ACTOR

[John Wood, distinguished English actor, associated with Tom Stoppard.] His copy of the script of ?The Fantasticks / A Parable about Love / Words by Tom Jones / Music by Harvey L. Schmidt?, with autograph note by him and stage plans.

Author: 
John Wood (1930-2011), English actor associated with Tom Stoppard [?The Fantasticks?, musical by Tom Jones and Harvey L. Schmidt]
Publication details: 
Title page: ?Copyright 1959 by Tom Jones and Harvey L. Schmidt / Property of: Music Theatre Inc. / 119 West 57th Street/ New York 19, New York?. By ?the studio duplicating service / 434 west 43rd street, n.y.c. / LO 3-1225? [New York City, USA.]
£400.00

See Michael Coveney?s obituary in the Guardian, 10 August 2011, which states that Wood was ?one of the greatest stage actors of the past century?, and that he ?returned to the West End in 1961 as Henry Albertson in the whimsical off-Broadway musical The Fantasticks, at the Apollo?. 86pp, 4to. Each act separately paginated. Duplicated and bound with metal studs into black waxed-card wraps, with each page on the recto of a separate leaf. Title ?THE FANTASTICKS? printed on front cover, with details of the Studio Duplicating Service. In good condition, lightly aged, in lightly creased wraps.

[Erich von Stroheim's lost film.] 'Final Shooting Script' of his adaptation (with Leonard Spigelgass and Geraldine Nomis) of Dawn Powell’s ‘Walking down Broadway’, for which he was sacked by the studio, the film being reshot as ‘Hello, Sister!’

Author: 
Erich von Stroheim (1885-1957), Austrian director and actor in Germany and Hollywood; Dawn Powell (1896-1965), author; Fox Film Company, California; Leonard Spigelgass; Geraldine Nomis
Publication details: 
'Fox Film Comp. / California'. 9 August 1932.
£450.00

Fox agreed to the film on condition that von Stroheim was limited to shooting 85,000 feet of film (around an hour and a half of screen time). The studio was pleased when he brought it in on time (he tied a thread around lead actor James Dunn’s genitals, and tugged on it every time he wanted him to show emotion) and on budget, but a screening left them appalled at the morbid content. Von Stroheim was sacked and the film was rewritten and renamed ‘Hello, Sister!’, with three-quarters of the original retained. It was a flop and von Stroheim chose never to direct again.

[Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Hollywood star.] Publicity Photograph with Autograph Signature.

Author: 
Douglas Fairbanks Jr. [Douglas Elton Fairbanks Jr.] (1909-2000), Hollywood star and film producer
Douglas Fairbanks Jr.
Publication details: 
No date or place, but during the latter part of his life.
£65.00
Douglas Fairbanks Jr.

A 7.5 x 10 cm photograph on 8.5 x 13 cm piece of shiny Kodac paper. Black and white head and shoulders shot of an old Fairbanks, nattily attired in jacket and tie, smiling at the camera towards his right shoulder. Signed ‘Douglas Fairbanks’ beneath the photograph in blue felt-tip pen. In very good condition. See Image.

[Bob Hope’s wife Dolores and Frank Sinatra’s wife Barbara.] Typed Letters Signed from the two women to ‘Bonnie and John’, each thanking them for the Christmas gift of a ‘peppered ham’.

Author: 
Dolores Hope [née DeFina] (1909-2011), American singer, wife of Hollywood comedian Bob Hope; Barbara Sinatra [née Blakeley] (1927-2017), wife of singer and actor Frank Sinatra
Bob Hope’s wife Dolores and Frank Sinatra’s wife Barbara
Publication details: 
Dolores Hope's letter: 26 January 1993; on letterhead of 'Dolores and Bob Hope'. Barbara Sinatra's letter: undated; embossed 'Barbara Sinatra'.
£180.00
Bob Hope’s wife Dolores and Frank Sinatra’s wife Barbara

Both letters are addressed to ‘Dear Bonnie and John’. Both in good condition, lightly aged. ONE: TLS from Dolores Hope. Signed ‘Dolores’ in red ink (the letterhead is also red). 1p, 12mo. Reads: ‘The black peppered ham was a big hit at our house and Bob and I can’t thank you enough. We really enjoyed this tasty ham and your thoughtfulness in remembering us at Chistmastime. / Have a healthy and happy New Year!’ TWO: TLS from Barbara Sinatra. Signed ‘Barbara’. 1p, landscape 12mo. On the lower half of an 8vo leaf, which has been converted into a bifolium by a central horizonal fold.

