Age: 1950s
Size: H. 11.5x W. 10.5x D. 2.5"
Weight: 5.2lbs
Maker: Richard Madigan
Frame/Mat Size: 8.5x11.0"
Frame Description: Vernon Royal Line 3-ring Binder
Provenance: Putnam County Estate
Description: This collection holds dozens of signed or autographed documents and photos from comedians, magicians, aviators, and politicians from 1953-55. Also contained within is a letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Dudley Warner, and a letter from Warren G. Harding to Russel. Most of these letters document the conversations held between various political figures - primarily congressmen and governors - with a young man destined for college as he asked them advice for a future career in politics himself. The photographs feature the man's interests, including comedians, actors, and other entertainers. There are, however, some signed photographs of such important figures as Groucho Marx and Walt Disney, autographed.
Condition: The photos and letters have been preserved behind plastic protectors and stored within a three ring, Vernon Royal Line binder. Some letters show some slight discoloration along the border closest the opening of the plastic sheathing.
History: 1954, where these signatures and autographs are primarily from, was an important time in the United States as the Korean War had just ended and the Cold War was still in full swing. It was a lively time for politics as the constant threat of Communism overtaking the nation was dwarfed only by the fear of a nuclear strike on U.S. soil.