MS 476
Bookmark this page or copy and paste URL to Email message
Collection Summary | |
| Creator: | Corey, Jill |
| Collection Name: | Jill Corey Collection |
| Inclusive Dates: | 1953-2004 |
| Bulk Dates: | (bulk 1953-1989) |
| Physical Description: | 5.5 linear feet |
| Abstract: | This collection contains magazines, newspapers, sheet music, photographs, DVDs, CDs, records, and other documents relating to the life of Jill Corey. Jill Corey was a famous singer, television star, film actress, and radio personality in the 1950s and 1960s. In the latter half of the twentieth century she made a name for herself in musical theatre. Materials pertaining to both careers are found in the collection. |
| Collection Number: | MS 476 |
| Repository: |
University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections University of Arizona PO Box 210055 Tucson, AZ 85721-0055 Phone: 520-621-6423 Fax: 520-621-9733 URL: http://speccoll.library.arizona.edu/ |
Jill Corey was born Norma Jean Speranza in Avonmore, Pennsylvania. She was the youngest of five children born to Clara and Bernard Speranza. At the age of four, she lost her mother to a serious infection. Alice, her older sister, became the dominant female presence in Jill’s life. Her father and four older brothers worked in a small, private coal mine in order to support the family. Jill started singing at the age of four. From a young age, Jill would perform at family gatherings, local talent contests, and at school. At age thirteen, she won her first competition. The contest was sponsored by a local chapter of the Lion’s Club and the prize was an opportunity to sing on a local radio station. She was an instant hit and as a result, she was given her own local weekly radio show, Dream Time.
In the spring of 1953, Jill graduated from Bell-Avon High School. That same year she was signed by Mitch Miller, the director of artists at Columbia Records in New York. Mitch Miller had Jill audition for Arthur Godfrey, and Dave Garroway. Miller contacted LIFE magazine, who decided to feature Jill Corey in the November 9, 1953 issue. She was offered television contracts and she decided to sign with Garroway. She debuted on prime time television as the lead singer for the Dave Garroway Show. With the help of the Manhattan telephone directory and Garroway’s influence, Norma Jean Speranza became Jill Corey. During this time, Jill Corey recorded her first studio single, the “Robe of Calvary” for Colombia Records. This began a long and fruitful career as a recording artist. Other major hits from Jill Corey include “I Love My Baby”, “Love Me to Pieces”, “Big Daddy”, and “Sometimes I’m Happy, Sometimes I’m Blue”.
In 1954, Jill was a regular on Stop the Music, the Robert Q. Lewis Show with Merv Griffen, and the Johnny Carson Show. In 1957, Jill became a member of the cast of the long-running staple of 50s television, Your Hit Parade. Between 1957 and 1960, Jill appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show.
In 1958, Jill became the youngest performer to ever headline at New York’s famed Copacabana. In the same year she filmed the motion picture, Senior Prom, co-starring Paul Hampton and James Komack. At this height in her career, she met Don Hoak, the third baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates. They married in Pittsburgh in 1961, and Jill retired. In 1965, they had a daughter and named her Clare. In 1969, Don Hoak died of a heart attack, propelling Jill Corey to return to the spotlight. During her second career, she starred in many plays, both off-Broadway and on tour. Some of her plays include Annie Get Your Gun, Sweet Charity, Promises, Promises, and Gypsy at the Carousal Dinner Theater. In 1989, she played at Carnegie Hall to a sold out crowd.
The inclusive dates for this collection are circa 1950s through 2000s. The collection includes materials spanning Jill Corey’s first and second careers. In 1953, Jill Corey was signed by Columbia Records and recorded her first single “Robe of Calvary”. This was the first of many hit singles that Jill Corey would produce. These first records, among others, are housed within this collection. Magazines, recordings, and telegrams highlight important milestones in her early career. Publicity materials, photographs, posters, and a DVD of Senior Prom can be found in the collection as well. This collection also includes the LIFE magazine spread, DVDs of the Ed Sullivan and the Johnny Carson Show, in which she was a regular guest star. Materials from her hit musical play Meet Me in Saint Louis are also found in the collection. Images of the Hoak family can be found in the Audio Visual Materials. After Don Hoak’s death, Jill Corey returned for her second career, making a new name for herself in musical theatre. Publicity materials and newspaper reviews from her second career are represented in the collection as well. In 1989, Jill Corey performed in Carnegie Hall to a sold out crowd. The program and audio recording for this event are found in the collection.