[Stephen Kemble [George Stephen Kemble], Shakespearian actor-manager, uncle of Fanny Kemble.] Informative Autograph Letter Signed to solicitors ‘Messrs. Dowson, Capron and Rowley’, regarding whereabouts of actor William Shakespear Kendrick of Whitby.

Author: 
Stephen Kemble [George Stephen Kemble] (1758-1822), celebrated Shakespearian actor-manager noted for his Falstaff, husband of Elizabeth Satchell and uncle of Fanny Kemble [William Shakespear Kendrick]
Publication details: 
‘Grove. Durham / August the 11th. / 1821.’
£95.00

An interesting letter, providing a mass of interesting incormation relating to the stage in Georgian England, while responding to a request from London solicitors for information about the whereabouts of a provincial actor. See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 3pp, 4to. Forty lines of text, on bifolium addressed on reverse of second leaf ‘For / Messrs. Dowson, Capron and Rowley / Savile Place / near / Burlington Street / London’, and signed ‘S. Kemble.’ In fair condition, on discoloured and worn paper with minor damage at head, but text clear and entire.

[Robert Morley, English actor, star of stage and screen.] Autograph Note Signed, with 'most abject apologies'.

Author: 
Robert Morley [Robert Adolph Wilton Morley] (1908-1992), quintessentially-English actor, star of stage and screen
Morley
Publication details: 
Undated; on letterhead of 25 Burton Court S.W.3 [London].
£35.00
Morley

1p, 12mo. On grey paper. In fair condition, lightly aged and with slight creasing. Large firm signature. Presumably responding to a request for an autograph. Reads: ‘With my most abject apologies - but I have been away for three months / Robert Morley. See Image.

[Richard Attenborough [Lord Attenborough], British film actor and director.] Typed Letter Signed to Mr and Mrs Allchild, thanking them for their donation to the Actors’ Orphanage Fund.

Author: 
Richard Attenborough [Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough; Lord Attenborough] (1923-2014), British film actor, director and producer [The Actors’ Orphanage Fund, London]
Attenborough
Publication details: 
29 March 1956. On letterhead of the Actors’ Orphanage Fund, 32 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, W1.
£100.00
Attenborough

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 4to. In good condition, lightly aged and creased. Folded twice for postage. The letterhead is somewhat striking, with a band of green printed along the top, and the charity’s logo featuring prominently. The names of many officers and committe members are printed down the left-hand margin, headed by President Noel Coward, and including ‘Miss Gladys Cooper’, ‘Dame Edith Evans’, ‘Lady Du Maurier’, ‘Sir Laurence Olivier’, ‘Mr. Michael Redgrave’, ‘Mr. Jack Hawkins’ and ‘Mr. Kenneth More’. Attenborough features both as Hon.

[Sir Arthur Wing Pinero, leading late-Victorian and Edwardian playwright.] Autograph Letter Signed ('Arthur W. Pinero') to the daughter of the writer George Meredith, regretting that he cannot visit her and her father at Box Hill.

Author: 
Sir Arthur Wing Pinero (1855-1934), leading English late-Victorian and Edwardian playwright, after beginning as an actor in Sir Henry Irving’s company at the Lyceum Theatre, London [George Meredith]
Publication details: 
25 June 1891; on copperplate letterhead of 64 St John's Wood Road, London N.W.
£56.00

See his appreciative entry in the Oxford DNB, concluding with praise of his ‘undeniable’ achievements.2pp, 12mo. On bifolium. In good condition; folded once for postage, and with the blank reverse of the first leaf laid down on part of a leaf from the autograph album of the novelist George Meredith's daughter Marie Eveleen (‘Mariette’; 1871-1933), wife of Henry Parkman Sturgis (1847-1929), American-born banker and Liberal politician. Addressed to 'Miss Marie E. Meredith' and signed 'Arthur W. Pinero'. Begins: 'It is with a heavy heart that I tell you I am pledged, wit h Mrs.

[Sir John Gielgud, distinguished English actor.] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Mrs. Bannerman', thanking her for sending the 'enchanting' and costly flowers which she has packed 'so beautifully'.

