Joe
Nick Patoski Papers
1929-1998
Bulk dates:
1975-1995
Collection 029
31 boxes (17
linear feet)
Note: Additional
Joe Nick Patoski archives have been received since this on-line inventory was
compiled. Contact the archivist for the latest information on our holdings.
Click here for complete
inventory
Access: Direct
inquiries to Archivist, Southwestern Writers Collection, Texas State University,
San Marcos, Texas 78666-4604.
Processed by: Emily Painton, 1998.
Photocopying
allowed. JNP holds copyright for Selena materials he wrote and created, and half of the
Caught in the Crossfire materials he wrote and created with co-author Bill Crawford.
Other items will require copyright status determined on a case-by-case basis.
BIOGRAPHICAL
NOTE
Joe
Nick Patoski moved with his family to West Fort Worth in 1953, at the age of
two. He attended the University of
Texas at El Paso, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Texas at
Austin, where he began his career as a writer and consultant in the music
business in 1972. Starting as a
columnist with the Daily Texan,
the newspaper of the University of Texas at Austin, Patoski soon earned a
reputation as one of the most respected critics of pop culture in the
Southwest. He worked as a stringer
for Rolling Stone from
1974 to 1980, and as a contributing editor for Texas Monthly from 1975 to 1980. During the early 1980s, Patoski was the
manager and executive producer for several top Texas rock and roll bands, and
toured the United Sates, Europe and South America. In 1985, Patoski was named an associate editor at Texas
Monthly. He is currently senior editor for the Texas
Monthly. Patoski has written on various topics
covering the entire range of Texas culture. His work has also appeared in Mother Jones, Village Voice, Westways, and Conde Nast Traveler, as well as many other publications.
SCOPE AND
CONTENT NOTE
Typescripts,
correspondence, clippings, photographs, sound recordings, printed material,
handwritten notes, ephemera, and artifacts, 1929 to 1998 (bulk 1975-1995),
created and maintained by Joe Nick Patoski, document much of his writing
career, as well as some aspects of his business and personal life.
The
collection has been arranged into nine series: Writing (1975-1998, n.d.),
Correspondence (1971-1998, n.d.), Promotional Material (1975-1998, n.d.),
Research Material (1929-1998, n.d.), Artist Development Inc. (1985-1986, n.d.),
Personal (1980-1995), Photographic Material (n.d.), Ephemera and Printed
Material (1975-1997), and Sound Recordings (1962-1990). These series have been created by the
cataloger, as the materials arrived with very little discernible order. Though Research Material and Writing
are not the two largest series in the collection, they do offer the most
insight into Patoski's research and writing process, as well as into the topics
that interest him. The largest
series include Sound Recordings (5.5 lin. ft.), Promotional Material (almost 4
lin. ft.), and Research Material (3.25 lin. ft.).
Music,
in particular Texas and Southwestern music and musicians, is one of Patoski's
major areas of interest. This is
well documented in the collection, as each series contains material that
reveals Patoski's involvement in the music world as a manager, a critic, and as
a fan. Much of the music material
(photographs, interviews, clippings, ephemera) in the Research Material series
was complied by Patoski, and it relates to later articles and books written by
Patoski. The largest concentration
of music related material is in the Promotional Material series, but the
majority of these materials (publicity photographs, press releases, news
clippings) are commercial in nature, and were routinely mailed to Patoski. Therefore, these materials do not
necessarily reflect his personal tastes or interests in music.
Patoski's
passion for music has not prevented him from writing about many other
topics. He has written on topics
ranging from miniature golf to B-B-Q to the closing of Aquarena Springs in San
Marcos. The wide variety of topics
Patoski has researched and written about is well represented in the Writing
series and the Research series.
A
relatively smaller group of material in this collection relates to Patoski's
personal life. In the
Correspondence series, many of the letters, particularly the letters from his
father, offer insight into Patoski's relationships with family and
friends. The Photographic Material
series contains many unidentified snapshots of Patoski with friends and family
throughout his life.
Two
other collections containing Joe Nick Patoski's papers are also housed at the
Southwestern Writers Collection.
The Crawford /Patoski Stevie Ray Vaughan Biography Papers (1964-1993), and the Patoski Selena: Como La Flor
Papers (1994-1997)
(unprocessed as of 10/98). These
two collections only contain material specifically related to the production of
those particular books, and offer further insight into Patoski's research and
writing process.
SERIES
DESCRIPTIONS
Series I:
Writing, 1975-1998, n.d.