No restrictions
It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission to publish from the owner of the copyright (the institution, the creator of the record, the author or his/her transferees, heirs, legates, or literary executors). The user agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Arizona Board of Regents for the University of Arizona, its officers, employees, and agents from and against all claims made by any person asserting that he or she is an owner of copyright.
Jill Corey Collection (MS 476). Special Collections, University of Arizona Libraries.
| Series I: Personal | |||||||||||
| This series is arranged alphabetically and then chronologically. It contains essays written about Jill Corey, résumés, correspondence and financial information. | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Biographies and Résumés | |||||||||
| 1 | 2 | Correspondence Business, 1972-1975 | |||||||||
| 1 | 3 | Correspondence Business, 1976,1989 | |||||||||
| 1 | 4 | Correspondence Gerry Nachman, 1972-1973 | |||||||||
| 1 | 5 | Correspondence Gerry Nachman, 1974,1976,1977 | |||||||||
| 1 | 6 | Correspondence Gerry Nachman, 1978-1979 | |||||||||
| 1 | 7 | Financial Documents, January- September 1958, 1989 | |||||||||
| 1 | 8 | Sets Lists | |||||||||
| 1 | 9 | Telegrams, 1957 | |||||||||
| 1 | 10 | Telegrams, 11957 | |||||||||
| Series II: Publications | |||||||||||
| This series is arranged chronologically. It contains magazines, newspaper clippings, programs, and publicity materials about Jill Corey or her performances. Some items are oversized and can be found in Box 7. | |||||||||||
| Subseries 1: Magazines | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 11 | January- June 1954 | |||||||||
| 1 | 12 | July 1954- 1955 | |||||||||
| 1 | 13 | February- May 1956 | |||||||||
| 1 | 14 | July- September 1956 | |||||||||
| 1 | 15 | January- August 1957 | |||||||||
| 1 | 16 | September- October 1957 | |||||||||
| 1 | 17 | November- December 1957 | |||||||||
| 1 | 18 | January- April 1958 | |||||||||
| 1 | 19 | June- October 1958 | |||||||||
| 1 | 20 | 1959-2004 | |||||||||
| Subseries 2: Newspaper Clippings | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 21 | 1954-1964 | |||||||||
| 1 | 22 | 1971-1976 | |||||||||
| 1 | 23 | 1977-1979 | |||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 1> | 24 | 1980-1989 | |||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 25 | 1990s | |||||||||
| 1 | 26 | Unknown Dates | |||||||||
| Subseries 3: Programs | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 27 | 1954-1961 | |||||||||
| 1 | 28 | 1973-1977 | |||||||||
| 1 | 29 | 1985-1986 | |||||||||
| 1 | 30 | 1989-1994 | |||||||||
| Subseries 4:Publicity Materials | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 31 | Publicity Materials | |||||||||
| oversize | folder | ||||||||||
| drawer 6 | 4 | Publicity Materials | |||||||||
| Series III: Sheet Music | |||||||||||
| This series is arranged alphabetically. Folders are organized alphabetically by title of the song. This series contains sheet music of popular songs performed by Jill Corey. | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 2 | 1 | A | |||||||||
| 2 | 2 | Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered | |||||||||
| 2 | 3 | Big City 4am (1) | |||||||||
| 2 | 4 | Big City 4am (2) | |||||||||
| 2 | 5 | Big Daddy-Big Time | |||||||||
| 2 | 6 | Bows-Bye Bye Blackbird | |||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 3 | 1 | C | |||||||||
| 3 | 2 | E | |||||||||
| 3 | 3 | D | |||||||||
| 3 | 4 | H | |||||||||
| 3 | 5 | I Am What I Am | |||||||||
| 3 | 6 | I Am Still Here-If I Ruled the World | |||||||||
| 3 | 7 | I Got the Music in Me- I’ve Got a Crush on You | |||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 4 | 1 | I Love My Baby-It Had to Be You | |||||||||
| 4 | 2 | J | |||||||||
| 4 | 3 | The Last Blues Song-Love Me to Pieces | |||||||||
| 4 | 4 | Love What You’re Doing | |||||||||
| 4 | 5 | M | |||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 5 | 1 | N | |||||||||
