002
26 December
1987
4/9-10 5244-002
27 December
1987
4/11 5244-002
28 December
1987
4/12 5244-002
29 December
1987
4/13 5244-002
30 December
1987
4/14-15 5244-002
2 January
1988
4/16 5244-002
3 January
1988
4/17 5244-002
5 January
1988
4/18 5244-002
6 January
1988
4/19 5244-002
9 January
1988
4/20 5244-002
11 January
1988
4/21 5244-002
12 January
1988
4/22-23 5244-002
13 January
1988
4/24-25 5244-002
14 January
1988
4/26 5244-002
16 January
1988
4/27 5244-002
17 January
1988
4/28 5244-002
19 January
1988
4/29 5244-002
21 January
1988
4/30 5244-002
23 January
1988
4/31 5244-002
24 January
1988
4/32 5244-002
9 March
1988
4/33 5244-002
2 April
1988
4/34 5244-002
18 May
1988
4/35 5244-002
26 June
1989
4/36 5244-002
22 September
1989
4/37 5244-002
26 September
1989
4/38 5244-002
3 March
1990
4/39 5244-002
From a Letter to My Brother
n.d.
4/40 5244-002
From a Letter to My Mother
n.d.
4/41 5244-002
January Nineteen
1989
4/42 5244-002
Jeff These are the Only
n.d.
Manuscripts
Box/Folder Accession
5/1 5244-002
Hermione
1982
6/1-3 5244-002
Personal Effects
1990, n.d.
5/2 5244-002
Poems and Letters to L
n.d.
7/1 5244-002
The Sanctuary
1980
7/2 5244-002
Short Skirt
1991
5/3 5244-002
Soon Sweet Misery
1978
5/4 5244-002
The Wraith
1981
Plays
Box/Folder Accession
8/1 5244-002
Almost Home Port
1986
8/2 5244-002
Breaking In
1982
8/3 5244-002
The Bride of the Assassin
1988
8/4 5244-002
Candy
n.d.
8/5 5244-002
Critics
2001
8/6 5244-002
The Dead Dog
1980
8/7 5244-002
Dr. Emu and the Dead President's Wife
1989
8/8 5244-002
Dr. W
n.d.
8/9 5244-002
Father and Daughter
1984
8/10 5244-002
God in All Her Glory
1980
8/11 5244-002
Howard and Shirley
1987
8/12 5244-002
Mariana's Love Affair
n.d.
8/13 5244-002
Moms
1990
8/14 5244-002
Monologues for Paula Killen
n.d.
8/15 5244-002
Namu: Desert Angel
1992
8/16 5244-002
Separate Partners
1987
8/17 5244-002
Silent Partners
1987
8/18-20 5244-002
A Well-Ordered Room
1980-1986
Poetry
Box/Folder Accession
9/1 5244-002
All the Things I Always Wanted
n.d.
9/2 5244-002
The Amazing Healing Power of the Madman
1976
9/3 5244-002
Antonin Artaud
n.d.
9/4 5244-002
The Anvil
1985
9/5 5244-002
At Home in the Future
n.d.
9/6 5244-002
At the Movies
1989
9/7 5244-002
August 27
1991
9/8 5244-002
Bad Boy
1987
9/9 5244-002
The Bandages That Touch the Burned Skin
n.d.
9/10 5244-002
Bartholomew's Flower
1986
9/11 5244-002
Being Alone in Life
n.d.
9/12 5244-002
Being Broke
n.d.
9/13 5244-002
The Birds in the Mirror
n.d.
9/14 5244-002
Blood and Smoke
1989
9/15 5244-002
Born Free
1989
9/16 5244-002
A Brief Visit
1989
9/17 5244-002
The Broken and Chaotic Europe of the Forties
n.d.
9/18 5244-002
Car With No Driver
1990
9/19 5244-002
Catholic Toy Melancholy
n.d.
9/20 5244-002
The Cell
