University of Idaho Library, Special Collections and Archives
Collection on Ella Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald, Ella
IJC MG 004
56 items
circa 1940-1988
Ella Fitzgerald was a jazz vocalist. This collection was assembled with materials acquired by the University of Idaho and donated to the Library in 1997. The collection includes personal items and artifacts that belonged to the artist.
English
.
Ella Jane Fitzgerald was born in Newport News, Virginia, on April 25, 1917 and raised in Yonkers, New York. In 1934 Benny Carter and Bardu Ali heard Ms. Fitzgerald singing at the Apollo Theatre and introduced her to Chick Webb who hired Ella as a singer with his orchestra. One of the major hits of her career was a version of the nursery rhyme "A-Tisket, A-Tasket," recorded in 1938, with Webb's orchestra. After his death in 1939, she assumed the leadership of the orchestra for some years. By 1946 she was well into her solo career touring the world with Norman Granz' Jazz at the Philharmonic. In 1955 Granz became Ms. Fitzgerald's personal manager and she began recording for his label, Verve. Throughout her career Ella recorded with jazz greats including Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Ray Brown, Count Basie, Al Grey, and others. Worth mentioning are eight "Song Book" albums Ms. Fitzgerald produced for Verve from 1956 to 1964. In this series she sang compositions of Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, Rodgers and Hart, George and Ira Gershwin, Duke Ellington, Harold Arlen, and Johnny Mercer. She was the recipient of several awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1992), the French medal of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters (Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres)(1990), the NAACP Image award for Lifetime Achievement (1988), U.S. National Medal of Arts (1987), the first ASCAP award in recognition of an artist (1965), and several Grammy and Down Beat magazine awards. She also received awards and honorary degrees from several universities, including Princeton University (1990) and Dartmouth College (1976). Ella Fitzgerald died in Beverly Hills, California, on June 15, 1996.
This collection was assembled by Special Collections and Archives of the University of Idaho Library with materials acquired by the University of Idaho from the Estate of Ella Fitzgerald. The collection contains fifty two items that belonged to the artist. Note that a record album inside its cover, a necklace with medallion, a hat with hatpin, or eyeglasses inside an eyeglass case, are counted as one item each.
A portion of this collection has been digitized and is available on the Ella Fitzgerald Digital Collection.
[Description of Item], Collection on Ella Fitzgerald, IJC MG 4, Special Collections and Archives, University of Idaho Library, Moscow, Idaho.
Collection is open for research.
The University of Idaho acquired the materials in this collection in 1997, apparently from three different sources.The hats at a Sotheby's auction (New York?), from the Estate of Ella Fitzgerald; seven vintage album covers, a Don Loper gown, a pair of shoes, and a necklace, at BUMPS Fine Art, Antiques and Collectibles (Los Angeles), from the Beverly Hills Estate of Ella Fitzgerald; and the remainder of the materials from the 1989 Fitzgerald Trust, through the Law offices of Le Winter and Rosman (Encino, CA). The photographs of Ella Fitzgerald from the launch of the The Entertainment Channel were donated by Christi Warner in 2021 (IJC MA 2021-15).
The collection was processed in January 2011. Some additional materials were added to the collection in 2022.
Jazz
Jazz singers
Women jazz singers
African American women jazz singers
Women jazz singers--United States
Photographs
Personal Materials
Plaque given to Ella Fitzgerald by the National Tuberculosis Association; James E. Perkins, Managing Director
1 item
12.5 x 10.5 inch wood plaque
undated
1
1
Certificate of Honorary Columbia Citizen to Ella Fitzgerald
1 item
Kirkman Finlay, Jr. Mayor of the City of Columbia, South Carolina, October 22, 1981, in a 14 x 11.25 inch frame under glass
1981-10-22
1
2
Album 'Digital III At Montreux' by Ella Fitzgerald, Joe Pass, Count Basie
1 item
Pablo Records
1980
1
3
Album 'Ella in London'
1 item
Pablo Records
1974
1
4
Cover of the album 'Digital III At Montreux' by Ella Fitzgerald, Joe Pass, Count Basie
1 item
Pablo Records
1980
1
5
Cover of the album 'The Rogers and Hart Songbook: Ella Fitzgerald (vol. 2)'
1 item
Verve
undated
1
6
Cover of the album 'Lady Time'
1 item
Ella Fitzgerald with Jackie Davis and Louie Bellson. Pablo Records
1978-06
1
7
Cover of the album 'Ella Fitzgerald at the Montreux Jazz Festival'
1 item
Pablo Records
1975-07-17
1
8
Cover of the album 'Jazz at the Philharmonic: The Ella Fitzgerald Set'
1 item
Verve
1983
1
9
Cover of the album 'Ella Fitzgerald sings the Rodgers and Hart Song Book'
1 item
Verve
1956
1
10
Cover of the album 'Ella Fitzgerald's Christmas'
1 item
Capitol
1967
1
11
Cover of the album 'Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Johnny Mercer Song Book'
1 item
Verve
1964
1
12
Ella's credit card from C. Ludwig Baumann and Company, Brooklyn. Signed
1 item
undated
1
13
Ella's visit card from Pablo Records
1 item
undated
1
14
Ella's credit card from Bank of America, Visa. Signed
1 item
1978
1
15
Portrait of Ella Fitzgerald by James Kriegsman of New York in the format of a postcard
1 item
3.5 x 5.5 inch black and white photograph.