| 5 | 2 | O | |||||||||
| 5 | 3 | R | |||||||||
| 5 | 4 | Say You Say Me-Sing Me | |||||||||
| 5 | 5 | Some People | |||||||||
| 5 | 6 | Something-Somewhere | |||||||||
| 5 | 7 | A Song For You-Sweet Man ‘O Mine | |||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 6 | 1 | Taking a Chance on Love-This Girl Is a Woman Now | |||||||||
| 6 | 2 | Today, I Love Ev’rybody | |||||||||
| 6 | 3 | W | |||||||||
| 6 | 4 | Y | |||||||||
| Series IV: Fan,Memorabilia and Oversized Materials | |||||||||||
| This series is arranged according to the size and the fragility of the materials. It is composed of fan made scrapbooks and art, along with oversized magazines, photographs, and publicity materials. | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 7 | 1 | Small Scrapbook | |||||||||
| 7 | 2 | Magazines Life, 1953 | |||||||||
| 7 | 3 | Magazines Companion, 1955 | |||||||||
| 7 | 4 | Magazines, 1955-1957 | |||||||||
| 7 | 5 | Magazine Esquire, 1958 | |||||||||
| 7 | 6 | Magazines, 1958-1960 | |||||||||
| 7 | 7 | Magazines, 1975,1979 | |||||||||
| 7 | 8 | Large Scrapbook | |||||||||
| 7 | 9 | Gordon Parks Proofs For Life Magazine | |||||||||
| 7 | 10 | Head Shot | |||||||||
| 7 | 11 | Senior Prom Publicity Prints | |||||||||
| 7 | 12 | Publicity Materials | |||||||||
| 7 | 13 | Drawing of Jill Corey | |||||||||
| Series V: Photographs | |||||||||||
| This series is arranged by subject and then alphabetically. It contains photographs of Jill Corey in the different stages of her career. | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 8 | 1 | Assorted Publicity Stills | |||||||||
| 8 | 2 | Gordon Parks Proofs For Life Magazine | |||||||||
| 8 | 3 | Magazine Publicity Stills | |||||||||
| 8 | 4 | Photo Album Assorted Headshots and Stills (1) | |||||||||
| 8 | 5 | Photo Album Assorted Headshots and Stills (2) | |||||||||
| 8 | 6 | Photo Album Assorted Headshots and Stills (3) | |||||||||
| 8 | 7 | Photo Album Assorted Headshots and Stills (4) | |||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 9 | 1 | Photo Album Family Made (1) | |||||||||
| 9 | 2 | Photo Album Family Made (2) | |||||||||
| 9 | 3 | Photo Album Family Made (3) | |||||||||
| 9 | 4 | Senior Prom | |||||||||
| Series VI: Audio Visual Materials | |||||||||||
| This series is arranged by format and then alphabetically. It contains compiled CDs, Data CDs, DVDs, and records spanning Jill Corey’s career. Some of these materials were created by Albert Kopek. This includes television show appearances on the Ed Sullivan show and the Johnny Carson show. | |||||||||||
| Subseries 1: CDs | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 9 | 5 | Compilations | |||||||||
| 9 | 6 | Fan Restoration Compilations | |||||||||
| 9 | 7 | Jill Corey program | |||||||||
| 9 | 8 | Live Performances | |||||||||
| 9 | 9 | National Guard and Ralph Flanagan | |||||||||
| 9 | 10 | Radio Recordings | |||||||||
| 9 | 11 | Radio Recordings | |||||||||
| 9 | 12 | Studio Recordings | |||||||||
| Subseries 2: Data CDs | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 9 | 13 | Scanned Images | |||||||||
| 9 | 14 | Website | |||||||||
| Subseries 3: DVDs | |||||||||||
| box | folder | ||||||||||
| 9 | 15 | Assorted Jill Corey Appearances, 1950-2004 | |||||||||
| 9 | 16 | Clare Hoak, History of Avonmore, Pa | |||||||||
| 9 | 17 | Ed Sullivan TV Appearances, Jill Corey Show | |||||||||
| 9 | 18 | Johnny Carson TV Appearance | |||||||||
| 9 | 19 | Senior Prom (1958) | |||||||||
| Subseries 4: Records | |||||||||||
| box | |||||||||||
| 10 | 1985 March of Dimes | ||||||||||
| 10 | Ching-A-Ling | ||||||||||
| 10 | I love My Baby | ||||||||||
| 10 | Let’s Go to Town The National Guard Show | ||||||||||
| 10 | Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization “Stars for Defense” | ||||||||||
| 10 | Robe of Calvary | ||||||||||
| 10 | Sometimes I’m Happy Sometimes I’m Blue | ||||||||||
| 10 | Treasury Department “Guest Star” Jill Corey | ||||||||||
| 10 | The National Guard Show Programs 1-14 | ||||||||||