n.d.
9/21 5244-002
Cell Shock
n.d.
9/22 5244-002
Children's Slaughterhouse
1986
9/23 5244-002
The Concrete Looks Soft Today
1989
9/24 5244-002
A Day of Letters
n.d.
9/25 5244-002
Dead Animal Song
n.d.
9/26 5244-002
Dead on the Farm
n.d.
9/27 5244-002
Dice Player's Riddle
1989
9/28 5244-002
The Difference
1989
9/29 5244-002
Dirt Cheap
1991
9/30 5244-002
Down at the Orpheum
1991
9/31 5244-002
The Enemy
n.d.
9/32 5244-002
Excerpt From a Recent Novel
1977
9/33 5244-002
The False Front
n.d.
9/34 5244-002
The Family Tree
n.d.
9/35 5244-002
The Famous Weasles Eat Their Children
n.d.
9/36 5244-002
Fear of Piano Keys
1976
9/37 5244-002
Fire in the Untrusting Belly
n.d.
9/38 5244-002
For Matthew Parsons: Starting Another Fall
1991
9/39 5244-002
Frozen Sapphire
1987
9/40 5244-002
The Game is Played
n.d.
9/41 5244-002
Georgeous
General Notes: Title is written as it appears on materials
2001
9/42 5244-002
Gestapo Square Dance Poem Number One
1989
9/43 5244-002
Girl
General Notes: Contains only the second page
n.d.
9/44 5244-002
The Girl Has Faith
n.d.
9/45 5244-002
The Going to Bed After
1989
9/46 5244-002
A Guy's Job
n.d.
9/47 5244-002
Haircut
n.d.
9/48 5244-002
The Hard Knocks
1977
9/49 5244-002
Hands Work the Organ
1988
9/50 5244-002
The Happy Poet
1989
9/51 5244-002
Heartbreak Machine
1989
9/52 5244-002
Hendrix
n.d.
9/53 5244-002
He's Growing His Beard Again
1986
9/54 5244-002
Holding Onto the Cracks
n.d.
9/55 5244-002
The Housefire
1987
9/56 5244-002
How It Represents Itself
2001
9/57 5244-002
I Am Always Looking
2001
9/58 5244-002
I Tried Every Number in the Book
1991
9/59 5244-002
I Want to Be Like Dirt in Its Teeth
n.d.
9/60 5244-002
I Write Because I'm Bored
n.d.
9/61 5244-002
I'll Tell You What...
2001
9/62 5244-002
An Illusion of Freedom
1989
9/63 5244-002
In Front of Me the Keys
1989
9/64 5244-002
In My Broken Mind
n.d.
9/65 5244-002
In the Daylight
n.d.
9/66 5244-002
In the End I Will Forget
1989
9/67 5244-002
In This Place
1991
9/68 5244-002
In This World of Solid Etc. and Waste
1991
9/69 5244-002
Islands of Faint Soap
1985, 2001
9/70 5244-002
It is a Mouth That Cries
n.d.
9/71 5244-002
It is Fake Statuary
n.d.
9/72 5244-002
The Jets
n.d.
9/73 5244-002
Last Word
2001
9/74 5244-002
Let's Just Sit Here and Get Drunk While the Real Men are Fixing the Streets
1984
9/75 5244-002
The Life of the Poet
1989
9/76 5244-002
Light of Dead Windows
1989
9/77 5244-002
Love: Another Cold Car Ride
1988
9/78 5244-002
Love or Not Love
n.d.
9/79 5244-002
The Lunatic Vision
1989
9/80 5244-002
The Lurid Details
n.d.
9/81 5244-002
The Man Upstairs
1989
9/82 5244-002
The Markings of Fish
n.d.
9/83 5244-002
The Marrow of a Tree
2001
9/84 5244-002
Me and Her Outside
1990
9/85 5244-002
