Gershwin, George

Estimate

6,000 - 8,000 USD

bidding is closed

Description

paper

Autograph postcard signed ("George G."), (3/3/8 x 5 3/8 in.; 87 x 137 mm), Tijuana, Mexico, [after 14 October 1930], to Miss Ethel Merman at the Alvin Theatre; faint, illegible postmark; some smudging of address section of postcard.

Literature

Edward Jablonski Gershwin: A Biography. New York, 1987, p. 202.

Catalogue Note

Gershwin to Merman. Girl Crazy opened on 14 October 1930 and converted the Alvin Theatre box office into a gold mine. Ethel Merman made her Broadway debut in the supporting role of Kate, the long-suffering wife of the not very sharp gambler, Slick, played by William Kent. Girl Crazy remains one of the most inspired scores of the Gershwin brothers. Indeed, the score includes the classic, "I Got Rhythm," which Merman introduced and which thrust her to instant stardom. As Ira Gershwin wrote: "Although this young woman was appearing for the first time on any stage, her assurance, timing and delivery both as a comedienne and singer—with a no-nonsense voice that could reach not only standees but ticket-takers in the lobby . . . [which] convinced the opening-night audience that it was witnessing the discovery of a new star."

No doubt George Gershwin penned the present postcard not long after the overwhelmingly successful opening of GirlCrazy on 14 October 1930.The recto of the postcard has an image of the casino in Tijuana. On the verso, Gershwin writes: "Dear Ethel—Down here gambling away all my royalties but loving it just the same. Thanking of you & your success & wondering how you are. All the best to you. George G."