WILLIAM S. HART - AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED 12/08/1938 - HFSID 44031

WILLIAM S. HART
William Hart writes a letter talking about his railroad travels and personal matters.
Autograph Letter Signed: "Always yours/Bill Hart", 2p separate sheets, 8½x11. Horseshoe Ranch, Newhall, California, 1938 December 8. On letterhead of The William S. Hart Company to "Dear Gordon & Kay Session". In full: "I'm here [illegible] from letter of way tack to Sept 15th I wish I could have stopped over in Oklahoma-But- I managed to get the MD to consent to letting my sister home with me- and by golly these wonderful Ny. Central & Santa Fe folks- hauled the car from La Salle to [illegible] - To avoid that change and lay over - It was grand of him& do at - a farm - I shall always remember So you see dear folks [illegible] I cared not stopping car - I should have cared much I can fast [illegible] - also May Tenice- The soft spot she made in 3 heart so her she climbed all over the Stock Yards with sue- is still thre =she is some 'gal' I'll be stoppin' you a live some again - all I 'kids' say is hello: and so long now - Nita Kolissuma- that may be next - but it sounds a noble lot like Victor Herbart, Kiss one - to Willie - You better watch out 'Tex' I'm a bold bad man [drawn smiley face]" Hart, who had shot some of his Westerns at locations on and around Newhall, purchased the 265 acres that would become Horseshoe Ranch in 1924 or 1925. He moved permanently to the property in 1927, when his ranch house was completed. Hart, who headquartered his company at the ranch (it had previously been based on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood), willed the property to the County of Los Angeles with the stipulation that it be called William S. Hart Park. At age 19, William S. Hart (1870-1946) began acting onstage in New York, going on to make his name as a Shakespearean actor on Broadway. By his 30s, he was a highly popular stage performer, particularly in western plays. Hart was 44 when he starred in his first film in 1914. Basing his westerns on his own memories of the West, he insisted on stark realism, using bare, unglamorous storylines that emphasized plot and character over action. In the early 1920s, other western stars emerged who emphasized spectacular action and larger-than-life heroics and Hart's popularity faded. In 1925, he made his final film, Tumbleweeds. Lightly creased from folding not at signature. Fine condition.