Message From the Sun
1976
9/86 5244-002
The Modern Infant
1987
9/87 5244-002
More Noise, Please
1989
9/88 5244-002
Morning in the Sub-Basement of Hell
1991
9/89 5244-002
Mr. Charlie
1990
9/90 5244-002
Murdered in the Middle of the Dance
1989
9/91 5244-002
My Mind Gets Flatter and Flatter
1989
9/92 5244-002
My Mother is Uglier
n.d.
9/93 5244-002
My Mouth Hurts
n.d.
9/94 5244-002
My Purpose
n.d.
10/1 5244-002
Not Much Wind
n.d.
10/2 5244-002
Oceanographers Bite My Dick...
1989
10/3 5244-002
Off Duty Dancer
1989
10/4 5244-002
Oh, the Pleasant Shame
1989
10/5 5244-002
One Morning
1989
10/6 5244-002
Over Doughnuts and Tea
n.d.
10/7 5244-002
The Parade
n.d.
10/8 5244-002
Party Balloon
1990
10/9 5244-002
Passages to the East
n.d.
10/10 5244-002
The Peanut
1989
10/11 5244-002
People and Worries
n.d.
10/12 5244-002
The Perambulor Mixup
1988
10/13 5244-002
The Photo With Your Face
n.d.
10/14 5244-002
Pillhead
n.d.
10/15 5244-002
Poem for Executive Toy (Scrap Junky)
1988
10/16 5244-002
Poem for Hannah, #1
n.d.
10/17-22 5244-002
Poem for L, #1-#3, #5, #6, #12
1988, n.d.
10/23 5244-002
Poem for Leslie, #8
n.d.
10/24 5244-002
Poem for Yecutieleh, #4
n.d.
10/25 5244-002
Poem/July 8/I
n.d.
10/26 5244-002
Poor Animals of Flesh
n.d.
10/27 5244-002
Possession
1988
10/28 5244-002
The Prayer Rug
1989
10/29 5244-002
The Prison
1989
10/30 5244-002
Reasons You Can Understand
1989
10/31 5244-002
Rip Cord
n.d.
10/32 5244-002
The Saints of Today
1989
10/33 5244-002
The Second Time
1990
10/34 5244-002
See Us O Star
1991
10/35 5244-002
She Comes and Goes
n.d.
10/36 5244-002
Shell Shock on the Deaf Islands/Jesse Bernstein Intro
n.d.
10/37 5244-002
Signed a Contract, Got a Zero
2001
10/38 5244-002
Sister of Pain
1989
10/39 5244-002
Soft Font Test on Maris' Head
n.d.
10/40 5244-002
Some Naked Joy
n.d.
10/41 5244-002
Something to Cry About
1989
10/42 5244-002
A Song Recalled & Sung
n.d.
10/43 5244-002
The Sour Loops of Smoke
n.d.
10/44 5244-002
The Spitting Fan
1989
10/45 5244-002
Standing Against the Backs of Storms
1989
10/46 5244-002
Staring Mudfaced
n.d.
10/47 5244-002
Still Traffic
1989
10/48 5244-002
Summer Solstice
1985
10/49 5244-002
Sunday June 23
1985
11/1 5244-002
The Tabloid Table
n.d.
11/2 5244-002
The Tantalizing Moment
n.d.
11/3 5244-002
Taste the Fumes of Hell
1991
11/4 5244-002
Teenage Girl From Mars
n.d.
11/5 5244-002
Teenagers Without Ankles
n.d.
11/6 5244-002
Test
2001
11/7 5244-002
Tete a Tete
n.d.
11/8 5244-002
There is a Fire Under the Seat
n.d.
11/9 5244-002
There is a Fortification of the Moon
1988
11/10 5244-002
There is a Moment
1991
11/11 5244-002
There is an Orange That Blushes
1989
11/12 5244-002
There is No Sun or Moon For Me
n.d.
11/13 5244-002
They Make the Batteries Out of Tylenol
