WILLIAM S. HART - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 08/20/1919 - HFSID 283460

WILLIAM S. HART
He signs a typed 1919 letter on his company letterhead, telling a little girl how to obtain a book written by him.
Typed Letter signed: "William S. Hart". 1 page, 8½x11. Los Angeles, California, 1919 August 20. On letterhead of the William S. Hart Company to "Dear Little Girl". In full: "If you will write to the Britton Publishing Company, 354 Fourth Avenue, New York City, they will send you a copy of Pinto Ben and Other Stories. It costs $1.00. I hope you will like the little book. Look out for Wagon Tracks, my latest. Best wishes. Cordially yours". Ink correction to the book's cost. Accompanied by unsigned photograph and typed envelope. Hart (1870-1946, born in Newburgh, New York) 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. He had spent his youth traveling around the country with his father, an itinerant laborer. 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 20s, 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. As this letter shows, Hart was also an author. Pinto Ben and Other Stories (1919) was co-authored by his wife, Mary Hart. Hart was a friend of legendary lawman Wyatt Earp and was a pallbearer at Earp's 1929 funeral. He also published a memoir that year. Normal mailing fold creases. Edges chipped at folds. Soiled.