TENNESSEE ERNIE FORD - AUTOGRAPH NOTE SIGNED CIRCA 1978 - HFSID 270470

TENNESSEE ERNIE FORD
ANS: "Ernie", 1 page, 4x4½. New York City, 1978 Feburary 14. On inside of folded card to comedienne and actress Phyllis Diller. Begins: "Phy". In full: "How can I thank you - You are the first to know that I am Jewish". Handwritten postscript: "Shalom - Y'all". On front, ink notes (unknown hand): "Tennessee/Ernie/Ford/At 21 Club/NYC/Feb. 14-78". The booming baritone voice of TENNESSEE ERNIE FORD (1919-1991) was best known for his 1955 recording of "Sixteen Tons", which topped both the country and the pop music charts. Over his long career, Ford sang everything from rock 'n roll to gospel, recorded over 100 albums and earned numerous honors and awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He won the 1961 Grammy Award for Best Sacred/Inspirational/Religious album (Great Gospel Songs). Ford is still seen on TV in reruns of I Love Lucy in his role of Cousin Ernie in three memorable 1954-1955 episodes. 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 and soiled, else fine condition.