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Fonds Mss 348, Pc 303, Mf 33 (A.10-97) - Ely Bronstein fonds
Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
Ely Bronstein fonds
General material designation
- Textual record
- Graphic material
Parallel title
Other title information
Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
- Source of title proper: Title based on fonds creator
Level of description
Fonds
Reference code
CA UMASC Mss 348, Pc 303, Mf 33 (A.10-97)
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date
1936-2010
Type: Creation
Creator: Bronstein, Ely
Place: Winnipeg
Note: Content collected 1982-2010
Physical description area
Physical description
2.1 m of textual records, 943 photos and 87 items of graphical material.
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
Other title information of publisher's series
Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
Numbering within publisher's series
Note on publisher's series
Archival description area
Name of creator
Bronstein, Ely
(1945-)
Biographical history
Ely Bronstein was born on November 8, 1945 as one of the many Western foreigners in Shanghai at that time, known as “Shanghailanders”. Fearing the Chinese Communists’ anti-Western policies after their victory in 1949, the Bronstein family left the country, coming to Winnipeg in 1952, where Ely was first exposed to the 1937 Frank Capra film starring Ronald Colman, “Lost Horizon”. The movie struck a chord with Ely, speaking to his own spiritual beliefs as well as serving as a reminder of his Far Eastern heritage, and igniting his lifetime fascination with film and the film industry. Graduating with an Arts Degree in anthropology from the University of Manitoba in 1970, Bronstein retained his love of film, particularly with “Lost Horizon” and began his collection in 1982, assembling articles, documents, correspondences, photos, and artwork relating to the film, as well as others that stuck with him, such as the 1956 film, “Helen of Troy”. Finally deciding his collection would be better off serving the needs of film studies students, Bronstein donated the vast majority of his collection to the University of Manitoba Archives & Special Collections in 2011.
Custodial history
The fonds was donated to the University of Manitoba Archives and Special Collections by Ely Bronstein in 2010.
Scope and content
The fonds consists of 2,484 items, nearly all of which are photocopies of articles, documents, correspondences, photo groups or artwork that the donor has acquired from various magazines, newspapers, books, associates and other archives and libraries. The vast majority of the collection relates to “Lost Horizon”, with a much smaller, though still significant, percentage relating to "Helen of Troy". Over 150 of the items fall outside the scope of either of the two aforementioned movies, being a collection of writings, photos and artwork relating to Hollywood and the movie industry in general, as well as California travel information and info on Tibet. The fonds is divided into the series “Lost Horizon” articles, “Lost Horizon” documents and research, personal effects, "Lost Horizon” publicity stills, “Lost Horizon” production photographs, “Lost Horizon” negatives, “Lost Horizon” art, “Helen of Troy”, related interests, oversized items and "Lost Horizon" microfilm. The "Lost Horizon" articles series contains newspaper, magazine and journal articles, as well as book excerpts, related to various "Lost Horizon" subjects, such as production, reception and cast and crew biographies. The “Lost Horizon” documents and research series contains various primary sources such as interviews, scripts, theatre programs and legal documents. The personal effects series contains content related to Ely Bronstein’s personal life such as correspondences and ephemera, though the vast majority of this material relates to “Lost Horizon”. The next two series contain photographs of “Lost Horizon”, both publicity stills – scenes from the movie blown into photos – and production photos – pictures taken of the production processes or of members of the production crew. The negatives relating to “Lost Horizon” are reproduced photographic negatives, while the artwork contains movie posters and concept art. The “Helen of Troy” series contains material relating to that film, including articles, documents and publicity stills. The related interest series contains various articles and pictures related to Hollywood and the movie industry, as well as information about California and Tibet. All oversized items requiring larger boxes are included in the oversized items series. Lastly, the "Lost Horizon" microfilm series contains press books and visual representations of the film on 35mm microfilm. The items are all paper photocopies of their original formats, with the exceptions of a few original correspondences, a few original newspaper clippings, the negatives and the microfilm.
Notes area
Physical condition
Immediate source of acquisition
Donated directly to University of Manitoba Archives & Special Collections by Ely Bronstein.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Arrangement
Language of material
- English
- French
Script of material
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
There are no restrictions on this material.
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Finding aids
Associated / related material
Accruals
Further accruals are expected from Ely Bronstein.
Other notes
Standard number area
Standard number
Control area
Description record identifier
Institution identifier
University of Manitoba Archives & Special Collections
Rules or conventions
Rules for Archival Description
Status
Final
Level of detail
Partial
Dates of creation, revision and deletion
Created 23 August 2011.
Revised 3 February 2012.
Revised 3 February 2012.
Language of description
- English
