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Professor Gregory Bush (History Department) and the Institute for Public History (IPH) have recorded a series of interviews around the issue of public spaces in South Florida. Participants, who are representative of the diverse cultural milieu of the region, reflect and provide insights on migration, gentrification, the history of individual neighborhoods, housing, and community services.

These voices help to articulate the ongoing discourse on public space as it applies to South Florida’s History of development. The recordings and accompanying transcripts of the oral history collection document the unique experiences of the region’s inhabitants. In addition, the collection serves as a repository of primary source materials for students, faculty and the general public.

Simón Daro Dawidowicz was a businessman and art collector who resided in Miami, Florida. A long-time resident of Colombia, Dawidowicz had a strong interest in Latin American liberator Simón Bolívar and his lasting influence on Latin America. Dawidowicz was a member of several Bolivarian societies, president of the Bolavarian Review, and founded the non-profit organization Darien Action Committee, which sought to promote the completion of the Panamerican Highway from Panama to Colombia. Dawidowicz had strong connections with several prominent Latin American artists including Leopoldo Richter and David Manzur. He was a curator as well as a collector of their and others' work, and donated a number of their pieces to museums and institutions including the University of Miami. A mural titled "Bolívar and Humboldt" by Leopoldo Richter was donated by Dawidowicz to the University, and currently stands in front of the Otto G. Richter Library.

The Simón Daro Dawidowicz Bolivarian collection contains items pertaining to all of the above pursuits and interests. Much of it is correspondence and official records, or newspapers clippings and photographs that document his activities. There are a number of audiocassettes and film reels, and a single videocassette as well.

Of particular interest are a bust of Simón Bolívar that Dawidowicz had commissioned as a gift for former President Lyndon Johnson, as well as a box containing photographs, photographic prints, brochures, periodicals, and other forms of material depicting the works of a number of Latin American artists. These include David Manzur, Leopoldo Richter, German Tessarolo, Marlene Hoffman, Enrique Grau, Edgar Silva, Armando Villegas, Patricia Tavera, Ràmon Carulla, and Miguel Rojas Niño. Some of these items are signed by the artists.

Two family members of Dawidowicz, Miriam and Sylvia, were curators and donors of Latin American art as well, and several documents detailing their efforts are held within the collection.

Finally, the collection contains assorted personal photographs and several short stories written by Dawidowicz.

Spec's Music Inc. records is comprised of press releases in the form of newspaper and magazine clippings, business records, photographs, store memorabilia, and framed music posters, and plaques acquired during Ann Lieff's tenure.

The following description of material types and context was provided by JC Bourque, the main designer for Spec's merchandising and ad campaigns:

Promotion to Record Labels
These programs were intended to convince the record labels to allocate advertising revenue, known as “co-op” funds, to Spec’s Music rather than the competitors, or at least garner a larger share of the labels’ promotion budgets. Spec’s would commit to a media schedule, and use these materials to show the labels how much coverage they could get for their co-op dollars.The calendars were created to show the various advertising and store promotion themes that would be employed during the upcoming year. For example, Country Music Month would employ a different media mix than Classical Music Month. Knowing this, the labels might coordinate the release of major artists when the media mix was weighted toward that musical genre.

Promotion to Public
Marketing to the public included radio and TV spots, newspaper ads and inserts, in-store signage and theme art, direct mail, in-store sale flyers and other methods. Typically, a theme would be created and used across all platforms used for a particular promotion. The particular mix of media and other methods would vary according to the particulars of each promotion.

Newspaper Ads and Inserts
Spec’s would often place full-color, full page ads on the back covers of the Sunday lifestyle magazine in various major newspapers in Florida and Puerto Rico. Sometimes, for major promotions, multi-page inserts printed on higher-quality paper were inserted into newspapers instead.

Music Genre Art
These artworks were produced by Impossible Images for use in print materials to denote various musical genres.

Store Signage
Several types of in-store signage were used to reinforce the advertising messaging utilized in radio, TV, and print media.
Posters - There were two types of posters produced. Single-sided posters were used on walls and windows. Double-sided posters were hung from the store ceiling grid so they could be seen from any place in the store.
Danglers - These were also hung from the grid. A single line was attached to one corner of the dangler, presenting a diamond-shaped sign that would rotate in the air currents of the ventilation system.
Genre Signage - These were typically mounted on top of the music bins (gondolas) and consisted of the genre descriptor (Country, Jazz, etc.) and a Spec’s logo. These would identify specific locations for the different types of music. These were used in conjunction with large murals, below, that showed customers the general area of their music preferences.
Retrofit Signage - These were developed by Impossible Products to be added to older gondolas that had not been fabricated with slots for the genre signage holders. These were installed between back-to-back gondolas, with different genre inserts on either side.

