Biography:

Frank Cresson Potts McGlinn (1914-2000) who was a Philadelphia lawyer, corporate executive, humanitarian, museum trustee, and patron of the performing arts. He earned degrees from the University of North Carolina and the University of Pennsylvania Law School. During World War II, he served as a naval officer on a minesweeper and was awarded the Purple Heart in 1944. After the war, he worked as a legal counselor, a marketing executive for several banks, and a consultant for over forty years. Outside of his career, McGlinn was a prominent fundraiser for the Republican Party, serving on the Executive Committee of the Republican National Finance Committee. He was also active in various community organizations, but especially those associated with theater, throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania. Among other institutions, he served on the boards for Walnut Street Theatre, Theatre of the Living Arts, Philadelphia Free Library, William Penn Foundation, Temple University, and Afro American Historical & Cultural Museum (African American Museum in Philadelphia). The collection contains McGlinn’s personal collection of theater and performing arts ephemera as well as his professional papers. The ephemera series comprises the first seven boxes of the collection and consists of handbills, programs, broadsides, posters, and other materials from a variety of Philadelphia theaters as well as sporting events. The second, much larger, series consists of administrative papers and correspondence relating to McGlinn’s positions on a number of executive boards including the Bicentennial Planning Commission, the Republican National Finance Committee, and the Walnut Street Theatre. Much of this material remains unsorted with various letters, invitations, promotional mailers, and clippings.