President Barack Obama awards the the Presidential Medal of Freedom to singer-songwriter Bob Dylan during a May 29, 2012, ceremony in the East Room at the White House. Dylan's archives -- including photographs, videos and memorabilia -- has been acquired by the University of Tulsa and the George Kaiser Family Foundation. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI |
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TULSA , Okla., March 3 (UPI) -- The George Kaiser Family Foundation and The University of Tulsa say they have acquired the Bob Dylan Archive.
The trove includes more than 6,000 items spanning nearly 60 years of the singer-songwriter's artistry. Among them are never-before-seen, handwritten manuscripts, notebooks and correspondence; films, videos, photographs and artwork; memorabilia and ephemera; personal documents and effects; unreleased studio and concert recordings and musical instruments.
The archive will be permanently housed in Tulsa under the stewardship of TU's Helmerich Center for American Research for subsequent public exhibition in the city's Brady Arts District.
"Bob Dylan is a national treasure whose work continues to enrich the lives of millions the world over, and we are proud to be bringing such an important, comprehensive and culturally significant archive to Tulsa. Our combined philanthropic and academic approach made a strong case for assuring Mr. Dylan and his representatives that Tulsa would provide the ideal environment to care for and exhibit this collection, and the result is a boon for Tulsa that will soon attract Bob Dylan fans and scholars to our city from around the world," GKFF Executive Director Ken Levit said in a statement.
"The University of Tulsa is pleased to collaborate with the George Kaiser Family Foundation in assuming the role of steward for this invaluable collection. Because of the level of scholarship available through the university and its partners, TU is the perfect keeper of The Bob Dylan Archive," added TU President Steadman Upham. "Dylanology is a growing aspect of social science and humanities research, and Tulsa will soon become the international epicenter for the academic pursuit of all things Dylan."
"I'm glad that my archives, which have been collected all these years, have finally found a home and are to be included with the works of Woody Guthrie and especially alongside all the valuable artifacts from the Native American Nations. To me it makes a lot of sense and it's a great honor," Dylan remarked.
The New York Times estimates the sale of the cache to be between $15 million and $20 million, although neither Dylan nor the buyers have publicly disclosed the price tag.
