Alvin Orloff and Michael Collins papers, 1986-2011.
Collection Number: 7789

Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections
Cornell University Library


DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARY

Title:
Alvin Orloff and Michael Collins papers, 1986-2011.
Repository:
Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections
Collection Number:
7789
Abstract:
Manuscripts, ephemera, photographs, posters, clippings, and other materials documenting the queer punk, performance and club scenes in San Francisco from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, at a time when AIDS was devastating the city's gay population and when the activist groups ACT UP and Queer Nation emerged in response to the epidemic. The papers focus on the Popstitutes and the many other initiatives by Collins and other group members and associates in the following decade, including Playstitute and Klubstitute. The personal collection of manuscripts, ephemera, posters, photographs and other materials documenting the groundbreaking queer punk, performance and club scenes in San Francisco from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, at a time when AIDS was devastating the city's gay population and when the activist groups ACT UP and Queer Nation emerged in response to the epidemic. With more than 425 leaves of typescripts and manuscripts and more than 900 items of ephemera and related materials, the collection offers rich primary sources for research in cultural studies, gender studies, queer studies, contemporary history, theater history, art history and related disciplines. The papers focus on The Popstitutes - a seminal San Francisco queer performance group and punk band founded in 1986 by Michael Collins ("Diet Popstitute," 1958-1995); Brad Kellogg ("Bad Popstitute"); and Alvin Orloff ("Remix von Popstitute")-and on the dizzying array of activities spawned by Collins and the other members and associates of the group in the decade that followed.
Creator:
Orloff, Alvin, 1961-
Collins, Michael, 1958-1995.
Quanitities:
1 cubic feet.
Language:
Collection material in English

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Alvin Orloff played a major role in the Popstitutes, an influential San Francisco queer performance group and punk band founded in 1986 by Michael Collins ("Diet Popstitute"), Brad Kellogg ("Bad Popstitute"), and Orloff ("Remix von Popstitute"). He was also important in Playstitute, a production company that brought genderbending and avant-garde plays and musicals to established theatrical spaces in San Francisco, and Klubstitute, a long-running weekly club that featured underground queer performance in a variety of genres. Orloff also served as an impresario and DJ at Baby Judy's, a queer dance club held weekly in San Francisco's Mission District from 1994 to 1996. Michael Joseph Collins, aka Diet Popstitute, was a performance artist, musician, theater producer, and club entrepreneur. Born in 1958, he died in 1995 at the age of 37. In the late 70s, Diet moved to San Francisco and became known in the Punk Rock scene. He wrote poetry, which later developed into his song lyrics. In 1986, he co-founded the musical and queer performance art group The Popstitutues with Alvin Orloff, aka Remix von Popstitute, and Brad Kellogg, aka Bad Popstitute. Stage shows featured choreographed dances, costumes, and props, and promoted The Popstitutes belief in sexual liberation and self expression. While such shows were message-driven comedy, The Popstitutes musical style was impossible to categorize. In 1990, The Popstitues opened Klubstitute, a floating queer oriented nightclub and cabaret. Diet kept the tone of the club playful and yet avant garde, as the M.C. and booker. Because of Diet's generosity in allowing anyone to perform, Klubstitute became known as a breeding ground for new talent, as well as a space in which anyone of any sexual orientation could go to have some fun. In 1992, Diet founded Playstitute, a queer oriented theater production company. He died in 1995 of AIDS. Orloff, aka Remix, inherited Diet's unpublished scripts, lyrics, performance notes, and personal notebooks, which are included in the collection. Remaining active in San Francisco's cultural life, Remix has since published three novels, 'I Married an Earthling' (2000), 'Gutterboys' (2004), and 'Why Aren't You Smiling?' (2011) through Manic D Press.

COLLECTION DESCRIPTION

Manuscripts, ephemera, photographs, posters, clippings, and other materials documenting the queer punk, performance and club scenes in San Francisco from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, at a time when AIDS was devastating the city's gay population and when the activist groups ACT UP and Queer Nation emerged in response to the epidemic. The papers focus on the Popstitutes and the many other initiatives by Collins and other group members and associates in the following decade, including Playstitute and Klubstitute. The personal collection of manuscripts, ephemera, posters, photographs and other materials documenting the groundbreaking queer punk, performance and club scenes in San Francisco from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, at a time when AIDS was devastating the city's gay population and when the activist groups ACT UP and Queer Nation emerged in response to the epidemic. With more than 425 leaves of typescripts and manuscripts and more than 900 items of ephemera and related materials, the collection offers rich primary sources for research in cultural studies, gender studies, queer studies, contemporary history, theater history, art history and related disciplines. The papers focus on The Popstitutes - a seminal San Francisco queer performance group and punk band founded in 1986 by Michael Collins ("Diet Popstitute," 1958-1995); Brad Kellogg ("Bad Popstitute"); and Alvin Orloff ("Remix von Popstitute")-and on the dizzying array of activities spawned by Collins and the other members and associates of the group in the decade that followed.

