Gertrude Lawrence 1952 Signed Letter to Edith Gresham + Lawrence’s Autobiography

Description

Gertrude Lawrence 1952 Signed Letter to actress Edith Gresham + Lawrence’s Autobiography
Letter dated May 13, 1952 - written just four months before her death, the letter mentions Lawrence’s illnesses and that Celeste Holm would replace her in “The King and I”, her leading role on Broadway.  Written to acting royalty Edith Gresham, granddaughter of John Thompson Ford of the Ford Theatres.
Letter accompanied by Lawrence’s autobiography “A Star Danced”, 1945, first edition Doubleday, Doran & Co. 238 pages, fair condition with fragmentary dust jacket. See images.
Gertrude Lawrence (June 4, 1898 - September 6, 1952) was an actress and musical performer in the 1930s and 1940s, appearing on stage in London and on Broadway, and in several films. She is particularly associated with the light comedy of Noel Coward.
Born Gertrude Alexandria Dagmar Lawrence-Klasen, of English and Danish extraction, in London, England, and was a professional performer by the age of ten. She understudied in the London revues in the 1920s and in 1921, in the revue "A to Z", she co-introduced the "Limehouse Blues". She achieved stardom when the revues were brought to Broadway in 1924 and 1926. She was one of the foremost comediennes of her day, capable of playing both slapstick clowns and elegant ladies. Her great charisma is attested to by those who saw her on stage.
She was married twice but was active romantically outside and with both genders. In addition to an affair with film star Douglas Fairbanks Jr., she also had lesbian affairs, including a much-rumoured relationship with the British novelist Daphne du Maurier, and apparently with Beatrice Lillie who, when referring to Lawrence, said: "I knew her better than her husband". Passionate letters written between Lawrence and Du Maurier were published in a 1993 biography of Du Maurier, who long outlasted her one-time love interest. Lawrence also appears to have had a much earlier affair with du Maurier's own father, Sir Gerald du Maurier; in fact, Daphne du Maurier referred to Lawrence as "the last of Daddy's actress loves".
Lawrence's onstage persona inspired composers and writers. George and Ira Gershwin wrote the play Oh, Kay! for her, with the well-loved song "Someone to Watch Over Me". She was the first British actress to have a lead role on Broadway. Cole Porter wrote Nymph Errant for her to star in 1933. Noel Coward wrote Private Lives and Tonight at 8:30 (a cycle of nine one-act musicals and plays) for her. She starred as Liza Elliot in Moss Hart, Kurt Weill, and Ira Gershwin's psychoanalytical musical Lady in the Dark (played in the film version by Ginger Rogers), and was a popular entertainer of the troops in World War II.
In 1946 Lawrence saw the film version of the book Anna and the King of Siam, which she decided would make a perfect musical. She persuaded the American team of Rodgers and Hammerstein to write it for her. The result was The King and I, which introduced such memorable songs as: "Hello Young Lovers", "Getting to Know You", and "Shall We Dance".
The King and I opened on Broadway in 1951, with Lawrence in the role of Anna, and was her greatest success. Also that year she received the first of many prestigious "Woman of the Year" awards from Harvard University's famed performance troup, the Hasty Pudding Theatricals. In 1952, she won the Tony Award for Best Actress for her role as Anna Leonowens. Sadly, it was also her last.
Lawrence died of liver cancer, which caused her to suffer jaundice, at the age of only 54, and she was buried in her pink "Shall We Dance?" gown from the second act of The King and I, in Lakeview Cemetery, in Upton, Massachusetts.
Edith Gresham
Edith Gresham was born on September 28, 1897 in Mount Vernon, New York, USA as Edith Ford Gresham. She was a stage actress from 1919, with major roles in Oklahoma! among many others and later film work known for 39 East (1920) and Birth of a Baby (1938). She died on December 31, 1976 in Riverdale, The Bronx, New York.
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