Business papers, 1968-2010

The Peter F. O’Brien papers contain materials from 1924-2015, with most of the material dating from the 1970s to 2015. The collection includes records of O’Brien’s work with Mary Lou Williams, first as a friend and supporter, then manager, and finally executive director of the Mary Lou Williams Foundation. It includes correspondence between the two starting from his first letter to her in 1964 to her death in 1981. There are business papers created during his work on her behalf prior to becoming her manager, his time as her manager, and his work at Duke University, concurrent with her appointment as Duke's Artist-in-Residence. His papers include the address book he used during his time as her manager as well as multiple datebooks and weekly calendars tracking his day-to-day activities, covering the years 1973-2007.
O’Brien was a lifelong supporter and fan of art and music, especially African-American music, and his interest often extended into professional management. He developed collections of materials related to Carl Van Vechten, Thelma Carpenter, Ethel Waters, and others—most of whom he corresponded with—and there are materials related to his management of artist Antonio Salemme. There are also photographs documenting O’Brien’s life and career, and a sequence of photographs taken and provided by Van Vechten.
Materials from O’Brien came to the Institute of Jazz Studies unarranged. All materials were reviewed by IJS archivists for any items that could be linked to Mary Lou Williams or the Williams Foundation, or as part of one of the series above. Materials not moved to those series are included in Series 6: Unprocessed materials. Many contain mention of Williams, but most do not directly pertain to Williams.