Boxes 1-3
This series
documents the wide variety of topics Patoski has written about, and helps
illustrate his writing process from initial handwritten notes to published
articles. Contained in this series
are clippings of Patoski's work, as well as unpublished band and club reviews,
creative works, and a large quantity of handwritten notes. A course packet for a feature writing
class taught by Patoski is also included in this series.
Series II:
Correspondence, 1971-1998, n.d.
Boxes 3-4
This series
contains Patoski's personal and professional correspondence, separated into
groupings, for Texas Monthly Correspondence and General Correspondence. The majority of the general
correspondence is personal in nature.
Of particular interest is the relatively large number of letters in
general correspondence from Patoski's father, Victor Patoski, most of which are
signed simply with the letter V.
The Texas Monthly correspondence are mostly from fans and critics of
Patoski's work in the magazine.
Also contained in the Texas Monthly correspondence are interoffice
memos, letters from other publications soliciting Patoski's work,
correspondence regarding editing, general fan letters, and several personal
letters.
Series III:
Promotional Material, 1975-1998, n.d.
Boxes 4-11
The promotional
material series is predominately made up of photographic and printed material
sent to Patoski from music, television and film production companies, record
companies, and talent agencies.
Other promotional materials in this series include catalogs,
newsletters, festival advertisements, press releases and ephemera all relating
to the music industry.
Series IV:
Research Material, 1929-1998, n.d.
Boxes 11-17, 28
This series of
subject files and artist files, made up of newspaper clippings, notes,
interviews, photographs and ephemera, illustrates Patoski's many areas of
interest and his research methods.
Patoski wrote about and published pieces relating to many of the topics
and people in the subject and artist files. Of particular note is the large amount on material on Joe
"King" Carrasco and his band, who Patoski managed in the 1980s.
Series V: Artist
Development Inc., 1985-1986, n.d.
Box 18
This series
consists of bank records and a photograph from Joe Nick Patoski's music
management business, Artist Development, Inc. This business existed from about 1985 to 1987, and managed
several music groups including Joe "King" Carrasco, Dino Lee, and The
True Believers. Patoski managed
these groups while he was also working full-time at Texas Monthly.
Series VI:
Personal, 1980-1995, n.d.
Boxes 18, 29,
30, 31
This series
contains a small group of documents pertaining to Patoski's personal financial,
legal, and medical matters, as well as art works on paper, and an array of
artifacts. Of particular interest
is Patoski's collection of mostly
music related buttons.
Series VII:
Photographic Material, n.d.
Box 19
The photographs
in this series are more personal in nature than those in previous series. Many images of Patoski throughout his
life are contained in this series.
Series VIII:
Ephemera and Printed Material, 1962-1990
Box 19-20
This series is a
collection of miscellaneous clippings and notes. They are divided into different categories. They are writing related, travel
related, health and medical related, or arts related.
Series IX: Sound
Recordings, 1962-1990, n.d.
Box 21-27
The majority of
phonographs in this series are from Patoski's personal collection, but some
were sent to him as promotional material.
The audio cassettes are mostly non-professional recordings of music, and
a few are of interviews with musicians.
A relatively large portion of the audio cassettes are of the band Joe
"King" Carrasco, which Patoski managed during the 1980s.
SERIES SUMMARY
Series I.
Writing, 1975 – 1998, n.d.
Series II.
Correspondence, 1971 – 1998, n.d.
Series III.
Promotional Material, 1975 – 1998, n.d.
Subseries
A. Music by label
Subseries
B. Music Catalogs by title
Subseries
C. Music Newsletters by title
Subseries
D. Music Festivals by festival
Subseries
E. Music Press Releases by subject
Subseries
F. Music Ephemera
Subseries
G. Television and Film by label
Series IV.
Research Material, 1929 – 1998, n.d.
Subseries
A. Subject Files
Subseries
B. Artist Files
Series V. Artist
Development Inc., 1985 – 1986, n.d.
Series VI.
Personal, 1980 – 1995, n.d.
Subseries
A. Financial/Legal/Medical
Subseries
B. Art on Paper
Subseries
C. Artifacts
Series VII.
Photographic Material, n.d.
Series VIII.
Ephemera and Printed Material, 1962 - 1990
Series IX. Sound
Recordings, 1962 – 1990, n.d.
Subseries
A. Phonographs
Subseries
B. Compact Disc
Subseries
C. Audio Cassettes
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