Irv Kupcinet papers, 1929-ca. 2003

Processed with funding provided by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.

To consult the sound or video recordings, it is necessary to use a copy, not the original (and to have a copy made if one is not available).

Advance appointment with special permission required to view one volume of celebrity birthday greetings (2002).

All rights owned by the donor, including copyright, were deeded to Chicago Historical Society. Copyright may be retained by the creators of items, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law, unless otherwise noted.

Materials were a gift of Jerry Kupcinet (accession #: 2004.0110).

Irv Kupcinet papers (Chicago History Museum) plus a detailed description, date, and box/folder number of a specific item.

Biographical materials, correspondence, financial and legal documents, manuscripts, newsletters, press releases, newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, photographs, and other papers of Irv Kupcinet, a Chicago journalist, author, radio and television personality, and civic leader. The majority of the collection relates to Kupcinet's work as a columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and as host of a television talk show. Personal scrapbooks consisting of newspaper clippings and correspondence, as well as the papers of Kupcinet's wife Esther Kupcinet (Essee), also are found in the collection. Additional topics include Kup's philanthropic support for the Purple Heart Cruise, the Weizmann Institute of Science, B'nai B'rith, and other public service programs and organizations.

Irv Kupcinet (1912-2003) was a Chicago journalist, author, radio and television personality, and civic leader. Kupcinet began working for the Chicago Times (later the Chicago Sun-Times) in 1935 as a sports reporter. From 1943 to 2002, Kupcinet wrote a daily column under his by-line containing celebrity gossip and political news, which became known as "Kup's Column" in 1948 and eventually was syndicated to newspapers across the country. He also created a weekly television talk show called "At Random" (later known as "Kup's Show") that aired from 1959 until 1986, and won fifteen Emmy awards and a Peabody award. Kupcinet was involved in philanthropic causes, including founding the Purple Heart Cruise, and was a supporter of Jewish organizations, such as B'nai B'rith, the Jewish United Fund, and the Weizmann Institute of Science.

Related materials at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, include the Irv Kupcinet collection of sound recordings (1984.0139).

• Names
  • Kupcinet, Irv--Archives
  • Kupcinet, Esther
  • Chicago sun-times--Employees
• Subject
  • Chicago sun-times
  • American newspapers--Illinois--Chicago--Sections, columns, etc
  • Broadcasting--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
  • Celebrities--United States--Biography
  • Jews--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
  • Journalists--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
• Geographic Coverage
  • Chicago (Ill.)--Politics and government--20th century
  • Chicago (Ill.)--Social life and customs--20th century
  • Israel--Description and travel--20th century

The collection is arranged in four series.

Series 1. Scrapbooks, 1937-1996 (box 1-3 and 81 unboxed volumes)

Series 1 consists of 41 scrapbooks (1937-1996) compiled by Irv and Esther Kupcinet, which contain correspondence, photographs, cards, newspaper clippings, and other materials related to their personal lives. Also present are 50 bound volumes of newspaper clippings (1943-1994) of Kupcinet's Chicago Sun-Times column, "Kup's Column," and one scrapbook dedicated to the column's 25th anniversary.

Series 2. Organization files, ca. 1940-ca. 2003 (box 4-7)

Series 2 contains correspondence, notes, financial records, newspaper clippings, and other materials related to events and organizations with which Kupcinet was active. Topics include the annual Purple Heart Cruise, which Kupcinet organized for military veterans (1945-1995); the Oscars; the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel; Shimer College in Chicago (Ill.); B'nai B'rith; the Jewish United Fund; and other organizations.

Series 3. Professional papers, 1943-2002 (box 8-13 and 2 unboxed volumes)

Series 3 consists of reference materials, financial records, manuscripts, joke lists, correspondence, notes, newspaper clippings, photographs, scrapbooks, and articles related to Kupcinet's career as a journalist for the Chicago Sun-Times and his television show, "Kup's Show." Included are contact lists, booking sheets, and correspondence, as well as photographs of Kupcinet with notable celebrities and political figures. Also present are manuscripts regarding Kupcinet's travels in Israel, and an autobiography titled Give the story to Kup. The autobiography may have been published as Kup, a man, an era, a city / Irv Kupcinet's autobiography, with Paul Neimark (1988).

Series 4. Personal and biographical materials, 1929-2003 (box 14-17 including sound and video tapes; 1 pkg., 1 vol.)

Restriction on 1 volume of celebrity birthday greetings (2002): Advance appointment with special permission required to view this volume.

Series 4 contains articles, correspondence, newspaper clippings, postcards, photographs, and other personal and biographical materials of Irv and Esther Kupcinet. Correspondence is between Irv Kupcinet and celebrities and politicians featured in his newspaper column and/or appearing on his television talk show. Included are awards for journalism and civic involvement, one volume of autographed birthday greetings from celebrities (2002), three sound recordings of lectures from the Weizmann Institute of Science, and a VHS tape of Kupcinet's appearance on "Jay's Show." Also present are materials related to Esther Kupcinet's involvement with the Chicago Academy for the Arts, a private high school.