STEVE LAWRENCE - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 06/13/1979 - HFSID 270318

STEVE LAWRENCE


The actor sends and signs a typed letter to Phyllis Diller declining an invitation to a Fashion Show


Typed Letter Signed: "Steve" in black felt tip, 1 page, 7¼x10½. Beverly Hills, California, 1979 June 13. On stationery imprinted with his name to comedienne and actress Phyllis Diller, Los Angeles, California. Begins: "Dear Phyllis". In full: "We came home and found your invitation to the Fashion Show you are holding at your home on June 27th. As you know, we will be in Singapore by that time and won't be able to make it. Just want you to know how much we enjoyed working with you. Hope we get to do it again soon. Warmest regards". With original typed, stamped mailing envelope. In the year he signed this letter, Lawrence appeared in the made-for-TV movie, Express to Terror. Singer and actor STEVE LAWRENCE (1935-2024), has been married to singer EYDIE GORMÉ since December 29, 1957. The couple, who met while Steve was a regular on Steve Allen's Tonight! Show, has appeared together in nightclubs and on television. Lawrence, who began recording when he was 16 years of age, had a No. 1 hit in 1963 with "Go Away, Little Girl", was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical in 1964 for his performance in What Makes Sammy Run?  His television credits include two of his own series, The Steve Lawrence-Eydie Gormé Show (1958) and The Steve Lawrence Show (1965), frequent performances in skits on The Carol Burnett Show, guest hosting The Tonight Show (1962), and guest appearances on TV variety shows, games shows and series. Lawrence has also been seen in several feature films, including The Blues Brothers (1980), The Blues Brothers 2000 (1998) and Ocean's 11 (2001). 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, lower horizontal fold nicks the upper portions of the "St". Light paperclip impression and rust stain at upper margin. Fine condition.