THOMAS DIXON JR. - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 01/08/1932 - HFSID 31846

THOMAS DIXON
Thomas Dixon signed this letter, typed on his personalized stationery, in 1932. It was sent to gossip columnist Louis Sobol about Dixon's "forthcoming book" The Inside Story of the Harding Tragedy, published the year that this letter was typed. Accompanied by Sobol's typed response.
Typed letter signed "Thomas Dixon." 1 page, 7¼x10½, on Dixon's personalized stationery. Jan. 8. 1932. In full: "Dear Mr. Sobol: I've read your reference to our forth coming book with interest. 'ould [sic] you allow me to see the cancelled checks to which you refer ? Also would like to talk to the member of the 'Orchestra' who spoke to President Harding in the little green house on K street.Would this be possible ? Sincerely, Thomas Dixon". Lightly toned, soiled and creased. Signature has bled slightly but is legible. Paper clip impression and rust stains in top left corner. Folded twice and unfolded. Otherwise in fine condition. Accompanied by: Unsiged typed letter from Louis Sobol. 1 page, 8¼x11. Jan. 9, 1932. Addressed to Mr. Thomas Dixon, New York City. In full: My dear Mr. Dixon: In writing the paragraph I stated 'cancelled checks'. I should have said photostatic copies of the original checks signed by Mr. McLean who paid for each of those parties. The orchestra is one of the most prominent in the country and I'd first have to speak to the leader because I'd by no means want to jeopardize his organization. The fact that the talked might, it appears to me, ruin the possibility of his obtaining engagements, particularly in Washington where his outfit is extremely popular. I can tell you this however too. It was after one of those 'green house' parties that Mr. Harding sailed on the Mayflower for the Panama Canal and this orchestra accompanied the party. It's possible that the leader to whom I refer may be perfectly willing to talk to you, in which event I shall communicate with you. Very truly yours, Louis Sobol". Lightly toned and creased. Small pieces missing from bottom and top right corners. Light tears in right edge. Random ink stains. Otherwise in fine condition. "Our forth coming" book is probably The Inside Story of the Harding Tragedy, on the assassination of President Warren G. Harding. Dixon wrote the book with Harding's daughter, Harry M. Daugherty, Harding's campaign manager, and published it in 1932, the year that this letter was typed. New York journalist LOUIS SOBOL (1896-1986) wrote a gossip-oriented entertainment column for 40 years, initially focused on the Broadway stage but also covering film and TV personalities for the New York Journal American. THOMAS DIXON (1864-1946), born Thomas F. Dixon, Jr., was a lecturer and Baptist preacher, but is probably best known for his novel The Clansman (1905), which is infamous for its sympathetic treatment of the Ku Klux Klan and which was the basis of D. W. Griffith's landmark silent film Birth of a Nation (1915). The Clansman was part of a trilogy, including The Leopard's Spots (1902) and The Traitor (1907), on Reconstruction, which Dixon witnessed firsthand. His father had been a North Carolinian slave owner, and his experiences with the chaos and corruption of Reconstruction, including the mistreatment of Southern citizens by occupying Northern troops, turned him into a white supremacist. A Democrat who made numerous speeches on the plight of the working man, he nevertheless held many right-wing views and was a staunch opponent of the New Deal.