Ebony Vol. XVIII No. 10: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

An Ebony magazine, August 1963, featuring the cover article, “The King Cole Twins,” Vol. XVIII No. 10. The front cover features a color photograph of Nat King Cole, his wife Maria Cole and his twin daughters, Casey and Timolin Cole standing in front of their home. Casey and Timolin are standing inside a large wicker picnic basket perched on a wooden cart with large spoked wheels. Nat King Cole stands next to the twins with his hands resting on the lid of the basket. He is wearing a gray jacket, white collared shirt and a thin black tie. His wife stands on his right side with her hands resting on the cart handle and basket. She is wearing a yellow dress suit over a cream blouse. The twins wear matching flower patterned, button down shirts. The Cole family are facing the viewer. In a small red banner, over the cart’s wheel, is the white cover line that reads [-Exclusive photos- / THE KING COLE / TWINS]. In the upper left corner is the publication mast head, a red banner with white block lettering that reads: [EBONY]. Above the mast head is white text that reads [A JOHNSON PUBLICATION 8[encircled]]. Additional bylines printed in white text to the right of the mast head read, [A LETTER FROM / BIRMINGHAM JAIL / By the Rev. Martin Luther King. Jr.] and [WILLIE MAY’S / NEW HOME]. In the lower left corner, in white text, is the publication date and price: [AUGUST 1963 / 35¢]. The back cover of the magazine features a full sized color advertisement for Salem cigarettes. There are one hundred and fourteen (114) interior pages with color and black-and-white images and text.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: August 1963
• Published by: Johnson Publishing Company, American, 1942 - 2019
• Photograph by: Win Muldrow, American
• Subject of: Nat King Cole, American, 1919 - 1965
• Subject of: Maria Cole, American, 1922 - 2012
• Subject of: Casey Cole, American, born 1961
• Subject of: Timolin Cole, American, born 1961
• Subject of: Rock Rest Tourist Home, American, 1948 - 1976
• Subject of: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., American, 1929 - 1968
• Type: magazines (periodicals)
• Medium: ink on paper (fiber product) with metal
• Dimensions: H x W x D: 13 7/16 × 10 3/16 × 3/16 in. (34.2 × 25.8 × 0.4 cm)
• Place collected: Kittery, York County, Maine, United States, North and Central America
• Place printed: Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, United States
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Advertising
• Topic: Baseball
• Topic: Black Enterprise
• Topic: Black interiors
• Topic: Black Press
• Topic: Business
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Object number: 2011.12.53.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail, Inc.
• 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: © Ebony Media Group LLC Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.