Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
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)19502010
1974-1991 (bulk)19741991 - 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
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
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)