Author: 
Sir John Gielgud [Arthur John Gielgud] (1904-2000), distinguished English actor
Publication details: 
13 May [no year - 1960s?]. On his letterhead, 16 Cowley Street, London, S.W.1.
£50.00

1p, small 4to. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn. Folded twice for postage. Written in a close hand, with a larger and more forceful signature, with long underlining: ‘John Gielgud.’ Reads: ‘Dear Mrs. Bannerman. / All my best thanks for the lovely lilies, which arrived fresh and safely. They are quite enchanting - and cost a small fortune if one buys them in a florists.

[Sir John Gielgud, distinguished English actor.] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Mrs. Doubleday', wife of the publisher.

Author: 
Sir John Gielgud [Arthur John Gielgud] (1904-2000), distinguished English actor [Florence Van Wyck Doubleday, wife of New York publisher Frank Nelson Doubleday]
Publication details: 
27 October [1936]. 59 East 56th Street, New York City.
£80.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. On grey paper. In good condition, lightly aged and worn. Folded once for postage. The year is given in pencil, and a note in the same hand identifies the recipient as ‘Mrs Florence Doubleday (wife of publisher) in Oyster Bay’. Ten lines of text, in a close hand, with larger, firm signature ‘John Gielgud.’ A somewhat pompous missive. He thanks her for giving him ‘so delightful an opportunity of meeting you, and to ask me to stay in your charming house and meet your friends, who were all so nice to me’.

[Samantha Eggar, Hollywood actress.] Autograph Letter Signed to Kenneth Sephton, arranging a meeting to discuss ‘Whos Who of Hollywood Britons’.

Author: 
Samantha Eggar [Victoria Louise Samantha Marie Elizabeth Therese Eggar] (b. 1939), British stage and screen actress, active in Hollywood
Publication details: 
22 February [1985]. On letterhead of the Old Vic, London.
£80.00

Written during the 1984-5 Old Vic production of Arthur Schnitzler’s ‘The Lonely Road’, in which Eggar starred opposite Anthony Hopkin, with a young Colin Firth. 2pp, 12mo. Good bold signature: ‘Sincerely / Samantha Eggar’. Addressed to 'Mr Sephton'. In good condition, lightly aged, folded for postage. She thanks him for his ‘inquiry as to whether I would be able to talk to you about “Whos Who of Hollywood Britons’, and gives the only date that is convenient. ‘The show comes down at 5.15 approx, maybe a call to the theatre to check would be wise’. From the papers of Kenneth Sephton.

[Margaret Leighton, English actress.] Autograph Letter Signed, thanking Kenneth Sephton for his letter concerning ‘Separate Tables’ and other work.

Author: 
Margaret Leighton (1922-1976), English actress
Publication details: 
29 March [1956]. St James’s Theatre [London].
£50.00

Leighton’s entry in the Oxford DNB explains that ‘In 1954 she began a long run (nearly four years in London and New York) as Anne Shankland and Sybil Railton-Bell in the double bill of Terence Rattigan's Separate Tables, co-starring with Eric Portman and winning a Tony award as best actress.’ 2pp, 4to. Addressed to ‘Dear Mr Sephton’, with good bold signature, ‘Margaret Leighton.’ In good condition, lightly aged, folded for postage.

[Gwen Watford, English actress.] Autograph Card Signed to [Kenneth] Sephton, standing up for Jeffrey Archer (in a London production of whose ?Beyond Reason Doubt? she is acting).

Author: 
Gwen Watford (Gwendoline Watford) (1927-1994), English actress on stage, screen and television [Jeffrey Archer]
Publication details: 
8 December 1988. No place.
£56.00

Watford?s obituaries noted her sensitive acting style, and ranked alongside Peggy Ashcroft. On both sides of a 14.5 x 10 cm card, with no printing but for the name ?GWEN WATFORD? in red at the head of recto. Addressed to ?Dear Mr Sephton? and with good firm signature ?Gwen Watford?. In good condition lightly aged. Twelves lines of neatly written text. She has ?just finished another mid-week matinee?, and is writing thank him for his ?most encouraging letter?, which she will ?treasure?.

[?A bright, particular star?: Evelyn Laye, English actress and singer.] Typed Letter Signed, with some manuscript text, informing Kenneth [Sephton] that she has planted the lucky shamrock he sent her.