1990
11/14 5244-002
They Say I am a Survivor
n.d.
11/15 5244-002
The Thief
n.d.
11/16 5244-002
This
n.d.
11/17 5244-002
This Clouded Heart
1990
11/18 5244-002
This Eye and Its Broken Lip
1989
11/19 5244-002
This Yellow Eyeball
1989
11/20 5244-002
The Tightrope Walker
n.d.
11/21 5244-002
The Toothache
1989
11/22 5244-002
The Top of Your Head
1989
11/23 5244-002
The Trash in the City
n.d.
11/24 5244-002
The Unseeable
1989
11/25 5244-002
Untitled (My Fingers Burned Like Furniture...)
1991
11/26 5244-002
Visit Number One
n.d.
11/27 5244-002
The Voices Win at 4 a.m.
n.d.
11/28 5244-002
Waiting for the Sandwich
n.d.
11/29 5244-002
The Way to Go
n.d.
11/30 5244-002
Wednesday
1975
11/31 5244-002
A Well-Planned Disappearance
n.d.
11/32 5244-002
What I Don't Need
1989
11/33 5244-002
What is Left
1989
11/34 5244-002
When I Go Outside
1989
11/35 5244-002
When the Sun is Finally Dry
1988
11/36 5244-002
When You're Not Here
n.d.
11/37 5244-002
Where the Fire is
n.d.
11/38 5244-002
The Wind is Fresh With Dogs
1987
11/39 5244-002
The Wind, the Wind, the Stale Wind
1991
11/40 5244-002
The Window Alone
1989
11/41 5244-002
The Wings of the Tortoise
1991
11/42 5244-002
The Winning Number is
n.d.
11/43 5244-002
Winter
n.d.
11/44 5244-002
The Wish is All There is
1986
11/45 5244-002
Writing in Bed
n.d.
11/46 5244-002
Yoo Hoo
n.d.
11/47 5244-002
You Animals
n.d.
11/48 5244-002
You are Not Ashamed
n.d.
11/49 5244-002
You Were the Thing
1988
11/50 5244-002
You With Your Indians Breath
n.d.
11/51 5244-002
Your Silence
2001
Prose
Box/Folder Accession
12/1 5244-002
82 KGNW
n.d.
12/2 5244-002
Actual Synchronous Happening
1990
12/3 5244-002
After T.V.
1979
12/4 5244-002
America Loves Its Gunfighters
1981
12/5 5244-002
Among Friends
n.d.
12/6 5244-002
Anyway You Cut Me
1980
12/7 5244-002
Bad Habits
1990
12/8 5244-002
A Bed to Lie On
General Notes: Alternate title: Popo and Ginger
1989
12/9 5244-002
The Broken and Chaotic Europe of the Forties
n.d.
12/10 5244-002
Burnt Up Baseball Head
1985
12/11 5244-002
Car Accident
1987
12/12 5244-002
Catalogue of Silences
2001
12/13 5244-002
Cell Shock
1988
12/14-15 5244-002
Come Out Tonight
1989, n.d.
12/16 5244-002
Crying and Shitting at the Same Time
n.d.
12/17 5244-002
Daily Erotica
1987
12/18 5244-002
A Daily Life
n.d.
12/19 5244-002
Dog Dream: July 20
1986
12/20 5244-002
Door
n.d.
12/21 5244-002
Dream July 9
1987
12/22 5244-002
Excerpt From a Recent Novel
1977
12/23 5244-002
Face
1987
12/24 5244-002
First Met Bruce
1988
12/25 5244-002
First Poem of the Day
1989
12/26 5244-002
Gods and Religion
n.d.
12/27 5244-002
The Hand Knocks
1977
12/28 5244-002
The Harbor
1989
12/29 5244-002
The Highwayman
n.d.
12/30 5244-002
His Last Hours
n.d.
12/31 5244-002
