Robert Bendick papers , 1946-1965

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Bendick, Robert
Title
Robert Bendick papers
Dates
1946-1965 (inclusive)
Quantity
1.5 linear feet, (1 container)
Collection Number
Ax 505
Summary
Robert Bendick (b. 1917) was a cameraman, producer, and director of educational and children's television programs at CBS and NBC, as well as a collaborative author with his wife (Jeanne Bendick) of several children's books. The collection includes television production materials relating to Bendick's work in the field of educational programming.
Repository
University of Oregon Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives
UO Libraries--SCUA
1299 University of Oregon
Eugene OR
97403-1299
Telephone: 5413463068
spcarref@uoregon.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open to the public. Collection must be used in Special Collections and University Archives Reading Room. Collection or parts of collection may be stored offsite. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives in advance of your visit to allow for transportation time.

Additional Reference Guides

See the Current Collection Guide for detailed description and requesting options.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Robert Bendick was born on February 8, 1917, in New York, New York, the son of Louis G. Bendick, a businessman, and Ruth (Feis) Bendick. He attended New York University from 1936-1937, and the C. H. White School of Photography from 1938-1939.

On November 24, 1940, he married Jeanne Garfunkel, with whom he wrote seven books on television, filming, economics, and oceanography for young readers. These books include Television Works Like This (1965); Filming Works Like This (1970); The Consumer's Catalog of Economy and Ecology (1975); Finding Out About Jobs: Television Reporting (1976); Exploring an Ocean Tide Pool (1975); Eureka! It's Television! (1993); and Markets: From Barter to Bar Codes (1997).

From 1940-1942 he served as one of the first three cameramen at CBS-TV. With the advent of World War II, he took a break from his career to join the U.S. Army Air Forces, where he filmed combat documentaries from 1943-1945, and received an Air Medal with two oak leaf clusters. From 1945-1952, Bendick worked as the director of news, special events, and sports, and was the executive director of several individual programs at CBS. He co-produced and directed "This is Cinerama" and directed "Cinerama Holiday" from 1952-1953 for the Cinerama Corporation in New York. He then joined NBC as the producer of the "Today Show" from 1953-1955 and 1958-1960; "Wide, Wide World" in 1956; "Twenty-Five Years of Life" in 1961; "U.S. Steel Opening of the 1964 World's Fair" in 1964; and the children's series "The First Look" from 1966-1967. He continued as a producer and director until 1975, along the way founding and serving as president of Bendick Associates, an educational audio-visual company, in 1966. He is also a lecturer at New York University and the University of Oklahoma.

Robert Bendick has worked on films in Europe, Asia, Alaska, Southeast Asia, New Zealand, and Australia. He once commented that a subject of great importance to him is "the impact of television on society-the failure of television to understand or respond to its incredible responsibility."

(Source: Gale Literary Databases. "Robert Bendick." Contemporary Authors. 27 February 2002. 12 July 2005.)

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The Robert Bendick papers consist of television production materials for America's Cup Races (1962); Opening Night at the New York World's Fair (1964); Seventeenth Annual Emmy Awards Show (1965); This is Cinerama (1952); "Today" In Rome (1960); Wide, Wide World ("Sunday Driver", "Land of Plenty," and "Two Ways to Winter," 1956); Merrily We Roll Along (1961); Twenty-Five Years of Life (1961); 1948 Republican Convention (1948); and Airtime Analyses (1946-1948). The collection also includes a folder of correspondence and several miscellaneous folders.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Educational television programs
  • Television producers and directors--United States

Personal Names

  • Bendick, Robert

Form or Genre Terms

  • Correspondence