Author: 
Evelyn Laye (1900-1996), English actress and singer, who began her career as one of George Edwardes' 'Gaiety Girls'
Publication details: 
25 November [1969]. From the Palace Theatre, London.
£45.00

In his entry on Laye in the Oxford DNB, Sheridan Morley describes her as a ?bright, particular star?. 1p, 12mo, on grey-blue paper with monogram of her initials printed at top left. The letter concerns the 1969-70 Palace Theatre production of ?Phil the Fluter?, in which she played Mrs Fitzmaurice. Addressed to ?Dear Kenneth? and with good firm signature ?Evelyn Laye?. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once for postage. She thanks him for the letter and ?the lovely Shamrock?, which she has planted ?in a little pot, as it was so very thoughtful of you to sentd it to me for Good Luck?.

[Bernard Braden, Canadian actor and broadcaster, married to Barbara Kelly.] Typed Letter Signed to Ken Sephton, with reminiscences inspired by his autobiography.

Author: 
Bernard Braden [Bernard Chastey Braden] (1916-1993), Canadian actor and broadcaster, married to Barbara Kelly (1924-2007)
Publication details: 
21 November 1990. On his letterhead, 5 Kidderpore Avenue, London, N.W.3.
£80.00

Braden features prominently in his wife?s entry in the Oxford DNB, where it is stated that he ?deserves recognition not only for his extreme versatility, but for his major contribution to broadcasting by pioneering consumer television?. The letter concerns Braden?s autobiography ?The Kindness of Strangers? (1990). 1p, 12mo. On grey paper. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded twice for postage. Twenty-five lines of text. Addressed to ?Dear Ken Sephton? and with good firm signature. ?Your letter made me feel very humble.

[?A bright, particular star?: Evelyn Laye, English actress and singer.] Autograph Letter Signed to Kenneth [Sephton], regarding a broadcast she has given.

Author: 
Evelyn Laye (1900-1996), English actress and singer, who began her career as one of George Edwardes' 'Gaiety Girls'
Publication details: 
Without date or place.
£45.00

In his entry on Laye in the Oxford DNB, Sheridan Morley describes her as a ?bright, particular star?. 1p, 16mo.Good firm signature. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once for postage. On the otherwise-blank reverse is Laye's monogram, with her initials. Reads: 'My dear Kenneth. / Thank you for your very sweet letter[.] I am so delighted you liked the broadcast[.] It brought back many happy memories to me & when I sat & listened to it all alone I must say I longed for the past. / Bless you. / Evelyn Laye.' From the papers of Kenneth Sephton.

[Sir Michael Redgrave, distinguished English actor.] Autograph Card Signed to ‘Christopher’ [the playwright Christopher Fry], belatedly congratulating him on the success of his play 'The Lark'.

Author: 
Sir Michael Redgrave [Sir Michael Scudamore] (1908-1985), English actor and head of theatrical family dynasty Christopher Fry [born Arthur Hammond Harris] (1907-2005), English playwright]
Redgrave
Publication details: 
16 June 1955; on his letterhead.
£50.00
Redgrave

See the two men’s entries in the Oxford DNB. In good condition. 11.5 x 9 cm card, without illustration. Printed in red at head: ‘MICHAEL REDGRAVE.’ The message concerns the London production of Fry’s ‘The Lark’ (a translation of Anouilh’s ‘L’Alouette’), which opened at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, on 11 May 1955. Redgrave would star in Fry’s next play, ‘Tiger at the Gates’ (a translation of Giraudoux’s ‘La guerre de Troie n'aura pas lieu’), which premiered in New York on 3 October 1955.

[Alastair Sims, much-loved Scottish character actor, star of the St Trinian’s films.] Typed Letter Signed to Adza Vincent, secretary to the playwright Christopher Fry, regarding ‘Christopher’s Bedford talk’.

Author: 
Alastair Sim [Alastair George Bell Sim] (1900-1976), much-loved Scottish character actor, star of the St Trinian’s films [Adza Vincent (1917-1995), secretary to playwright Christopher Fry]
Publication details: 
20 January 1956; on letterhead of Forrigan, Newnham Hill, near Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.
£50.00

A good firm signature, and not a common one. While hugely popular (see his entry in the Oxford DNB), Sims was an intensely private man, who refused to give autographs. 1p, landscape 12mo. In fair condition lightly aged and with slight rust spotting from paperclip; folded for postage. Reads: ‘Dear Adza Vincent, / My wife and I both thank you for sending Christopher’s Bedford talk. I have taken the liberty of typing a copy for own archives, and can now return the one you sent. / With renewed thanks, / Yours sincerely, / Alastair Sim’.

