RONALD COLMAN - TYPED LETTER SIGNED - HFSID 146705

RONALD COLMAN. TLS: "Ronald Colman", 1p, 8½x11. Los Angeles, Calif., no date, but circa 1925. On Samuel Goldwyn letterhead to "Dear friend". In full: "I am deeply grateful for your appreciation of my efforts and it is indeed a pleasure to send you the enclosed photograph. I sincerely hope you will enjoy the next two pictures in which I appear. One is 'The Dark Angel', a George Fitzmaurice production sponsored by Samuel Goldwyn, which will reach your theatre some time this fall or early winter. In this production I appear opposite Vilma Banky, Mr. Samuel Goldwyn's sensational Hungarian discovery. This cast also includes such notable players as Wyndham Standing, Frank Elliott, Helen Jerome Eddy, Florence Turner and Charles Lane. The story of 'The Dark Angel', has rustic modern England as its background during the period following the great war. The picture abounds in beauty, romance and thrills. It is a released by First National. The other picture is Samuel Goldwyn's screen version of 'Stella Dallas', the startling novel by Olive Higgins Prouty and was directed by Henry King. It is a modern drama of American Life. The cast of notable players includes Belle Bennett, Alice Joyce, Jean Hersholt, Lois Moran, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., and others. 'Stella Dallas' is highly dramatic and I feel that you will enjoy it. This picture will be distributed by United Artists. If you see either of these productions, won't you write me your opinion of them? Thanking you in advance". Photograph not present. English actor RONALD COLMAN (1891-1958) began his film career in silents, mainly costume epics, of the late 1920s, but achieved greater fame when talkies featured his fine voice in such films as Bulldog Drummond (1929), A Tale of Two Cities (1935) and Lost Horizon (1937). After three prior nominations, he earned a Best Actor Oscar for A Double Life (1947). Both of the films mentioned in this letter are silents. In The Dark Angel, released in 1925, Colman starred as Captain Alan Trent, who is blinded on the battlefield during WWI. VILMA BANKY, whose role as Kitty Vane made her a star overnight, had been discovered in Europe by SAMUEL GOLDWYN, who remade the film as a talkie in 1935,with Merle Oberon as Kitty and Frederic March as Trent. Stella Dallas, also released as a silent in 1925, was one of the silent era's most popular tearjerkers. The film starred Colman as upper class Stephen Dallas and BELLE BENNETT as small town girl Stella Dallas, who leaves her husband after the birth of their daughter, Laurel (played by LOIS MORAN). This film was also later remade, the most popular version being King Vidor's classic in 1937, which starred Barbara Stanwyck in the title role. Lightly creased. Tack hole and rust stain at upper blank margin, tack rust stain and tackhead-size hole at lower blank margin. Slightly soiled on verso and at blank margins. Overall, fine condition.