EUBIE BLAKE - TYPESCRIPT SIGNED - HFSID 5733

EUBIE BLAKE
Signed 11-line copy of I'm Just Wild About Harry, the composer's show tune from the 1921 musical Shuffle Along. This copy of lyrics was modified for Harry Truman's successful 1948 presidential campaign.
Typescript signed: "Love/Eubie Blake", 1 page, 8½x11. 11 lines of his 1921 song from Shuffle Along: I'm Just Wild About Harry. Revised with Blake's lyrics for Harry Truman's 1948 presidential campaign. In full: "I'm just wild about Har-ry/And Har-ry's wild about me./The fates de-creed it,/We con-cede it,/Har-ry made his to-ry./F.D.R. had his New Deal,/And Truman now will fol-low through/My coun-try's wild a-bout Har-ry/And Har-ry's wild about,/Can-not do with-out/Both me (sic) coun-try and me." The son of former slaves, Eubie Blake (1887-1983, born James Hubert Blake in Baltimore, Maryland) worked closely with musician Noble Sissle throughout his career. Together they helped create the Broadway show Shuffle Along (1921), whose cast included Josephine Baker and Paul Robeson. Many of Blake's most famous songs came from Shuffle Along, including I'm Just Wild about Harry and Love Will Find a Way. Blake died five days after his 96th birthday. Although he claimed to be born in 1883 late in life, multiple government documents agree he was born in 1887. Eubie Blake will be remembered as one of the first African-American Broadway directors and a famed ragtime and jazz pianist. In 1978, the musical Eubie! reminded audiences of the composer's music from the 1920s, becoming a Broadway hit. Encapsulated in Mylar. Lightly toned and creased. Otherwise, fine condition.