[Ben Webster [Benjamin Nottingham Webster], actor-manager who built the Adelphi.] Autograph Letter Signed, thanking Henry Spicer on behalf of the Dramatic College, Covent Garden, for a financial ‘Godsend’.

Author: 
Ben Webster [Benjamin Nottingham Webster] (1797-1882), actor-manager who built the Adelphi Theatre, London [Henry Spicer]
Publication details: 
‘New Theatre Royal Adelphi / Jany 19th 1860’.
£45.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. On a bifolium the blank second leaf of which is laid down on part of a leaf from an album. Folded twice for postage. The recipient is ‘Henry Spicer Esq’, presumably a relation of the artist of the same name (d.1804; see ODNB), several of whose theatrical portraits are in the Garrick Club collection.

[Tyrone Power I, celebrated Irish actor.] Seven items: two drafts of Typed Article on him for 'Everybody's' magazine by theatre historian W. Macqueen-Pope, with page proof of the same, and related correspondence and other items.

Author: 
Tyrone Power I [William Grattan Tyrone Power] (1797-1841), celebrated Irish actor, great-grandfather of the eponymous film star [W. Macqueen-Pope (1888-1960), theatre historian]
Publication details: 
Seven items, all dating from 1950. [‘Everybody’s’, magazine, 114 Fleet Street, London.]
£120.00

From the Macqueen-Pope papers. See his entry, and that of Power, in the Oxford DNB. The seven items are in good condition, lightly aged and worn. ONE: Typed article titled ‘The Other Tyrone Power / by / W. Macqueen-Pope.’ Undated. 11pp, 4to, paginated 1-9, with two-page ‘Inset’. With a few minor autograph emendations. Begins: ‘At the present moment, Mr Tyrone Power, “in person”, is appearing at the London Coliseum in a play called “Mr Roberts”.

[Michel Kovatchévitch [Kovatchevitch], Paris-based Slav actor and author.] Typed Letter Signed, in French [to English theatre historian W. Macqueen-Pope], requesting information for his book on the Anglo-American black actor Frederick Aldridge.

Author: 
Michel Kovatchévitch [Kovatchevitch] (1891-1961), Paris-based Slav actor and writer in French on the theatre [W. Macqueen-Pope, theatre historian; Ira Frederick Aldridge, Anglo-American black actor]
Publication details: 
4 May 1956; on his letterhead, 36 Rue de la Clef, Paris.
£120.00

From the Macqueen-Pope papers. (See his entry in the Oxford DNB.) 2pp, 4to. Signed ‘Michel Kovatchévitch’. On aged and worn paper. Folded twice for postage, with closed tears at edges of vertical fold, and nicks and creasing along one edge. He is working on a biography of Frederick Aldridge, ‘tragédien noir de langue anglaise (1807-1867)’, and asks for help in establishing the date of his debut, ‘dans le rôle d’Othello, au Royalty Theatre’.

[Gustavus Brooke, celebrated Irish actor.] Two drafts of Typed Article on ‘The Tragic Tragedian’ by theatre historian W. Macqueen-Pope, with carbon of letter to the editor of ‘Everybody’s’ magazine Greville Poke, and reply.

Author: 
Gustavus Brooke [Gustavus Vaughan Brooke] (1818-1866), celebrated Irish actor [W. Macqueen-Pope (1888-1960), theatre historian; 'Everybody's' magazine, London]
Publication details: 
Material all dating from 1950. [‘Everybody’s’, magazine, 114 Fleet Street, London.]
£180.00

From the Macqueen-Pope papers. See his entry, and that of Brooke, in the Oxford DNB. The five items are in good condition, lightly aged and worn. ONE: Carbon of Typed Article titled ‘London Was Unlucky to Him / The Story of Gustavus Brooke, The Tragic Tragedian’. 11pp, 4to, on eleven leaves. Begins: There is nothing so ephemeral as the art of the actor. Very very few of the names live on. Yet there are some, who in their day were of the first magnitude and are now forgotten, save for the delving historian.

