Photographs of the Waa-Mu Show

The series consists of photographic prints and other images documenting most Waa-Mu Shows from the period 1929-1991.Images appear in a variety of physical formats and sizes; nearly all are black-and-white.The vast bulk of the prints is the work of skilled professional photographers; some photographs are by talented Northwestern students while a small percentage appears to be the product of less proficient amateurs.A few images found within the series are in the form of half-tone prints clipped from published sources.

The prints and images are organized first by size. Items measuring approximately 8x10 inches and smaller are arranged into standard size archival boxes.Larger items are arranged into three types of dropfront boxes:12x18 inch (containing 11x14 inch prints), 17x21 inch (containing 11x14 inch prints affixed to 16x20 inch mounts), and 19x25 inch (containing large prints of various dimensions).Within this scheme the items are arranged chronologically by year of show production.Many individual productions may be represented by prints and images housed in several folders.Within a given year there may be one or two folders of small format prints, additional folders of 8x10 inch prints and, occasionally, a folder of proof sheets, color prints, or captions and other identifying information.

The acts, skits, numbers and individuals depicted in the images often are unidentified.The documentation found in University Archives Series 52/1, Records of the Waa-Mu Show; the Moreledge book; Waa-Mu programs; and Waa-Mu souvenir books can be useful in making identifications.