Photograph of Disc Jockey Bill “Hawk” Hawkins and his fan club in a jam session
date: label: Date
content: 1948-1958
name: label: Photograph by
content: Mitchell Studios, Inc., American
label: Subject of
content: Bill Hawkins, American, 1909 - 1975
label: Subject of
content: Unidentified Child or Children
label: Subject of
content: Central High School, American, 1846 - 1982
notes: label: Description
content: A black-and-white photograph of Disc Jockey Bill “Hawk” Hawkins with members of his fan club. Hawkins is depicted standing just right of center with a large group of teenage fans, arranged in roughly a semicircle, during a jam session inside a school gymnasium. A silver tone microphone stand is in front of Hawkins. He is depicted in full length, wearing a medium-toned, double-breasted suit, white collared shirt, and a polka dot bowtie. He is smiling and looking towards a boy in a plaid coat and jeans playing a tambourine, depicted in profile on the far left. Standing to the left of Hawkins, at the center of the crowd, is a teenage boy and girl holding drumsticks and soft mallets over a large drum. To the left of the drummers, is a boy playing an acoustic guitar. A girl on the far right, wearing a plaid jacket and a head scarf, holds a metallic gourd shaped object. And one boy, wearing a flat cap, sits with his legs crossed on an amplifier at the center front of the group. In the background are a few teenagers standing and sitting on the bleachers. In the background are four large windows covered with metal mesh. The photograph has a white border that is thicker along the left and bottom edges and a landscape orientation. The back of the photograph is white and plain with a photographer’s stamp at the center and an inscription at the top center. The black ink stamp reads [MITCHELL STUDIOS, INC / 9101 CEDAR AVENUE / RANDOLF 7611 / CLEVELAND 6, OHIO]. The black ink inscription near the top center edge reads [Fan Club \ Jam Session].
place: label: Place captured
content: Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, North and Central America
label: Place printed
content: Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Band (Music)
label: Topic
content: Children
label: Topic
content: Education
label: Topic
content: Instrumentalists (Musicians)
label: Topic
content: Photography
label: Topic
content: Radio
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Photographs and Still Images
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of W. Allen Taylor, son of "Walkin' Talkin' Bill Hawkins," The First Black Disc Jockey of Cleveland, Ohio
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2018.91.2.20
objectType: label: Type
content: gelatin silver prints
label: Type
content: portraits
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Unknown – Restrictions Possible
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (Sheet): 7 7/8 × 9 7/8 in. (20 × 25.1 cm)