[Sir Donald Wolfit, Shakespearian actor-manager.] Typed Letter Signed to W. J. Macqueen-Pope regarding the success of his Shakespeare tour; with carbon TL of MP’s reply, giving a synopsis of his planned play about Edmund Kean, with Wolfit to star.

Author: 
Sir Donald Wolfit [formerly Woolfitt] (1902-1968), English Shakespearian actor-manager; Walter James Macqueen-Pope (1888-1960), theatre historian [Edmund Kean (1787-1833), actor]
Publication details: 
Wolfit’s TLS: 25 February 1943; on letterhead of ‘Donald Wolfit / Shakespeare Tour’, with typed current address Wharfenden House, Frimley Green. Carbon TL of MP’s response, 26 February 1943.
£56.00

From the Macqueen-Pope papers. See the two men’s entries in the Oxford DNB. Ronald Harwood’s play and film ‘The Dresser’ are based on his experiences working in that position for Wolfit. From the Macqueen-Pope archive. The two items lightly aged and in fair condition, the first with a little rust spotting to one corner from a paperclip. In Item Two MP describes in detail his plans for a play about the nineteenth-century actor Edmund Kean, with Wolfit clearly envisaged in the leading role.

[Sir John Gielgud, distinguished English actor.] Typed Letter Signed to theatre historian W. J. Macqueen-Pope, regarding the press night of his RSC production at London's Phoenix Theatre of ‘Much Ado about Nothing’.

Author: 
Sir John Gielgud [Arthur John Gielgud] (1904-2000), distinguished English actor and theatre director, whose career spanned eight decades [Walter James Macqueen-Pope (1888-1960), theatre historian]
Publication details: 
12 January 1952; from the Phoenix Theatre, WC2 [London], on his letterhead.
£45.00

From the Macqueen-Pope papers. See the two men’s entries in the Oxford DNB. The present item relates to the 1952 RSC production of ‘Much Ado about Nothing’, directed by Gielgud and with him playing Benedick. 1p, landscape 8vo. Red-ink letterhead ‘JOHN GIELGUD’. Signed ‘John Gielgud’ and addressed to ‘Dear Popie’. In good condition, lightly aged and creased. Folded twice. He thanks him for his ‘good wishes and thought of me.

[Ernest Lauri, Australian actor and singer, ‘The Singing Anzac’.] Autograph Letter Signed [to theatre historian W. Macqueen-Pope], requesting tickets, as an Australian theatre correspondent, to the London production of South Pacific.

Author: 
Ernest Lauri (1891-1977), Australian actor and singer, ‘The Singing Anzac’ [Walter James Macqueen-Pope, English theatre historian]
Publication details: 
2 April 1952; from an hotel in Paris, on letterhead of ‘Ernest Lauri / (The Singing Anzac)’.
£80.00

From the Macqueen-Pope papers. (See his entry in the Oxford DNB.) 1p, 4to. Aged and creased, on discoloured high-acidity paper. Folded twice for postage, and with closed tear at head of vertical fold. Slight damage and rust staining from removal of staple. The letterhead incorporates two photographic portraits of Lauri, with press comment from ‘Everyone’s Magazine’ and career resume beginning: ‘Ernest Lauri / (The Singing Anzac) / STARRED IN AUSTRALIAN PICTURES / Versatile Vocalist and Monologist’. Macqueen-Pope is not named, but is presumably the recipient.

[Hutin Britton, Shakespearian actress.] Two Autograph Letters Signed to theatre historian, one written following the death of her husband, Canadian actor-manager Matheson Lang.

Author: 
Hutin Britton [Nellie Hutin Britton], English Shakespearian actress, wife of Canadian actor-manager Matheson Lang (1879-1948) [Walter James Macqueen-Pope (1888-1960), theatre historian]
Publication details: 
ONE: 28 April 1948; from the Marine Hotel, Hastings, Barbados, British West Indies. TWO: 15 October 1951; on letterhead of 11 Reddington Road, Hampstead, NW3 [London].
£60.00

From the Macqueen-Pope papers.. See his entry, and that of Matheson Lang, in the Oxford DNB. As the latter states, Britton and Lang had married in 1903 (she had been an actress with him in the Benson company since 1901). They toured together in Lang’s company, with Britton usually as his leading lady. ‘In 1914 they helped to inaugurate Shakespeare productions at the Old Vic under Lilian Baylis, for which Lang personally lent costumes and scenery.’ Britton was for many years a member of the Old Vic's governing board. Both items are signed ‘N. Matheson Lang’. ONE: ALS, 28 April 1948.

