DOROTHY (MRS. ROBERT MITCHUM) MITCHUM - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 10/23/1980 - HFSID 270450

DOROTHY MITCHUM (MRS. ROBERT MITCHUM)
TLS: "With affection,/Dorothy", 1 page, 5¾x7¾. Montecito, California, 1980 October 23. On her personal imprinted stationery to comedienne and actress Phyllis Diller. Begins: "Dear Phyllis". In full: "So many enjoyable cards and messages from you, yet we never see you!! I know you don't know my daughter, but as Barnsie is coming out for the reception, I thought it would be a good time to have a drink together. Hope you are available." DOROTHY SPENCE had married actor ROBERT MITCHUM on March 15, 1940. The couple, who were married until his death on July 1, 1997, had three children: sons James (born in 1941) and Christopher (born in 1943), who both became actors, and daughter Petrine ("Trini") (born in 1954), who appeared in one film. Dorothy also appeared in one film, 1949's The Big Steal, which starred her husband. Comedienne PHYLLIS DILLER (1917-2012), known for her outrageous appearance, zany outfits, distinctive laugh and a stand-up act that featured frequent references to her fictional husband, "Fang", and zingers about her sex appeal and numerous plastic surgeries, got her big break in March 1955 (at age 37), when she debuted at San Francisco's Purple Onion club. A subsequent appearance on The Tonight Show hosted by Jack Paar launched her national career, which got a big boost after Bob Hope saw Diller in a Washington, D.C. club. A favorite of the comedian, Diller would appear in three of Hope's films and 23 of his TV specials. Diller, who recorded her first comedy record album in 1959, took her groundbreaking "funny hausfrau" act to nightclubs and television variety shows and specials and she also appeared on the big screen. Her feature film credits include Splendor in the Grass (1961), The Fat Spy (1966), Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number! (1966), The Sunshine Boys (1975) and The Silence of the Hams (1994), and she provided the voice of the Queen in A Bug's Life (1998). By 2000, the comedienne, who had trained as a concert pianist before her marriage (1939-1965) to Sherwood Anderson Diller, had appeared as a piano soloist with 100 symphony orchestras across the U.S. Despite retiring from nightclub/stage tours in May 2002 at the age of 84, Diller continued to make films (Motorcross Kids, 2004; Forget About It, 2005) and occasionally appear on TV programs, including two episodes of 7th Heaven (2002, 2003) and a guest shot on The Wayne Brady Show (2004). Lightly creased with folds, horizontal fold at two words of writing and flourish of the "t", which is also touched by a diagonal crease. Ink transference from letter being folded before ink was dry (all words legible). Overall, fine condition.