INFORMATION FOR USERS

Cite As:

Alvin Orloff and Michael Collins papers, #7789. Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, Cornell University Library.

SUBJECTS

Names:
Popstitutes (Musical group)
Playstitute (Theatrical production company)
Klubstitute (Nightclub)
Places:
San Francisco (Calif.) -- History -- 20th century.
Subjects:
Gay musicians -- California -- San Francisco.
Gay culture -- California -- San Francisco.
Punk culture -- California -- San Francisco.
Form and Genre Terms:
Posters.
Photographs.
Ephemera.

CONTAINER LIST
Container
Description
Date
Box 1 Folder 0
Dealer description and catalog.
Box 1 Folder 1
Alvin Orloff and Michael Collins Papers - Printed Guide
1986-1996
Box 1 Folder 2
Baby Judy's - Artwork
1994-1995
Box 1 Folder 3
Baby Judy's and Related Clubs - Print Materials
1994-1996
Box 1 Folder 4
Diet Popstitute (Michael Collins) - Manuscript Notebooks
19--
Box 1 Folder 5
Diet Popstitute (Michael Collins) - Obituary, Tributes, Memorial Events
1995
Box 1 Folder 6
Diet Popstitute (Michael Collins) - Personal Papers
1989-1991
Box 1 Folder 7
Klubstitute: Ballstitute - The Clinton Inaugural
1993
Box 1 Folder 8
Klubstitute - Handbills
1993-1995
Box 1 Folder 9
Klubstitute - Mailing List Sign-up Sheets
1990-1995
Box 1 Folder 10
Klubstitute - Miscellaneous Documents
1990-1995
Box 1 Folder 11
Klubstitute - Original Artwork - Paste-ups
1993-1995
Box 1 Folder 12
Klubstitute - Performer Documentation
1990-1995
Box 1 Folder 13
Klubstitute - Performance Texts
1990-1995
Box 1 Folder 14
Klubstitute - Posters and Flyers
1993-1995
Box 1 Folder 15
Klubstitute - Press Clippings
1992-1995
Box 1 Folder 16
Klubstitute - Press Releases
1990-1995
Box 1 Folder 17
Klubstitute - Promo Cards
1993-1995
Box 1 Folder 18
Klubstitute - Stickers and Sticker Masters
1992-1995
Box 1 Folder 19
Klubstitute - Unproduced Scripts
1990-1995
Box 1 Folder 20
Playstitutes - 'Carrie'
1992-1995
Box 1 Folder 21
Playstitutue - Flyers and Programs
1992-1995
Box 1 Folder 22
Playstitute - Miscellaneous Documents
1992-1995
Box 1 Folder 23
Playstitute - Phillip R. Ford's 'Dolls'
1992-1995
Box 1 Folder 24
Playstitute - Press Clippings
1992-1995
Box 1 Folder 25
Playstitute - Sondheimania One and Two
1992-1995
Box 1 Folder 26
Playstitute - 'Women in the Shadows'
1992-1994
Box 1 Folder 27
Playstitute - 'Wounded Children'
1992-1994
Box 1 Folder 28
Popstitutes - Flyers and Handbills - Artwork
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 29
Popstitutes, Klubstitute, Playstitute
1986-1995
Box 1 Folder 30
Popstitutes - Miscellaneous Documents
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 31
Popstitutes - Photographs
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 32
Popstitutes - 'Play it Safe' Lyrics Book
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 33
Popstitutes - Posters, Flyers, and Handbills - Print Versions
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 34
Popstitues - Press Clippings
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 35
Popstitutes - Programs - Artwork
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 36
Popstitutes - Programs - Print Versions
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 37
Popstitues - Song Lyrics
1986-1994
Box 1 Folder 38
Related Clubs, Events, and Groups - San Francisco
1992-1993
Box 1 TR-9326
Audio cassette tape with labels handwritten on masking tape, side 1: "Psycodrama The Heterosexuals / F*ck Irak" side 2: "My Wife Died" The cassette apparently includes recordings of spoken-word performances at Klubsitute. See "Performance Texts" folder.
Audio Cassette