Sound & Vision Magazine
This was a periodic publication that would showcase popular music and video releases. The music section was named “Sound &”, while the video section, printed upside down relative to the music section, was titled “Vision &”, so ether side could be considered the front page.

Moon Beach TV Spot
This was a “theme” TV spot (as opposed to a “donut”, below) that was intended to increase “top-of-mind-awareness” of the Spec’s brand, and create a shopping preference in the consumer. It was shot completely under ultraviolet light, and all the props, costumes and makeup were decorated with fluorescent materials.
The script, costumes and props were created by JC Bourque of Impossible Images, Inc. The spot was directed and shot by David Schweitzer. The footage was shot on 16mm film and transferred to electronic media for compositing.
The music was composed after the footage was roughed in. Various visual elements, such as the “frizbee” landing were accentuated in the music track. The musician thought JC was nuts when he proposed attempting this.
Behind the Scenes - Moon Beach TV Spot
These are photos of the shoot during production.

“Dominoes” Video TV Spot
This is an example of a “donut” spot introducing Spec’s entry into the video market. The donut would be distributed to the various TV stations, and the “hole” would be filled with promotions for specific video titles, with the visuals and narration supplied by the station. These insert would be different and various stations depending on demographics, time slot and label co-op purchases.

Special Promotions
Various themes, such as “Instant Hits Blitz,” “Mother’s Day Deals,” and “Saving Season” were developed and deployed across most or all of the media and store displays.Music... Serious Business This was a campaign to get prospective employees interested in the retail side of the music industry. I believe these were used at job fairs and other venues where people were looking for careers. The poster was designed similar to a playing card, with the two interlocking aspects of the music industry: the music, and the business.The brochure was a take-away for the prospect and included in-depth information about the business side of the industry.

Dr. Sidney Walter Fox (1912-1998) was a biochemist known for discoveries in the autosynthesis of protocells. Fox served as director of the Institute for Molecular and Cellular Evolution (IMCE) at the University of Miami.

The Sidney Fox Collection contains 9 NASA reports concerning the NASA Surveyor Program which took place from 1966 to 1968. The Surveyor Program was a NASA program that sent seven robotic spacecraft to the surface of the Moon, with the intent of demonstrating the possibility of soft landings on the Moon.

Also included is a 1978 interview with Russian-American inventor and engineer Dr. Vladimir Zworykin.

The Max Rameau papers (1992-2010) document his extensive activism for the homeless and the poor within the South Florida communities of the African diaspora. The collection  will be of interest to scholars and students of movements such as the Umoja Village, the Scott-Carver Tenant Council, Miami Dade Election Reform and Take Back the Land. The materials document advocacy work on behalf of people displaced from their homes as a result of  low income housing policies, gentrification, and the U.S. foreclosure crisis at the beginning of the 21st century.  The Max Rameau papers also point to connections between activist groups promoting the economic rights of the diverse constituency  of the African diaspora which reside in Liberty City and Little Haiti. Finally, the collection serves as a record of Mr. Rameau's work with organizations such as Brothers of the Same Mind,  the Haitian American Grassroots Coalition and the Center for Pan African Development.

The Nicaragua collection documents the Nicaraguan diaspora living in Miami during the 1980s and the political and social conditions in Nicaragua from the 1979 Sandinista revolution onward until their loss of power in 1990.

Many of the materials falling into the latter category are from the United States in origin, such as anti-Soviet propaganda endorsing the anti-Sandinista "Contra" Freedom Fighters, pamphlets that describe the Sandinista government and Central America in general from an American perspective, and periodicals and reports about Nicaragua written to an American audience. The materials that document the Nicaraguan diaspora are mostly fliers, menus, calendars, brochures, and other genres that were from local Nicaraguan businesses, restaurants, clubs, and other organizations. Some of the materials transcend these two categories, as many that concern the political conditions are addressed to or produced by Nicaraguan exiles.

A large part of the collection consists of photocopies of news articles.

Writers that are especially represented by the collection include Ruben Dario, Esteban Duque-Estrada, and Luis Mejia Gonzalez. Associations and organizations that are especially represented include Alanzia Revolucionaria Democrática (ARDE), American Defense Foundation, American Defense Lobby. Asociación Nicaragüenses en el Exilio, Asociación Nicaragüense pro Derechos Humanos, Bloque Opositor del Sur (B.O.S.), Council for Interamerican Security, Fundación Ruben Dario, Nicaraguan American Solidarity (NICAS), Nicaraguan Freedom Fighters, Partido Conservador de Nicaragua, Partido Socialcristiano de Nicaragua en el Exilio, Resistencia Nicaragüense, and Unidad Nicaragüense Opositora (UNO). Materials from some of these were grouped together in a series titled "Associations."

