JOHN RAITT - COLLECTION 09/10/1986 WITH PEARL BAILEY - HFSID 298500

JOHN RAITT and PEARL BAILEY
Secretarially signed transmittal letter from Bailey, declining to sign an original pencil portrait because it makes her look unhappy. Artist John Raitt has signed the artwork
Collection including: 1) Original Art signed: "JRaitt", 5½x8½ pencil portrait of Bailey. Two horizontal folds. Otherwise, fine condition. 2) Typed Letter Secretarially signed: "Pearl/(by dw). Lake Havasu City, Arizona, 1986 September 10. On letterhead of P. B. Production Corp. to [John] Raitt, in full: "I'd rather not autograph the sketch, as I feel it doesn't look happy at all - and I think I'm happier than that (smiles). Take care of yourself and trust Him. All love". Two horizontal folds. Otherwise, fine condition. PEARL BAILEY (1918-1990), a jazz singer and Broadway star, made her Broadway debut in 1946, in the musical St. Louis Woman; her performance resulted in an award for most promising newcomer. She won a special Tony Award in 1968. She earned plaudits when she took over the Broadway title role in Hello, Dolly! (1967). She appeared in numerous films, including Carmen Jones, St. Louis Blues, and Porgy and Bess. She is perhaps best known for her sultry jazz renditions, having both started and ended her career in nightclubs. Her early days were spent singing in cafes, theaters, and nightclubs in the Northeast, with an occasional stint as a singer with a big band, such as Count Basie's orchestra. In the 1960s, she returned to nightclub singing, and appeared frequently on television; one of her most notable appearances was on the 1966 special Carol Channing and Pearl Bailey on Broadway.Bailey was named to the U.S. delegation to the United Nations in 1976, and awarded the Medal of Freedom in 1988. JOHN RAITT began sketching celebrities while a college student in the 1930s. He sent these pencil portraits to the subjects, requesting that they be autographed and returned.