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Collection Number: 04524

Collection Title: Ameel Joseph Fisher Papers, 1933-

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.


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Size 16.5 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 6800 items)
Abstract Ameel Joseph Fisher was born around 1909 and was graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1931. In the 1930s and 1940s, he lived and worked in New York City, writing and adapting stories for radio dramatization. During the 1950s and 1960s, he moved on to television, serving as a reporter and a news director of United Press Movietonenews. By 1951, United Press Movietonenews was the world's largest news film gathering and distributing organization, providing basic film coverage to networks and stations. Correspondence, notes, scripts, films, and other items relating to Ameel Joseph Fisher's career in radio and in television news broadcasting. In the 1930s and 1950s, Fisher was involved in writing and adapting stories for radio dramas. In the 1950s and 1960s, Fisher was chief correspondent for United Press Movetonenews. Included are materials documenting his coverage of the space program, civil rights events, and the August 1963 march on Washington, D.C.
Creator Fisher, Ameel Joseph, circa 1909-1985.
Curatorial Unit University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.
Language English
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Information For Users

Restrictions to Access
No restrictions. Open for research.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the Ameel Joseph Fisher papers #4524, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Acquisitions Information
Received from Ann M. Fisher of New York, New York, in November 1988 (Acc. 88110), March 1990 (Acc. 90031), October 1990 (Acc. 90126), May 1991 (Acc. 91063), July 1992 (Acc. 92096), and July 1995 (Acc. 95091).
Received from Ameel Joseph Fisher of New York, New York, in October 1990.
Received from Ann M. Fisher of New York, New York, in May 1991.
Received from Ann M. Fisher of New York, N.Y., in June 1992.
Received from Ann M. Fisher of New York, N.Y., in July 1995.
Sensitive Materials Statement
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Processing Information

Processed by: Gina Overcash, May 1989

Encoded by: ByteManagers Inc., 2008

Additions are unprocessed, but may be used with staff assistance. The donor has provided lists of materials in these additions. These lists, while not necessarily complete, may be useful. They are filed in the collection control file and may be requested from staff.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subject Headings

The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Biographical Information

Ameel Joseph Fisher was born around 1909 and was graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1931. In the 1930s and 1940s, he lived and worked in New York City, writing and adapting stories for radio dramatization. During the 1950s and 1960s, he moved on to television, serving as a reporter and a news director of United Press Movietonenews. By 1951, United Press Movietonenews was the world's largest news film gathering and distributing organization, providing basic film coverage to networks and stations.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Scope and Content

Writings, correspondence, printed materials, and other items.

Writings, correspondence, printed materials, and other items, including two hardhats belonging to film producers.

Writings, correspondence, printed materials, and other items, especially photographs from United Press International.

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Contents list

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series Quick Links

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 1. General Correspondence, 1952-1962 and undated.

About 200 items.

Arrangement: chronological.

Mostly professional correspondence relating to television news and film. Included are requests for permission to use film clips and discussions of plans to film stories. There are also a few items of correspondence between Fisher and his wife Ann when he was out of town on assignment. One letter from Oral Roberts, 16 April 1958, and Fisher's reply, 22 April 1958, are also included.

Correspondence may also be found in Series 2. Project Files. Correspondence relating to Fisher's efforts, 1933-1942, to find work and/or place scripts with companies involved in radio programming can be found in Series 3.2.

Folder 1

June-December 1952

Folder 2

1953

Folder 3

1954

Folder 4

February-March 1955

Folder 5

April 1955

Folder 6

May-July 1955

Folder 7

August-November 1955

Folder 8

January-June 1956

Folder 9

July-December 1956

Folder 10

January-June 1957

Folder 11

August-December 1957

Folder 12

January-March 1958

Folder 13

April-May 1958

Folder 14

June-November 1958

Folder 15

January-April 1959

Folder 16

May-December 1959, 1960-61, and undated

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 2. Project Files, 1955-1965 and undated.

About 350 items

Arrangement: chronological.

Notes about projects with which Fisher was involved. Included are lists of expenses, numbers of hours worked, meetings attended, and schedules. Also included are items of correspondence, memos, newswire reports, scripts, and cameraman's dope sheets. Coverage is especially strong for the space program and civil rights events, including the August 1963 March on Washington.

Folder 27 contains a press pass for Fisher, the only photograph of him in this collection.

Note that original file folders names have, for the most part, been retained.

