{"id":303720,"date":"2026-06-11T10:30:02","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T10:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/303720\/"},"modified":"2026-06-11T10:30:02","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T10:30:02","slug":"former-usf-archivist-andy-huses-tampa-theatre-novel-scheduled-for-posthumous-release","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/303720\/","title":{"rendered":"Former USF archivist Andy Huse\u2019s Tampa Theatre novel scheduled for posthumous release"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/a>Andy Huse, a former USF Libraries archivist, was working on a book about the history of the Tampa Theatre before he died. ORACLE PHOTO\/ISABELLA OEFELEIN<\/p>\n

USF Libraries archivist Andy Huse dedicated his life to telling the story of Tampa Bay, whether through his work at the university or through his literary work highlighting the complex history of Tampa\u2019s food scene.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At USF, Huse oversaw the Florida Studies and University Archives collections and played a large role in establishing the Florida Environment and Natural History Collection, according to the university<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Before his death in August 2025, Huse had completed a final draft of a novel about the Tampa Theatre \u2014 titled Tampa Theatre: A Century of Stories \u2014 which is now scheduled for posthumous publication in September.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The 272-page book is available for preorder on Amazon and will be published through the University Press of Florida, and will also be included in an archive of the theatre\u2019s century-long history for its October anniversary.<\/p>\n

Joey Hagar, the Operations Manager for the Tampa Theatre, said Huse spent 18 months building a relationship with Tampa Theatre to work and gather information for a comprehensive novel on its history to celebrate its 100th anniversary.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hagar said he told Huse about the different films the theatre hosted over the course of its history, as well as about the films that never made it to screening.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He sat in on more than 30 interviews Huse had with locals to gather information on the book \u2014 from people who attended screenings to those who got married at the theatre or had it tattooed on their bodies \u2014 to add color and background to the book.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe book was less about the actual physical history of the theatre [and more] about the stories about people, the people who worked there, the people that made the theatre what it is,\u201d Hagar said.<\/p>\n

Related: USF library furniture upgrades delayed to end of May<\/a><\/p>\n

Jill Witecki, the Vice President and Director of Marketing for the Tampa Theatre, said Huse was an expert in Tampa, making him uniquely qualified to document the theatre\u2019s past for its 100th anniversary.<\/p>\n

Huse\u2019s experience with historical novels included writing for the 100th anniversary of the Tampa restaurant, Columbia<\/a>, as well as a book on the extensive history of the Cuban sandwich<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Huse] was the clear and obvious choice given his experience, and he was equally excited,\u201d Witecki said. \u201cMost of his work was food-related, so this was an exciting pivot to something different.\u201d<\/p>\n

Witecki said Huse\u2019s neighbor recommended he write a book about the theatre, and also worked with Witecki to edit the novel and create its index.<\/p>\n

Witecki said Huse had a clear passion not only for Tampa but for the people who make the city unique, which he made clear through his dedication and relationships.<\/p>\n

She added that Huse could explain Tampa\u2019s development through both historical and human lenses that connected with the community, which he also discussed in the novel.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am proud to be with his story, I am proud to be a part of it,\u201d Witecki said. \u201cI personally hope to sell a million copies, and that becomes the legacy of the book.\u201d<\/p>\n

Witecki said that his care shines through the novel, which she said was a \u201cgroup project of labor and love\u201d honoring his legacy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe publisher said they will make sure, with every resource they have, that the book was completed,\u201d Witecki said. \u201cIt would have been something Andy would have appreciated.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Andy Huse, a former USF Libraries archivist, was working on a book about the history of the Tampa…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":303721,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[135,137,136],"class_list":["post-303720","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303720","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=303720"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303720\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/303721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=303720"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=303720"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=303720"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}