How I Met My Present Wife
1988
12/32 5244-002
Identifying Consciousness
1990
12/33 5244-002
The In Out
1988
12/34 5244-002
In the California Sun
n.d.
12/35 5244-002
Is This What It All Comes Down To?
1979
12/36 5244-002
January Twenty-Seven
1989
12/37 5244-002
Jesse Bernstein 1950-1991
1991
12/38 5244-002
Junk
n.d.
12/39 5244-002
Letting the Horses Go (For L)
n.d.
12/40 5244-002
The Life of the Instrument: A Lexicon of Invocations
n.d.
12/41 5244-002
A Likely Story
1990
12/42 5244-002
Looking at Porno
1989
12/43 5244-002
Mainstreet USA
1986
12/44 5244-002
Me and Her Outside
1990
12/45 5244-002
The Memory
n.d.
12/46 5244-002
Monologues for Paula Killen
n.d.
12/47 5244-002
The Noon News
1989
12/48 5244-002
Now, He Plays the Accordion
n.d.
13/1 5244-002
Obsolete Model
n.d.
13/2 5244-002
Of Modern Cannibals
1982
13/3 5244-002
Our Moon of Moons
n.d.
13/4 5244-002
Out of the Picture
1987
13/5 5244-002
Palestine
n.d.
13/6 5244-002
Pictures of the War
1986
13/7 5244-002
Pirate
1988
13/8 5244-002
Plague Doctor
n.d.
13/9 5244-002
Pleasure on Platforms
1979
13/10 5244-002
Poems and Letters for L
1987-1988
13/11 5244-002
Police Mentality
n.d.
13/12 5244-002
Popo and Ginger - Unfinished
n.d.
13/13 5244-002
Portrait Collection
n.d.
13/14 5244-002
Poverty
n.d.
13/15 5244-002
A Purple Moon on Her Cheek
1990
13/16 5244-002
The Revolution
1989
13/17 5244-002
The Rooms Where Fish Lay Hissing
2001
13/18 5244-002
A Serious Crime
1986
13/19 5244-002
Short Skirt
1991
13/20 5244-002
Showdown
1982
13/21 5244-002
Sissies Suck It Up (Bad Boys Gulp It Down)
1986
13/22 5244-002
Slides From a Winter Vacation
n.d.
13/23 5244-002
Sometimes a Duck
n.d.
13/24 5244-002
Spookey and Fuck
n.d.
13/25 5244-002
St. Sob: Fog in the Hands of a Child (STUDIES)
n.d.
13/26 5244-002
Strip Poker
1989
13/27 5244-002
Taboo
1988
13/28 5244-002
Text for C. Iffland
1989
13/29 5244-002
That's Him in the Pants
n.d.
13/30 5244-002
There are Some Places
n.d.
13/31 5244-002
There Was a Star Over the Water
n.d.
13/32 5244-002
Tonight's Crime
1989
13/33 5244-002
The Tour
1986
13/34 5244-002
The Vacuous Form
n.d.
13/35 5244-002
Visit
n.d.
13/36 5244-002
The War With Love
1991
13/37 5244-002
Wednesday
1975
13/38 5244-002
When the Thing Happens
1990
13/39 5244-002
Window
1986
13/40 5244-002
The World is Auto Cannibal
n.d.
13/41 5244-002
Writer's Vocabulary
1986
13/42 5244-002
You are a Foot
n.d.
13/43 5244-002
Zulus
2001
Songs
Box/Folder Accession
14/1 5244-002
Adam
1987
14/2 5244-002
Angel of Luck
n.d.
14/3 5244-002
Elipses of Titanic Appeal
General Notes: Title is written as it appears on materials
1985
14/4 5244-002
The Lighthouse and the Ship
1987
14/5 5244-002
Moon Up Like Aspirin
n.d.
14/6 5244-002
This Ship of Headless Sorrows
n.d.

