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Cliff Trenier Papers (MS-01137)

Abstract

The Cliff Trenier Papers (approximately 1950-1999) document the life and career of Clifton "Cliff" Trenier, who performed with various siblings across the United States beginning in the 1940s. The collection contains photographs of Cliff with his twin brother Claude performing, documents and newspaper clippings relating to the musical group's tours and their numerous performances in Las Vegas, Nevada including at the Moulin Rouge. Also included in the collection are photographs of Cliff's wife, Bedez, and correspondence between the couple up until Cliff's illness and death in 1983.

Finding Aid PDF

Date

1950 to 1999

Extent

2.47 Cubic Feet (6 boxes, 2 shared boxes)
4.58 Linear Feet

Related People/Corporations

Scope and Contents Note

The Cliff Trenier Papers (approximately 1950-1999) document the life and career of Clifton "Cliff" Trenier, who performed with various siblings across the United States beginning in the 1940s. The collection contains photographs of Cliff with his twin brother Claude performing, documents and newspaper clippings relating to the musical group's tours and their numerous performances in Las Vegas, Nevada including at the Moulin Rouge. The collection also contains posters and vinyl records from movies featuring The Treniers' music. Also included in the collection are photographs of Cliff's wife, Bedez, and correspondence between the couple up until Cliff's illness and death in 1983.

Access Note

Collection is open for research.

Publication Rights

This material is made available to facilitate private study, scholarship, or research. It may be protected by copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity rights, or other interests not owned by UNLV. Users are responsible for determining whether permissions are necessary from rights owners for any intended use and for obtaining all required permissions. Acknowledgement of the UNLV University Libraries is requested. For more information, please see the UNLV Special Collections policies on reproductions and use or contact us at special.collections@unlv.edu.

Arrangement

Materials are arranged in rough chronological order.

Biographical / Historical Note

"The Treniers," or later "The Rockin' Rollin' Treniers," was a band based around twins Clifton L. "Cliff" Trenier and Claude Oliver Trenier. They were born in Mobile, Alabama. In 1943, Claude Trenier joined Jimmie Lunceford's band as lead singer, and Cliff joined a year later. However, the twins left the Lunceford band in 1947 and began performing together as the Trenier Twins, backed by the Gene Gilbeaux Quartet and made their first recordings for Mercury Records in 1947. The group developed a reputation for their lively performances. In 1949, they were joined by older brother Buddy Trenier, and started to be billed as "The Rockin' Rollin' Treniers."

They had their only national chart hit in 1951, when "Go! Go! Go!" reached number ten on the R&B chart, but several other records including "It Rocks! It Rolls! It Swings!" (1952) and "Rockin' Is Our Bizness" (1953) were popular. The group was considered a strong influence on many of their contemporaries, and one of the first times rock and roll appeared on national television was in May 1954 when the Treniers appeared on the Colgate Comedy Hour, hosted by Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis.

Sources:

"Milt Trenier - Biography" Milton Trenier's Homepage. http://www.rockabilly.net/milttrenier/bio.shtml

"The Treniers" Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Treniers

Related Collections

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

Claude Trenier oral history interview, 1997 February 13. OH-01843. [Cite format consulted: Audio recording or Transcript.] Oral History Research Center, Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

Claude, Buddy, and Skip Trenier oral history interview, 1978 March 10. OH-03347. [Cite format consulted: Audio recording or Transcript.] Oral History Research Center, Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

Frontier Hotel and Casino Collection, 1942-1988. MS-00297. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

Preferred Citation

Cliff Trenier Papers, approximately 1950-1999. MS-01137. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada. http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/f1kj5s

Acquisition Note

Materials were purchased from Vigilante Rare Documents (via Gregory Bock) in 2023 and 2024; accession numbers 2023-001 and 2024-054.

Processing Note

In 2023, Sarah Jones rehoused the material and created the finding aid in ArchivesSpace. In 2024, Sarah Jones rehoused and arranged the 2024 accession and updated the finding aid.

Resource Type

Papers

Collection Type

EAD ID

US::NVLN::MS01137

Appraisal Note

Acquired by Director of Special Collections and Archives, Sarah Quigley, as part of UNLV Special Collections and Archives holdings on African Americans in Las Vegas. All material that formed the original gift has been retained.

Finding Aid Description Rules

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