eMoviePoster.com

What are the objects in the corners of some images? Learn More

Orson Welles was born George Orson Welles in Kenosha, Wisconsin in 1915. In 1936, John Houseman was running the Federal Theatre Project (which was part of the WPA) and he hired Welles to direct an all-black version of Macbeth. It was a major success, and at one point the lead actor became sick, and Welles played the role for him in blackface! In 1937 Welles and Houseman formed the Mercury Theatre, and their first production was a modern stage version of Julius Caesar, set in Fascist Italy! Welles then took the Mercury Theatre on the radio, where he was the director, producer and star of most of the shows. In 1938, Welles had his radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells (which many people thought was real, due to its pseudo-documentary format) and it caused real panic and made Welles a national celebrity. That got Hollywood's interest, and RKO signed him to a two film contract, giving this 24 year old who had never made a movie complete control, including final cut! His first movie was Citizen Kane (nominated for the Best Actor Academy Award for this film), and while the movie is today considered a masterpiece on all levels, it was only moderately successful on its first release, in strong part due to Hearst's newspapers' boycott of the movie (due to the movie Kane bearing a strong resemblance to Hearst). Welles' second film for RKO was The Magnificent Ambersons. RKO took away Welles' right to final cut, and after the movie was shot, Welles went to South America to work on another movie, and while he was gone RKO re-cut Ambersons with an awful "happy ending", and released it that way. The movie did not do well, and no studio wanted Welles as a director. He took many acting roles, and after he married Rita Hayworth, he appeared in The Lady from Shanghai with her. He also stood out in Jane Eyre, Macbeth (which he also directed), and The Third Man. He worked steadily as an actor and his distinctive voice was in much demand as a narrator. He gained much weight over the years, and was very memorable in Touch of Evil in 1958, and as Cardinal Wolsey in A Man for All Seasons in 1966. He passed away in 1985 at the age of 70. Orson Welles accomplished a staggering amount in his career, but one wonders how much more he might have accomplished had the world fully recognized his genius back at the beginning of the 1940s!

Important Added Info: Note that this auction is for two letters. One has been personally autographed (signed) by Orson Welles, and it is on his Mercury Theatre stationery, and was sent on August 16, 1940. The second letter is to the man that the first letter was sent to, Frederick Garner, and it was sent many years later from Peter Noble, a producer who had asked, in a newspaper story in the Chicago Daily News, if anyone had stories about Orson Welles when he was young, and Mr. Garner wrote to him, and enclosed the Orson Welles letter with his letter to Mr. Noble! Mr. Noble returned the letter to Mr. Garner, saying "You will obviously wish to keep it". The letter from Orson Welles to Mr. Garner thanks him for his "charming letter" and mentions that Mr. Welles envies his "living in Grand Detour [Illinois], because to me, it's the most delightful town in America". Mr. Welles had a VERY troubled childhood (including having his mother die when he was just 9, and having his formerly rich father lose all his money), and he briefly lived with his alcoholic father in Grand Detour, Illinois, and he obviously had very fond memories of his time there, which caused him to call it "the most delightful town in America", and perhaps, in a way, it was his "Rosebud" (a representation of a time in his life when he was truly happy)! What a wonderful letter, and it has a great story behind it, and the second letter, which sheds much light on the Welles signed letter! Our consignor is a longtime collector who purchased this pair of letters from a reputable dealer, and while he does not have a "certificate of authenticity", we are certain both letters and the signatures are authentic.

As is true of all the signed items we are currently auctioning, we give every buyer 30 days in which to review what they purchased and they can return any item as long as it is within 30 days of the end of the auction. On non-signed items, we give a "lifetime guarantee" on everything we auction, but on signed items, we give the above modified guarantee of 30 days after the auction closes.

Our address for UPS or FedEx only is:
Bruce Hershenson,
306 Washington Avenue, West Plains, MO 65775