Also of notice are brochures advertising tourism to Nicaragua during the Sandinista regime, and memorabilia such as a handmade Nicaraguan crest, Nicaraguan paper money from the Sandinista era, and a pin that says "If you like Cuba you'll love Nicaragua."

Paul Nagel was a professor at the School of Communication at the University of Miami, as well as a writer, producer, director, and actor in non-theatrical "sponsored films."

The collection includes University of Miami radio tapes and video cassettes, scripts, and publications including Tempo, UM Bulletin, UM School of Music, UM Ballet, UM School of Communication; a series of historical photographs depicting students at work in the Radio, Television and Motion Pictures department of the School of Communication; and clippings, scripts, playbills and programs from the Coconut Grove Playhouse, Parker Playhouse, the Ring Theatre, Players State Theatre, the Cannes Film Festival, Mayfair Theatre, and the Carillon Hotel.

This collection consists of archival materials acquired that relate back to Marjory Stoneman Douglas, the well known environmentalist who was a major force in the fight to preserve the Everglades.

The Coconut Grove Playhouse records contain playbills, promotional/marketing material, posters, press releases, news clippings, financial files, grant files, personnel files, show and production files, play scripts, and audio-visual materials (photographs, CDs, vinyl records, floppy disks, VHS, film reels, betacam tapes, audiocassette tapes) pertaining to the theater's operation from the 1970s to its closing in 2006.

The Louinès Louinis Haitian Dance Theatre collection contains photographs, pamphlets, programs, ephemera, audio-visual materials (VHS and DVDs), clippings, correspondence, and other archival materials documenting the history of the theater and its founder, Louinès Louinis.

A collection of papers, photographs, scrapbooks, ephemera and other objects that document various cultural scenes in Miami from the 1980s to the present, with an emphasis on the art, nightclub and drag subcultures.

This collection contains photograph albums and audio-visual materials documenting the various events Jan Mapou had taken part in and organized for Sosyete Koukouy (The Fireflies Society) and Libreri Mapou.

Dr. P. A. Phillips was a history professor at the University of Miami.

The P. A. Phillips Collection contains materials from three of his history courses - two undergraduate and one graduate - where students were asked to interview a World War II veteran and compose an oral history report based on that interview. The materials include essays, transcripts, audio recordings, and videocassettes.

The William Calhoun “Bill” Baggs Papers includes thirty-one boxes of correspondence, memoranda, clippings, photographs, diaries and other materials relating to the professional career of Baggs, a newspaper journalist, editor, and political commentator from the 1940s until his death in 1969. As a columnist and editor for the Miami Daily News, Baggs developed relationships with many prominent figures. The Baggs Papers, arranged in six series, totals thirteen cubic feet of materials. In addition to incoming correspondence, the files include hundreds of carbon copies of outgoing correspondence from Baggs to a variety of local, regional, state, national, and international politicians, journalists, and others.

Formed in 1959, World Wings International is an association of former Pan Am flight attendants that now dedicates itself to charitable activities. This collection includes the administrative records of the organization as well as scrapbooks, photographs, membership and annual meetings files, correspondence and financial records.

In October, 1963, Charles Cinnamon, public relations director of the Coconut Grove Playhouse, organized a “Left Bank” art show to publicize the opening of Irma La Douce at the Playhouse. The art show was a success and shortly thereafter the Coconut Grove Association was formed to put on an annual art festival.

In the early days, the whole community got involved, and Festival activities included an antique car parade, coconut smashing contest, concerts, and a children’s art exhibit. The Chamber of Commerce and Grove House artists helped in putting on the festival.

This juried arts festival has repeatedly been selected as the top outdoor fine arts festival in the United States, displaying the work of artists from around the world and attracting families and connoisseurs alike.

The collection contains a variety of material including correspondence, newspaper clippings, publications, press releases, administrative files, photographs, ephemera and posters from the Coconut Grove Art Festival 1963 to 2012.

Dr. Josephine Johnson is Professor Emeritus of the University of Miami School of Communication, former Chair of the Department of Communications, and alumna of the University. Her scholarship extends from W. B. Yeats to post-modern British poets. She is a recognized solo performer throughout the country.

Josephine Johnson's papers contains documents pertaining to her work in organizing a number of poetry events in the Miami area, including the Richter Library Poetry Series and poetry recitals in Beaumont Hall presented by the University of Miami Chamber Theatre, as well as personal research materials.

The collection contains videocassettes, DVDs, film reels, clippings, letters, reports, certificates, sheet music, photos, programs, manuscripts.