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Paul Lavern Cummings Papers (MS-00971)

Abstract

The Paul Lavern Cummings Papers are comprised of Cummings' personal papers, photographs, and audiovisual materials dating from 1927 to 2018. Cummings worked as an actor and performed as a female impersonator under the name Lavern Cummings. The majority of the collection documents his career working at Finnochio’s, a nightclub in San Francisco, California. Materials in this collection includes correspondence, newspaper clippings, sheet music arrangements, photographs, digital audio files, and ephemera. The collection also includes interviews and biographical research material about Cummings and other female and male impersonators.

Finding Aid PDF

Date

1927 to 2018

Extent

4.54 Cubic Feet (9 boxes)
5.92 Linear Feet
220 digital_files (2.156 GB) MP3, MP4

Related People/Corporations

Scope and Contents Note

The Paul Lavern Cummings Papers are comprised of personal papers and photographs dating from 1927 to 2018. Cummings worked as an actor and a female impersonator under the name Lavern Cummings. The majority of this collection represents his career working at Finnochio’s nightclub in San Francisco, California from 1956 to 1982. Materials in the collection include correspondence between Cummings and his friends and fans, newspaper clippings, photographs, and ephemera documenting his career. The collection includes copies of interviews and research material about Cummings and other female and male impersonators. The collection also documents Cummings’ work as an actor including the script to television movie The Golden Gate Murders. The collection contains sheet music arrangements for songs performed by Cummings as part of his act at Finnochio’s. The collection also contains digital audio files of songs, commercials, and dialogue lines Cummings recorded.

Access Note

Collection is open for research. Arrangements must be made in advance to access digital files; please contact UNLV Special Collections and Archives for additional information.

Publication Rights

Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.

Arrangement

Materials remain as they were received.

Biographical / Historical Note

Paul Lavern Cummings was born on August 17, 1927 in Santa Ana, California. In the 1950s, Cummings began working as a female impersonator under the name Lavern Cummings and would sing as both soprano and baritone during her acts. From 1950 to 1956, Cummings performed with the Jewel Box Revue, a traveling troupe of female impersonators. In 1956, he began performing at Finnochio’s, a nightclub in San Francisco, California, known for female impersonators. Cummings worked as a contract performer at Finnochio’s for twenty-six years before retiring in 1982. Cummings also worked as an actor appearing in a 1979 television movie called The Golden Gate Murders playing a female impersonator named Lavern Smith. Cummings eventually moved to Las Vegas, Nevada where he continued working as an actor and appeared as an extra in a number of movies and television shows filmed in Las Vegas. In March 2018, Cummings passed away in Las Vegas after being hit by a car while crossing Charleston Boulevard near Decatur Boulevard.

Sources:

Corbin, April. “Keeping ‘em guessing.” Las Vegas Sun. March 10, 2011. https://lasvegassun.com/news/2011/mar/10/keeping-em-guessing/.

Flanagan, Michael. “Laverne, surely.” The Bay Area Reporter. May 23, 2018. https://www.ebar.com/bartab/nightlife//260270

O’Neal, Nathan. “Pedestrian killed in crosswalk, a former female impersonator, trailblazer in entertainment.” Channel 3 News Las Vegas. March 27, 2018. https://news3lv.com/news/local/pedestrian-killed-in-crosswalka-former-female-impersonator-trailblazer-in-entertainment.

Speegle, Troy. “#DragHerstory: The Incomprable, Lavern Cummings.” The WOW Report. May 6, 2016. https://worldofwonder.net/dragherstory-laverne-cummings/.

Related Collections

The following resource may provide additional information related to the materials in this collection:

Cummings, Lavern & Midnite, Tony. Interview, 2000 August 29. OH-00456. Oral History Research Center, Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

Preferred Citation

Paul Lavern Cummings Papers, 1927-2018, MS-00971. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

Acquisition Note

Materials were donated to the Nevada State Museum by Kathleen Blandini in 2018 and subsequently transferred to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives in 2019 and 2021; accession numbers 2019-098 and 2021-019.

Processing Note

Material was arranged and described by Dennis McBride. In 2019, Tammi Kim wrote front matter descriptions and created a finding aid in ArchivesSpace. In 2021, Tammi Kim accessioned the 2021 addition and updated the finding aid. In 2021, Chriziel Childers created an item-level description for the photographs and negatives. Chriziel Childers transfered digital files off 25 optical discs, processed additional digital files transferred electronically, and created access copies.

Resource Type

Papers

Collection Type

EAD ID

US::NvLN::MS00971

Additions

Further additions to this collection are anticipated.

Finding Aid Description Rules

Describing Archives: A Content Standard
English