Buddy Esquire papers

Collection

Identifier: 8081

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Scope and content

Art work, lettering, drawings, and designs for Hip Hop party and event flyers by Buddy Esquire, "the Flyer King." The collection includes original art work and rough text layouts for his flyer designers, manuscripts and flyer design notes, two sketch books, seven binders of loose artwork containing approximately 324 original pieces, working files and partial paste-ups, a box containing approximately 500 sheets of his dry transfer letters, 82 Hip Hop flyers designed by Buddy Esquire, 59 Hip Hop flyers designed by others; and 98 flyers and handbills related to Hip Hop, anime, and Bronx night life. Also included are 6 periodicals related to Buddy Esquire's work (issues of The International Graffiti Times, Anime Zone, Your Black Book Guide, and Wyvern Web Newsletter - a 1980s anime dealer); 5 photo albums from circa 1985-1986, containing over 600 color photo prints including graffiti-related photography of Buddy Esquire, Vega Ray, and Martin Williams; Bronx street scenes; and photographs from Buddy Esquire's personal life. 894 loose photo prints, 123 negative strips, and 52 color slides, circa 1980-1995, 2 trophies (including Buddy Esquire's 1979 Rose Award for "Best Flyerman"), and his personal copy of A Basic Guide to Lettering by Robert D. Buckley (Philadelphia: Chilton Book Co., 1951), with a custom paper cover by Buddy Esquire.

Dates

1951-2011-(bulk 1978-1984).

Creator

Esquire, Buddy, 1959?-2014. (Person)

Language of Material

In English.

Restrictions on Access

Access to collection restricted until completion of processing.

Biographical / Historical

Buddy Esquire (Lemoin Thompson) designed party fliers for music events in the early days of hip-hop in the South Bronx. He taught himself to draw and to do different styles of lettering from books he checked out of the library. His style, which he called "neo-deco" borrowed heavily from the art deco style of old movie posters. He turned out over 300 different fliers, which are now some of the only surviving documentation of the birth and early years of hip-hop.