undated
1
16
Portrait of Ella Fitzgerald by Popsie of New York in the format of a postcard
1 item
3.5 x 5.5 inch black and white photograph
undated
1
17
Portrait of Ella Fitzgerald
1 item
4 x 5 inch black and white photograph
undated
1
18
Ella Fitzgerald wearing the turquoise gown
1 item
8 x 10 inch color photograph
undated
1
19
Ella Fitzgerald in a paisley dress, holding a microphone. Pablo
1 item
10 x 8 inch black and white photograph
1975-07-15
1
20
Ella Fitzgerald performing. Pablo
1 item
8 x 10 inch black and white photograph
1977
1
21
Ella Fitzgerald wearing the Seville Classic hat
1 item
8 x 10 inch black and white photograph
undated
1
22
Ella Fitzgerald in an early publicity portrait
1 item
8 x 10 inch black and white photograph
1940
1
23
Ella Fitzgerald snapping fingers and smiling at the camera
1 item
10 x 8 inch black and white photograph.
undated
1
24
Ella Fitzgerald performing in a flowered dress
1 item
8 x 10 inch black and white photograph
1971-03-30
1
25
Ella Fitzgerald wearing a squined shirt at the Lord and Taylor Rose award
1 item
8 x 10 inch black and white photograph
undated
1
26
Ella Fitzgerald wearing a Memorex outfit
1 item
8 x 10 inch black and white photograph
undated
1
27
Ella Fitzgerald wearing a checkered jacket and brooch
1 item
8 x 10 inch black and white photograph
undated
1
28
Ella Fitzgerald performing in a striped dress
1 item
Signed 8 x 10 inch black and white photograph
undated
1
29
Lead lyric sheet for 'Song of the Jet'
1 item
1981
1
30
Lead lyric sheet for 'Useless Landscape'
1 item
1981
1
31
Lead lyrics sheet for 'What a Diff'rence a Day Made'
1 item
undated
1
32
A lead vocal arrangement for Begin the Beguine, by Marty Paich
1 item
1963
1
33
Norman Granz' Jazz at the Philharmonic 14th National Tour
1 item
Cover artwork by David Stone Martin
1954
1
34
Norman Granz' Jazz at the Philharmonic 16th National Tour
1955
1
35
Wide brimmed ecru color organza hat
1 item
Label: Made to Order Rex Inc. Beverly Hills California
undated
2
36
Blue and ecru color woven pillbox hat
1 item
Labels: Made in England, Otto Lucas Junior; Saks Fifth Avenue
undated
2
37
Wide-brimmed black hat with hatpin
1 item
Label: Emme Inc. New York I. Magnin and Co.; Stamped: Duchess Reg'd, Body Made in Italy
undated
3
38
Black Clasico Sevillano hat
1 item
Stamped: La Perla Filipina, Conde Asalto 20, Barcelona; Clasico Sevillano [Seville Classic]
undated
3
39
Turquoise gown
1 item
undated
4
40
Orange dress with floral print
1 item
Label: Don Loper of California
undated
4
41
Aquamarine high-heeled shoes
2 items
Light green/aquamarine satin pumps. 3.5 inch heel. Label: Vogue House Originals by Ansonia
undated
5
42-43
Necklace with medallion
1 item
undated
5
44
Eyeglasses inside a white vinyl glass case
2 items
undated
5
45-46
Wig
1 item
Label: Japanese fiber made in Hong Kong; Naomi Sims Collection
undated
6
47
Framed photograph of Ella Fitzgerald and William Tishman
1 item
12 x 10 inch frame with a black and white photograph
1981-12-03
7
48
Two framed photographs: Ella Fitzgerald with an unidentified woman and Nelson Riddle with an unidentified woman.
1 item
13 x 20.5 inch frame with two black and white photographs and a placard for 'The Entertainment Channel'
1981-12-03
7
49
Westwood Playhouse poster featuring a sketch of Ella Fitzgerald by Pablo Picasso. Dedicated to Ella by Picasso on May 28, 1970
1 item
35 x 23 inch poster
1970-05-28
Oversized
50
American Express advertising poster featuring Ella Fitzgerald
1 item
13 x 10.5 inch poster featuring Ella Fitzgerald advertising American Express travel card
1988
Oversized
51
Reprint of a newspaper article by Joan Sutton, which appeared in The Toronto Sun, on April 11, 1978
1 item
11 x 17 inch
1978-04-11
Oversized
52
Poster featuring a portrait of Ella Fitzgerald by LeRoy Neiman (Signed), with the inscriptions: Ella in Flight; Ella Fitzgerald Inaugurates Continental Airlines Pub Flight Service.
1 item
25 x 30.5 inch
1983-01-12
Oversized
53
Three boxes: two hatboxes (Saks Fifth Avenue and Rex), and a square box (Ann Taylor)
3 items
undated
Unboxed
54-56