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Renowned rare book dealer and alumnus Kenneth Karmiole has long been an authority on historical texts and rare volumes. While he recently retired after nearly half a century in the book trade, the endowments and research fellowships Karmiole established at UCLA Library and other institutions secure his legacy to advance scholarship for future generations.
In 2015, Karmiole established the Karmiole Endowed Research Fellowship at UCLA Library. As part of each fellow’s visit, they are required to give a scholarly talk after concluding their research, ensuring the insights that emerged during the fellowships are more widely shared with the UCLA community.
Just last month, writer, historian, podcast host and Karmiole fellow Ben Miller presented Fashioning Liberation: Rudi Gernreich and the Counterculture at the Charles E. Young Research Library. Showcasing materials from UCLA Library Special Collections' fashion and textile collections, Miller detailed his investigation into the extraordinary life of the Viennese-born fashion designer and dancer, who settled in Los Angeles and was instrumental in establishing the U.S. gay rights movement.
Since the fellowship was established, the diverse list of topics explored by research fellows has included Victorian gardening books for children and the dark history of the economics of publishing.
“The Karmiole fellowship is a significant investment in facilitating original research and inquiry, and LSC is grateful to Kenneth Karmiole for establishing the fund,” said Jet Jacobs, head of Library Special Collections public services, outreach, and community engagement. “What the Karmiole fellows discover brings new understanding and highlights the importance of ensuring primary source cultural heritage materials are accessible to the public.”
Karmiole, who completed a Master of Library Science in 1971, has established six endowments at UCLA. He said he defers to faculty opinions when establishing endowments. “It’s the professionals—the head librarians, the heads of departments—who know what is needed,” he said.
“And it’s worked out very nicely as I can provide the resources to have researchers spend a couple of months working with the UCLA collections,” he said. “I really enjoy the involvement with UCLA and I love seeing the success of these programs and the interest in them—it’s very rewarding.
For more information about establishing an endowment, contact Stephanie Kimura at sbkimura@library.ucla.edu.