Bailey (Bob) Studios Photographic Archive, ca.1932-1998

Part II: Moving Images

Biographical Note:

By the mid 1930s, Bob Bailey had turned to industrial and educational filmmaking in the Houston area, leaving still photography to his younger brother, Marvin. He named the new business Bob Bailey Productions. In addition to making industrial films, he documented local football games, community events, and did newsreel work for Fox and Movietone News, who occasionally assigned him to stories. See “Part I: Photographs” for more information about the Baileys and their still photography business.

Scope and Contents:

The moving image portion of the Bailey archive consists of 85 reels in 16mm gauge format. Sixty-seven are in color, 14 in black and white, and 35 have soundtracks. 14 film titles include more than one production element.

As with the photographic portion of the Bailey business, these films document several different aspects of life in Houston and other areas of the Gulf Coast region from ca. 1942 to1987. This was particularly the case for the local energy and petrochemical industry. Twenty films in the archive were sponsored by or affiliated with Houston area oil, natural gas, and petrochemical companies and organizations. Among the company names represented are Humble Oil (now ExxonMobil), Cameron Iron Works Incorporated, and the Tennessee Gas and Transmission Company. Within these films can be found descriptions of new industrial technologies, targeted marketing ads for corporations, organizational profiles, and at least one possible educational film ("Gas Goes to Market"). Three of these films reveal a different facet of the oil and gas industry by documenting the work of Paul “Red” Adair, Asgar “Boots” Hanson, and Edward “Coots” Matthews as they battle oil-well fires in Algeria and southern Louisiana.

The remaining films document Houston area sporting and community events, local disasters, and community documentaries. Among the most notable are the Southwestern Conference Football Highlights film, sponsored by Exxon; the 1947 Houston Rodeo parade (featuring Gene Autry and Glenn McCarthy); the 1951 Sears Christmas Show; demolition of the Houston Shamrock Hotel in 1987; the Texas City disaster in 1947; and footage of Hurricane Carla in 1961.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

Restricted.

Use Restrictions:

Some restrictions apply. Contact Photo Archivst for more information.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation:

Bailey (Bob) Studios Photographic Archive, ca. 1932-1998, Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin.

 Archivist's Note: 

Because moving images inherently contain several layers of information, the archivist attempted to record as much as possible by including titles, client names, production notes (from both leaders and original containers), credits, film color, sound track, film type, dates, and where possible, descriptive information gathered by examining the frames within the films themselves. Any information supplemented by the archivist is in brackets [] with the exception of dates and physical information about the film. If Bailey's notes were unclear, the archivist made the best conjecture, which is enclosed by brackets and includes a question mark next to the term [?]. Those films marked with an asterisk [*] have been reformatted and are available for viewing in the Center’s Reading Room. However, most of the films have not yet had access copies made and are therefore restricted from patron viewing.

Using the online finding aid, patrons may click the highlighted links next to certain entries in the archive to view the online video version of the films.

Detailed Description of the Records