Accession No. 5244-003: Steven J. Bernstein papers, 1960-2010Return to Top

6 cubic feet (7 boxes) plus 15 oversize folders

Scope and Content: Correspondence, photographs, notebooks, sketchbooks, manuscripts, poems, articles, event fliers and posters, drawings, paintings, published books, published audio tape cassettes of poetry and music, published vinyl record of poetry, and artifacts connected to Steven J. Bernstein.

Restrictions on Access: No restrictions on access.

Restrictions on Use: From Deed of Gift: These writings and artworks are donated to the University of Washington Libraries as artifacts with no copyright disposition. This donation neither grants nor denies copyright to the U of W Libraries. Status of creator's copyrights is unknown; restrictions may exist on copying, quotation, or publication. Users are responsible for researching copyright status before use.

Acquisition Info: Donor: Jeffrey Bernstein (brother of Steven J. Bernstein)

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Accession
1 5244-003
Letters from Steven Bernstein to Jeff Bernstein
circa 1970s-1990
1 5244-003
Letters from Steven Bernstein to Claire Greenberg Bernstein
circa 1960s-1980s
1 5244-003
Correspondence between Steven Bernstein and Claire Greenberg Bernstein
circa 1960s-1970s
1 5244-003
Correspondence between Steven Bernstein and Claire Greenberg Bernstein
1975-1998
1 5244-003
Correspondence between Steven Bernstein and family (parents, grandparents, brother)
circa 1960s-1970s
1 5244-003
Folder labeled "letters to answer"
circa 1982
1 5244-003
Correspondence about Steven Bernstein
1992
1 5244-003
Unsorted correspondence
circa 1960s-2000s
2 5244-003
Correspondence about circumstances of Bernstein's death
1992
2 5244-003
Correspondence between Claire Greenberg Bernstein and Peter Sillen about making a film about Steven Bernstein
circa 1994-1996
2 5244-003
Letter and copies of photographs from Alex Quinn (Steven Bernstein's son) to Jeff Bernstein
2002
2 5244-003
Certificate of Death
1991
2 5244-003
Notebook: contains 4 pages of miscellaneous notes
1991
2 5244-003
Sketchbook with notes, writings, and sketches
between 1955 and 1991?
2 5244-003
Notes and addresses from the pockets of Steven Bernstein's clothing
between 1955 and 1991?
2 5244-003
Five notepads with writings and sketches
circa 1960s, undated
2 5244-003
Notebook: contains notes and correspondence about Steven Bernstein
circa 1992-1996
2 5244-003
Manuscript: "Soon Sweet Misery"
1978
2 5244-003
Manuscript: "The Wraith"
1981
2 5244-003
"Father and Daughter" stage play
1984-1985
2 5244-003
Poems
circa 1988
2 5244-003
Manuscript: "Short Skirt" (Bernstein's last novel-unfinished)
1991
2 5244-003
Manuscript: "A Well Ordered Room"
between 1955 and 1991?
2 5244-003
Manuscript: "Grandpa-July 27, 1984"
between 1955 and 1991?
2 5244-003
Two posters for the film "I am Secretly an Important Man"
circa 2010
2 5244-003
Photographs
circa 1960s-1990s
2 5244-003
Unsorted documents
circa 1960s-2000s
2 5244-003
Unsorted documents
1978-1989
2 5244-003
Book: "Dennis the Menace Rides Again" (childhood copy of Steven Bernstein's)
1960
2 5244-003
Book: "Personal Effects" by Steven J. Bernstein, drawings by M. Helen J. Orr (inscribed to Claire Bernstein)
1989
2 5244-003
Book: "The Wraith" by Steven J. Bernstein (inscribed to Claire Bernstein)
1982
2 5244-003
Book: "Hermione" by Steven J. Bernstein (inscribed to Claire Bernstein)
1982
2 5244-003
Book: "I Am Secretly An Important Man" by Steven Jesse Bernstein
1995
2 5244-003
Book: "Good to Go-Short Stories West Coast Style" (features story by Steven Bernstein)
1994
2 5244-003
Book: "More Noise, Please!" by Steven J. Bernstein
1996
3 5244-003
Newsweek Magazine (connection to Steven Bernstein not apparent)
June 28, 1993
3 5244-003
Four copies of the Seattle Weekly (Steven Bernstein is on the cover, reads "Dead But Still Making Noise: Steven Jesse Bernstein, the Lasting Influence of Seattle's Seminal Underground Poet")
October 2003
3 5244-003
Unsorted documents in oversize plastic folder
circa 1970s-1980s
3 5244-003
Green mirror holder (approximately 8" x 4.5") with accompanying broken mirror pieces
undated
3 5244-003
Framed drawing by Steven Bernstein (portrait of a male)
September 1968
4 5244-003
Drawings and paintings by Steven Bernstein, smaller than 12" x 15" in size
circa 1960s-1991
5 5244-003
Canvas painting by Steven Bernstein (green background with variously colored squares, approximately 14" x 14")
between 1955 and 1991?
6 5244-003
Photograph on backing board (black and white, young Steven Bernstein playing guitar next to woman at swimming pool)
between 1955 and 1991?
6 5244-003
Vinyl record featuring four tracks from the later-released album "Prison" by Steven J. Bernstein
circa 1991-1992
7 5244-003
Wooden hinged box, painted green and gold, with portrait drawing of two women, filled with chestnuts (approximately 6.5" x 5" x 2")
undated
7 5244-003
Brown suitcase handle with Greyhound Bus tag attached
undated
7 5244-003
Clay sculpture shaped like a dinosaur with the initials SJB carved into the bottom (approximately 6.5" x 4.5" x 2")
undated
7 5244-003
Wooden box, the word "Power" is on the lid, with metal cage inside containing a small boy doll, a matchbox, a bell, and a small piece of wood resembling an old fashioned milk jug (approximately 5.5" x 2.5" x 2.5")
undated
7 5244-003
Pouch of tobacco in yellow plastic pouch
undated
7 5244-003
Pouch of tobacco in original package: Amphora pipe tobacco
undated
7 5244-003
Cassette tape: "Prison" by Steven Jesse Bernstein
1992
7 5244-003
Cassette tape: "The Sad Bag" by Steven Jesse Bernstein (listed as Jesse Bernstein)
1990
7 5244-003
Cassette tape: hand labeled "Steven J. Bernstein Archive Cassette"
undated
OS folders 1-14 5244-003
Artwork by Steven J. Bernstein and posters/event fliers related to Steven J. Bernstein
circa 1960s-1990s
OS folder 15 5244-003
Textured painting on wood board by Steven J. Bernstein (20" x 30")