Folder 17

1955, December: First AFL-CIO Convention

Folder 18

1956, 9-12 March: New Hampshire Primary

Folder 19

1956, 12-21 October: Queen Elizabeth's visit to Canada and the United States

Folder 20

1957: French television

Folder 21

1957: Story notes

Folder 22

1958, circa March: Downhold Everybody

Folder 23

1958, September: Hire the Handicapped

Folder 24

1958, November: New York Stock Exchange

Folder 25

1958, December: Twenty-fifth anniversary of Prohibition Repeal

Folder 26A

1959, October: Khruschev's visit to Pittsburgh

Folder 26B

1960: Boston, Hyannis Port (Kennedy election)

Folder 27

1960-1961: United Nations, 15th Session of the General Assembly

Folder 28

1961, March: Werner Baecker

Folder 29

1961, 1-11 June: Dominican Republic, Trujillo Assassination

Folder 30

1961, 21-22 December: Bermuda

Folder 31

1962: January: Quiet Panic

Folder 32

1962, 3 October: Canaveral

Folder 33

1962, December: Project Mercury, Lt. Col. John Glenn

Folder 34

1962, 24-30 December and 1963, 12-20 January: Florida (Cubans)

Folder 35

1963, 26 January-1 February: Clemson; Mississippi; Tennessee

Folder 36

1963, 12-15 March: Kentucky Floods

Folder 37

1963, 6 April: Greenwood, South Carolina

Folder 38

1963, 10-12 April: Thresher-New London

Folder 39

1963, 7-23 May: Miami, Philadelphia, Cooper, Cape, Greensboro, N. C.; Birmingham

Folder 40

1963, 8-23 May: Student Demonstrations, Greensboro, N. C.

Folder 41

1963, 7-27 June: Greensboro, Lexington, N. C.; Jackson, Miss.; Huntsville, Tuscaloosa, Ala.; Gadsden, Birmingham; Atlanta

Folder 42A

1963, 20-26 August: Trapped Miners, Hazelton, Pennsylvania

Folder 42B

1963, 28 August: Washington March

Folder 43

1963, 15-26 September: Birmingham

Folder 44

1963, 10-22 December: Washington, D. C.

Folder 45

1965, March: Gemini III

Folder 46

1965, 27 May-June: Gemini 4-Cape Kennedy-Houston

Folder 47-48

Folder 47

Folder 48

Undated: Notes, miscellaneous

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 3. Scripts, 1933-1963 and undated.

About 700 items.

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.1. Television Scripts, 1953-1963 and undated.

About 450 items.

Arrangement: chronological.

Chiefly mimeographed versions of typed scripts for news stories.

Folder 49

Guidelines

Folder 50

December 1953-1955

Folder 51

January-November 1956

Folder 52

1957

Folder 53

Cavalcade of 1957

Folder 54

January-May 1958

Folder 55

June-December 1958

Folder 56

News Cavalcade of 1958

Folder 57

Sports Review of 1958

Folder 58

January-March 1959

Folder 59

April-August 1959

Folder 60

September-December 1959

Folder 61

January-April 1960

Folder 62

May-December 1960

Folder 63

January-May 1961

Folder 64

June-December 1961

Folder 65

January-April 1962

Folder 66

May-December 1962

Folder 67

"News Yearender 1962" and "Kennedy--The First Year"

Folder 68

January-August 1963

Folder 69

September-December 1963, and undated

Folder 70

"Stethoscope" (undated)

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2. Radio Scripts, 1933-1942 and undated.

About 450 items.

Arrangement: By type, then alphabetical.

Correspondence and mimeographed versions of typed scripts of radio dramas. Most of the dramas were written by Fisher, but there are also a few that were written by others and adapted for radio by Fisher. Correspondence, 1933-1942, chiefly relates to Fisher's attempts to secure work with or place scripts with companies involved in producing radio dramas (folders 71-75). Included are both incoming letters and copies of outgoing letters. Correspondence relating to specific radio scripts is filed with the script.

Folder 71

Correspondence 1933-1938

Folder 72

Correspondence 1939

Folder 73

Correspondence 1940

Folder 74

Correspondence 1941

Folder 75

Correspondence 1942

Folder 76

Correspondence "Big Happy Family," 1940

Folder 77

Correspondence "Broadway Cinderella," 1942

Folder 78

Correspondence "The Canine Witness," 1941

Folder 79

Correspondence "Counterspy," 1942

Folder 80-86

Folder 80

Folder 81

Folder 82

Folder 83

Folder 84

Folder 85

Folder 86

Correspondence "The Eyes of the Eagle," 1939 (series)

Folder 87

Correspondence "Famous Jury Trials," 1942

Folder 88-89

Folder 88

Folder 89

Correspondence "Gang Busters," 1940 and undated (two scripts for the series)

Folder 90

Correspondence "Gangster's Girl," undated

Folder 91-95

Folder 91

Folder 92

Folder 93

Folder 94

Folder 95

Correspondence "Great Men in History," 1937 (series)

