MERVYN LEROY - COLLECTION WITH JAMES "JIMMY" STEWART, J. EDGAR HOOVER - HFSID 293844

THE FBI STORY: J. EDGAR HOOVER, JAMES STEWART and MERVYN LeROY
Stewart's contract to appear in the movie, accompanied by a letter from the Bureau's Director thanking Stewart for a visit during filming. Hoover had personally selected Stewart for the role, and was deeply involved in the making of the movie. Also included is an autograph by director Mervyn LeRoy and two stills from the movie, one of them signed by Stewart!
Collection comprised of: 1) Contract signed: "James Stewart", 36 pages, 8½x13. No place, 1958 May 6. Signed on page 27. Warner Bros. hires Stewart to play the role of "Chip Hardesty" in a photoplay entitled The FBI Story, with filming to begin in June 1958. Filing holes at top edge. Staple at top left corner. Edges worn and creased. Corners creased. Otherwise, fine condition. 2) Typed Letter signed: "J. Edgar Hoover", 1 page, 7x9½. Washington, D.C., 1958 August 27. On FBI Letterhead to James Stewart, Beverly Hills, California. In full: "I very much enjoyed seeing you at the Wilshire Country Club party last evening and appreciated your stopping in on your way to the studio for night shooting. This was doubly appreciated since I know what a tight schedule you have while the picture is in the making. With kindest personal regards and best wishes, Sincerely". Filing holes at top edge. Multiple mailing folds. Ink note (unknown hand) at top right edge. Otherwise, fine condition. 3) Photograph signed: "James Stewart". B/w, 10x8. Captioned movie still from The FBI Story, showing Stewart in a dramatic scene from the film. Lightly creased. Lightly bowed. Top right corner worn. Otherwise, fine condition. 4) Photograph, unsigned. B/w, 10x8. Another captioned movie still from The FBI Story, showing Stewart with Vera Miles, preparing to drive away after their wedding, and being congratulated by his partner, played by Murray Hamilton. Fine condition. 5) Signature: "Mervyn Leroy", 7¼x10½. The producer and director ofThe FBI Story signs his autograph on letterhead of Mervyn LeRoy Productions, Los Angeles, California. JAMES STEWART (1908-1997) starred in more recognized masterpieces of the American cinema than any other actor. In 1940, he won the Best Actor Academy Award for The Philadelphia Story,and he was nominated for Oscars in the same category for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), It's A Wonderful Life (1946), Harvey (1950) and Anatomy of a Murder (1959). Stewart, who was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 1984, also appeared in You Can't Take It With You (1938), Destry Rides Again (1939), The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), Rear Window (1954), The Spirit of St. Louis (1957), Vertigo (1958) and a long list of other features. J. EDGAR HOOVER (1895-1972) served as the first Director of the FBI from 1924 until his death in 1972. During his 48-year term, he restored order to the department and established the world's largest fingerprint file and the FBI Academy. The FBI fought organized crime in the Prohibition era. Under his direction, the FBI also infiltrated the American Communist Party, the Ku Klux Klanand other subversive organizations. It also conducted counterintelligence during WWII and the Cold War. By the 1970s, Hoover came under frequent public criticism for his authoritarian administration, but his power was so great that no President dared to remove him. Hoover made the FBI one of the world's most effective law enforcement agencies. He established its vast fingerprint file, crime laboratory and training academy. Hoover was intimately involved in the production of The FBI Story. He personally selected Stewart for the lead role, demanded the re-shooting of scenes he considered unsuitable to the Bureau's image, and assigned two agents to observe director Mervyn LeRoy during production. MERVYN LeROY (1900-1987) produced and directed The FBI Story. He was an assistant cameraman, gag writer and actor before co-scripting the successful 1926 film Ella Cinders and directing No Place to Go in 1927. Films he directed include Little Caesar (1930), I am a Figutive from a Chain Gang (1932) and Anthony Adverse (1936). In 1939, LeRoy produced The Wizard of Oz. In 1945, he won a special Academy Award for a short film that he directed, The House I Live In, starring Frank Sinatra, and received the Irving Thalberg Life Achievement Award in 1975. Five items.