Ledger pages from the Apollo Theater: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A ledger consisting of approximately 450 looseleaf pages with a record of musical and entertainment acts and films at the Apollo Theatre from 1934 - 1964 and 1969 - 1977 (the pages for 1965-1968 are not included). The pages are lined, with typed and handwritten notations in blue, black, and red inks. Each sheet has four holes punched along the left-hand margin, some of which have been reinforced with adhesive labels, indicating they were once housed in a four-ring binder. The format of the pages and notations varies slightly over time but most pages have columns to record: date, a note on the weather, name of the acts and films, afternoon receipts, evening receipts, total receipts, attendance, and tax. The first two pages are entirely typed, later pages have dates and column headings typed in red ink and completed by hand in various inks. Typed at the top of each page is [APOLLO THEATRE] with the month and year and at the bottom are total amounts for receipts, attendance, and tax. Some areas have been pasted over typewritten corrections.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1934-1977
• Created by: Apollo Theater, American, founded 1934
• Type: ledgers (account books)
• Medium: ink on paper
• Dimensions: H x W (Each page): 14 × 9 in. (35.6 × 22.9 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W x D (Overall): 14 × 9 × 3 1/4 in. (35.6 × 22.9 × 8.3 cm)
• Place used: Harlem, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Amusements
• Topic: Business
• Topic: Comedy
• Topic: Entertainers
• Topic: Film
• Topic: Finance
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Object number: 2022.93
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Unknown – Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.