Accession No. 5244-004: Steven J. Bernstein papers, 1989-1992Return to Top

8 audiocassettes

Scope and Content: 8 audiocassette tapes with audio recordings of Bernstein. Includes audio recordings of poems, Jesse Bernstein memorial tapes, session tape, and mash-up tape.

Restrictions on Access: Open to all users, however advanced notice is required to access tapes. Contact Special Collections for more information.

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

Acquisition Info: Donated by Steve Fisk, June 27, 2022.

Container(s) Description Dates
cassette Accession
Tape 997 5244-004
"Bernstein Poems B.U."
1 audiocassette
General Notes: Note on case reads "1) Completed 2) These tapes are weird…"
undated
Tape 998 5244-004
"Jesse Bernstein Memorial Tape One"
1 audiocassette
1991 October 28
Tape 999 5244-004
"Jesse Bernstein Memorial Tape Two"
1 audiocassette
1991 October 28
Tape 1000 5244-004
"Jesse Bernstein 5-31-91"
1 audiocassette
1991 May 31
Tape 1001 5244-004
"Jesse/Ashdly"
1 audiocassette
1989 September 1
Tape 1002 5244-004
"Bernstein Avast Roughs"
1 audiocassette
1991 December 23
Tape 1003 5244-004
"Session Tape"
1 audiocassette
Scope and Content: Includes "No No Man pt 1," "Morning of," "More Noise Please," "The Sport pt 1," "Party Balloon," "Face," "This Clouded Heart," "The Sport pt 2," "No No Man pt 2," "The Sport pt 1 Remix"
1992 January 18
Tape 1004 5244-004
"Bernstein Mash Ups"
1 audiocassette
General Notes: Note on case reads: "Noticed drops around 10:30-11 minute marks. Restarted comp. but unsure if helped--Xavier"
undated

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Composers--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Musicians--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Personal Papers/Corporate Records (University of Washington)
  • Poets, American--Washington (State)--Seattle

Personal Names

  • Bernstein, Steven J., 1950-1991--Archives