Autograph Letter to Polly Bergen Signed by Marge and Gower Champion
[circa 1958]. Autograph Letter to Polly Bergen Signed by Marge and Gower Champion, [circa 1958]
4 x 5 inch (folded) stationery notecard
Moderate spotting and foxing, still about Very Good
A warm, heartfelt fan letter from one celebrated singer/actress (and her famous husband) to another.
Marjorie Celeste (Marge) Champion (1919-2020) had a long and celebrated career. She made her debut at the age of 11 in the ballet "Carnival in Venice" at the Hollywood Bowl and by 12 she was a ballet instructor at her father's studio. She was hired by the Walt Disney Studio as a dance model for the animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937 and later modeled for characters in Pinocchio, Fantasia and other Disney films. She married noted theater director, dancer and choreographer Gower Champion, and the two performed together as a dance team in countless musicals through the 1940s and ‘50s. She also appeared in several films and Broadway shows. In 1957, the Champions had their own TV series, The Marge and Gower Champion Show. Marge has earned an Emmy and the Disney Legends Award, and in 2013 she received the Douglas Watt Lifetime Achievement Award at the Fred and Adele Astaire Awards ceremonies. Gower directed a number of Broadway hits, most notably Bye Bye Birdie and Hello Dolly, and won eight Tony awards. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The letter reads in full: Dear Polly -
We can’t remember ever being impelled enough by a performance to feel the absolute necessity of writing a fan letter. But you did it! Your Helen Morgan had us - and our friends - right on our ears. You’ve accomplished the impossible, created a person - a mood and a program which even the commercials couldn’t dim or destroy - a performance which held us completely for the full 90 minutes! Bravo!
You are a truly fine actress in the great tradition of singing actresses. Much good luck to you.
Marge and Gower
Polly Bergen (1930-2014) won an Emmy Award in 1958 for her performance as Helen Morgan in Helen Morgan (Playhouse 90). She was nominated for a Tony for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance as Carlotta Campion in Follies in 2001. Her film work included Cape Fear (1962) and The Caretakers (1963), for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe. She hosted her own weekly variety show for a season, The Polly Bergen Show, was a regular panelist on the TV game show To Tell the Truth, and later in life had roles on The Sopranos and Desperate Housewives. She is said to be the inspiration behind Mother Goose in The Land of Stories, and she also wrote three books on beauty, fashion, and charm.
A fantastic fan letter, handwritten and signed, to and from noted performers of the 1950s and beyond. Item #1865
Price: $60.00