Folder 96

Correspondence "Lincoln Highway," 1941

Folder 97

Correspondence "Magic and Fun," 1941

Folder 98

Correspondence "The Magic Wire," 1940

Folder 99

Correspondence "My Father Was a Beggar," 1941

Folder 100

Correspondence "Naval Heroes," undated

Folder 101

Correspondence "One of the Finest," undated

Folder 102-161

Folder 102

Folder 103

Folder 104

Folder 105

Folder 106

Folder 107

Folder 108

Folder 109

Folder 110

Folder 111

Folder 112

Folder 113

Folder 114

Folder 115

Folder 116

Folder 117

Folder 118

Folder 119

Folder 120

Folder 121

Folder 122

Folder 123

Folder 124

Folder 125

Folder 126

Folder 127

Folder 128

Folder 129

Folder 130

Folder 131

Folder 132

Folder 133

Folder 134

Folder 135

Folder 136

Folder 137

Folder 138

Folder 139

Folder 140

Folder 141

Folder 142

Folder 143

Folder 144

Folder 145

Folder 146

Folder 147

Folder 148

Folder 149

Folder 150

Folder 151

Folder 152

Folder 153

Folder 154

Folder 155

Folder 156

Folder 157

Folder 158

Folder 159

Folder 160

Folder 161

Correspondence "Police Honor Men," 1937-1939 (series)

Folder 162

Correspondence "Problem Child," 1940

Folder 163

Correspondence "Quote Twisters," 1938

Folder 164

Correspondence Reader's Digest Program, 1942

Folder 165

Correspondence "The Shadow," 1939 (one script for the series)

Folder 166

Correspondence "Spy Stories," 1937

Folder 167

Correspondence "Thumbs Up Parade," 1941

Folder 168

Correspondence "Up From the Grave," 1940

Folder 169

Correspondence "USO Girl," circa 1941

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 4. Films, 1954-1963 and undated.

47 items.

Arrangement: chronological, followed by undated.

Film of various news events covered by Fisher. Scripts for many of these films may be found in Series 3 under the corresponding date.

Film F-4524/1

1954, 24 March: Rubi

Film F-4524/2

1955, 4 July: Trabert

Film F-4524/3

1955, 31 January: Penn Station Master's Office

Film F-4524/4

1956, 1 February: Truman-Skate Broda (Also see script)

Film F-4524/5

1956, 12 April: Donkey (Also see script)

Film F-4524/6

1956, 1 October: New York Yankees (Also see script)

Film F-4524/7

1957, 3 April: Erskine-Spooner (Also see script)

Film F-4524/8-9

F-4524/8

F-4524/9

1957, 17 and 20 May: Boy in Well (Also see script)

Film F-4524/10

1957, 20 May: Peron arrival at Idlewild

Film F-4524/11

1957, 25 June: Donald Campbell, Bluebird, U.S.

Film F-4524/12

1957, 28 August: Driving Test (Also see script)

Film F-4524/13

1957, 8 November: Vema (ship) (Also see script)

Film F-4524/14

1957, 11 November: Bevan, Aneurin (Also see script)

Film F-4524/15

1957, 19 November: Bagpiper (Also see script)

Film F-4524/16

1957, 26 December: Truman Walk (Also see script)

Film F-4524/17

1958, 5 March: Garment Strike (Also see script)

Film F-4524/18

1958, 9 July: Truman Constitution (Also see script)

Film F-4524/19

1958, September: Handicapped (Also see Project File, Folder 23)

Film F-4524/20

1958, 7 November: Snowman (horse) (Also see script)

Film F-4524/21

1958, 14 November: Third League (Also see script)

Film F-4524/22

1958, 5 December: Twenty-fifth Anniversary Prohibition Repeal (Also see Series 1. Correspondence, December 1958-January 1959)

Film F-4524/23

1958 December-1959 January: Twenty-fifth Anniversary Prohibition Repeal (Also see Series 1. Correspondence, December 1958-January 1959)

Film F-4524/24

1959, 4 February: Crash II

Film F-4524/25

1959, 21 April: Egg Protest (Also see script)

Film F-4524/26

1960, 22 April: Powell, Adam Clayton Also see script)

Film F-4524/27

1961, 1 November: Mothers (Also see script)

Film F-4524/28

1962, 14 March: Fleet in Yard (Also see script)

Film F-4524/29-30

F-4524/29

F-4524/30

1962, 17 May: Miss Gefilte Fish (Also see script)

Film F-4524/31

1963, 1 February: Kheel, Theodore (Also see script)

Film F-4524/32

1963, 20 March: Testing Tuna (Also see script)

Film F-4524/33-34

F-4524/33

F-4524/34

ALCOA Lombardo

Film F-4524/35

Bartley Crum

Film F-4524/36

Child Killer

Film F-4524/37

Circus Crashers

Film F-4524/38

Clowns

Film F-4524/39

Ebbet's Field

Film F-4524/40

J. Roosevelt, La Guardia

Film F-4524/41

K. Hassle

Film F-4524/42

Leading Light

Film F-4524/43

Lynch, Lt. Gordon

Film F-4524/44

Mystery House

Film F-4524/45-46

F-4524/45

F-4524/46

Untitled

Film F-4524/47

Villalba

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Addition of October 1990 (Acc. 90126).

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Addition of May 1991 (Acc. 91063).

Box 5-8

Box 5

Box 6

Box 7

Box 8

Addition of May 1991

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Addition of July 1992 (Acc. 92096).

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Addition of July 1995 (Acc. 95091).

Box 10-11

Box 10

Box 11

Addition of July 1995

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Items Separated

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