[Matheson Lang, London-based Canadian Shakespearian actor.] Autograph Letter Signed to W. J. Macqueen-Pope, containing reminiscences of his early London career at the St James’s Theatre, written in response to MP’s book ‘Carriages at Eleven’.

Author: 
Matheson Lang [Alexander Matheson Lang] (1879-1948), Canadian actor-manager based in London [Walter James Macqueen-Pope (1888-1960), theatre historian]
Publication details: 
10 December 1947; ‘c/o Canadian Bank of Commerce / Bridgetown / Barbados / B. West Indies’.
£50.00

From the Macqueen-Pope papers. See the two men’s entries in the Oxford DNB. Air Mail letter, 2pp, 4to, written within a few months of his death. With large signature ‘Matheson Lang’, and addressed to ‘My dear Pope’. Lightly-aged and worn, with slight damage from removal of postage stamp. Thirty-three lines of text, neatly-written and complete.

[‘I am persuaded you have talent for Farce writing’: ‘Henry Compton’ (Charles Mackenzie), actor noted for his Shakespearian comic roles.] Autograph Letter Signed to J. Hollingshead, giving his ‘honest opinion’ of the farce he has sent him.

Author: 
‘Henry Compton’ [stage name of Charles Mackenzie (1805-1877)], English actor noted for his Shakespearian comic roles [John Hollingshead (1827-1904), manager of Alhambra and Gaiety theatres in London]
Publication details: 
‘16 Charing X [i.e. Charing Cross, London.] / April 3rd 1854’.
£100.00

See the two men’s entries in the Oxford DNB. An interesting letter, linking two significant figures in the London theatre. Around the time of writing Hollingshead had given up his career in the clothing business to write full time, early on for Dickens at ‘Household Words’, then later for Thackeray at the ‘Cornhill’. The farce that is the subject of the present letter is possibly ‘Birth Place of Podgers’, the only one known to have been published by Hollingshead, a New York edition of which appeared around 1858. 2pp, 16mo.

[Noah Beery Sr [Noah Nicholas Beery], American movie star beginning in the silent era.] Signed Autograph Inscription, with ‘stamp’ bearing his portrait.

Author: 
Noah Beery Sr [Noah Nicholas Beery] (1882-1946), American movie actor who appeared in films from 1913 and 1946, older brother of Wallace Beery and father of Noah Beery Jr
Publication details: 
Christmas [1936].
£35.00

Clearly produced for an autograph collector. On one side of a 12.5 x 8.5 cm cream card. In good condition, lightly aged. The inscription reads: ‘For Janis / Merry Xmas to you / Sincerely / Noah Beery’. Affixed in the top right-hand corner, partially covering the word ‘you’ in the inscription, is a black and white stamp, with photographic portrait captioned at foot ‘NOAH BEERY’. Dated in pencil at bottom-right ‘Dec 1936’.

[W. H. Berry (William Henry Berry), English comic actor and BBC broadcaster.] Two long Autograph Letters Signed to theatre historian W. J. Macqueen-Pope, full of reminiscence.

Author: 
W. H. Berry [William Henry Berry] (1870-1951), English comic stage actor associated with George Grossmith and George Edwardes, and BBC broadcaster [W. J. Macqueen-Pope, theatre historian]
Publication details: 
30 December 1947; on letterhead of Poplar Cottage, Beltinge Cliffs, Herne Bay. 6 March 1948; from Poplar Cottage.
£180.00

Berry was hugely popular during the Edwardian period and into the First World War. His greatest success was as ‘Mr Meebles’ in ‘The Boy’ (1917). See the recipient’s entry in the Oxford DNB. Both letters signed ‘W. H. Berry’, and the second with long postscript on separate 12mo leaf signed ‘W. H. B’. In fair condition, aged and worn. ONE: 30 December 1947. 4pp, 4to. ‘This letter will be quite a “rat-tat from the past” (as Geo. Graves used to say), & its many a long year since I last saw you - & much has happened since “those were the days” & carriages were at 11.

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