John Lark Taylor Papers
Scope and Content Note
The John Lark Taylor Papers contain correspondence, plays and original music by Taylor, photographs, promptbooks, playbills, radio scripts, and other stage and radio memorabilia spanning 1879 to 1944. The collection includes an autobiography by Taylor and an account of his season playing in Hamlet with John Barrymore.
Dates
- Creation: 1879 - 1944
Conditions Governing Access
The physical materials from this collection may be viewed only in the reading room of Vanderbilt’s Special Collections and University Archives. Materials should be requested two to three days in advance to facilitate easier access. Contact specialcollections@vanderbilt.edu to schedule an appointment.
Biography
John Lark Taylor was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1881. He attended Tarbox School and Fall Business College in Nashville before turning his attention to the stage.
As a teen, he played piano to accompany silent films in Nashville's first movie house. His first professional job was a $5/week vaudeville stint in St. Louis when he was 17 years old. The following year, he moved to New York and joined the Augustin Daly Stock Company. His first Broadway play was the Daly production of Taming of the Shrew with Tyrone Power, Sr. After Daly died in 1899, Taylor played with other stock companies in California and Nashville before returning to New York.
By 1906, Lark Taylor had joined the Sothern-Marlowe Company, and he played in theater productions for the company for the next 10 years. In 1922-1923, he played a part in the Arthur Hopkins' production of Hamlet with John Barrymore.
In 1924, Taylor sold his New York residence and moved back to Nashville with his mother. He started a Little Theater and began performing plays in a movie house near the Belcourt Theatre in Hillsboro Village. In 1933 he began doing radio programs for WSM, announcing broadcasts and performing in radio dramas. He continued his radio career until his retirement in 1942.
John Lark Taylor died on March 27, 1946 after a long illness.
Full Extent
9.21 Linear Feet (12 letter Hollingers, 1 tall letter Hollinger, 1 oversize box, 1 oversize folder)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The John Lark Taylor Papers contain correspondence, plays and original music by Taylor, photographs, promptbooks, playbills, radio scripts, and other stage and radio memorabilia spanning 1879 to 1944.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
John Lark Taylor bequeathed his collection of personal papers jointly to Peabody College and Vanderbilt University in 1946.
Processing Information
All correspondence is arranged alphabetically. The figure in parentheses immediately following each name denotes the total number of letters from that person in the collection; the dates are for the time of the letters. The full name of the writer of the letter is given whenever possible.
- Title
- Finding Aid for the John Lark Taylor Papers
- Status
- Completed
- Date
- 2010
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Vanderbilt University Special Collections and University Archives Repository
Special Collections Library
1101 19th Ave. S.
Nashville TN 37212 United States
specialcollections@vanderbilt.edu
About this Site
This site contains collection guides, or finding aids, to the archival collections held by Vanderbilt University Special Collections and University Archives, the History of Medicine Collection, and the Scarritt Bennett Center. Finding aids describe the context, arrangement, and structure of archival materials, allowing users to identify and request materials relevant to their research.
Requesting Materials
Each finding aid contains a link to request materials from the collections. Collections can also be requested by emailing the repository directly through the library website. Each repository has its own location, hours, and contact information. Please consult the repository with questions about using the materials. Collections are non-circulating and must be used in the repository’s reading room. In many cases, the collections are stored off-site and require advance notice for retrieval.