Gertrude Lawrence Finding Aid

Dennis Memorial Library Archives | Eventide's Gertrude Lawrence Collection

Gertrude Lawrence Collection Finding Aid

Gertrude Lawrence(1898-1952) : Eventide’s Collection

Extent

16 Boxes 16 Linear Feet

Provenance

In 2003 Eventide Arts presented a play about Gertrude Lawrence called “G” and at that time they collected some items relating to her. The Dennis Union Church of Dennis, Massachusetts also had a small collection of items connected with Ms Lawrence. At the time of the presentation of “G”, Eventide invited Ms Lawrence’s cousin and the cousin’s daughter to come from England for the Grand Opening debut of the play about their relative. After returning to England, they sent several additional family owned pieces of memorabilia for the Eventide collection. The entire Eventide collection is on permanent loan to the Dennis Memorial Library

Access

Collection available for research purposes at the Dennis Memorial Library, 1020 Old Bass River Rd., Dennis, MA 02638, tel. 508-385-2255 Fee charged for photocopies.

Processed by: Cynthia Tobojka, Eileen Chandler

Biographical Notes

Gertrude Lawrence was born in London England on July 4, 1898. Her real name was Gertrud Alexandra Dagmar Lawrence Klasen. As Gertrude Lawrence she became one of the most famous actresses of the musical theater during the first half of the 20th century. Her first major role was in André Charlot's Revue in London and it is with this play that New Yorkers first saw her work in 1924.

She later came to the attention of Ira and George Gershwin and they wrote the musicals Oh, Kay (1926) and Treasure Girl (1928) for her. She played Anna in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The King and I (1951), her last role before her death.

The actress came to the Cape in 1936 to star in the Cape Playhouse presentation of Skylark! She and the manager of Sthe Playhouse, Richard Aldrich fell in love and married soon after. Aldrich and Lawrence opened the Falmouth Playhouse in 1949 and in 1950 opened the Cape Cod Music Circus (now the Cape Cod Melody Tent) to showcase Broadway productions.

Miss Lawrence spent many years on Cape Cod, living in a home near the ocean, and participating in many of the productions of the Cape Cod theater scene. She owned a summer home in Dennis, Massachusetts. Eventide Arts, a cultural group located in Dennis, presents plays and concerts featuring Cape Cod artists on the Gertrude Lawrence Stage at the historic Dennis Union Church located in the quaint village Of Dennis, Massachusetts.

She died on September 6, 1952 and was buried in the pink gown she wore in "Shall We Dance?". She was buried at Lakeview Cemetery in Upton, Massachusetts.

Scope and Content

Box 1

Magazines, Reviews and Notices

Folders 1-10

Box Folder Contents
1 1 Photcopy of review of Rembrandt from the New York Times Dec. 3, 1936
1 2 Photocopy of review of Mimi from the New York Times n.d.
1 3 Three newspaper clippings, original.
1 4-6 Photocopies of newspaper and magazine articles including obituaries.
1 7 Photocopy of article from unknown magazine. Fund request for the Gertrude Lawrence Branch: American Theatre Wing War Service, Inc.
1 8 Theatre World. February 1949, vol. xlv, no. 289.
1 9 Time. February 3, 1941, vol. xxxvii, no. 5
1 10 Western Family, October 7, 1943, vol. v, no. 9.

Box 2

5 Books

Box Folder Contents
2 Gertrude Lawrence as Mrs. A by Richard Stoddard Aldrich. Greystone Press, 1954.
2 Gertrude Lawrence as Mrs. A by Richard Stoddard Aldrich. Foreword by Daphne Du Maurier. The Companion Book Club, 19??
2 A Star Danced by Gertrude Lawrence. W.H. Allen, 1945
2 A Star Danced by Gertrude Lawrence. Garden City Publishing Company, reprint, 1946.
2 A Star Danced by Gertrude Lawrence. Doubleday, Doran and Co., 1945.

Box 3

1 Book

Box Contents
1 book Gertrude Lawrence by Sheridan Morley. Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London, 1981

Box 4

5 videocassette (VHS) recordings of movies in which Gertrude Lawrence appears.

Box Folder Contents
4 2 copies of Men are not Gods (1998)
4 1 copy of Men are not Gods (1937)
4 2 copied videocassettes of Men are not Gods

Box 5

6 videocassette (VHS) recordings of movies in which Gertrude Lawrence appears.

Box Folder Contents
5 Mimi, Video Yesteryear, 1935
5 Mimi, Madacy Entertainment, Hollywood Classics Collectors Edition, 1935.
5 2 copied videocassettes of Battle of Paris, 1929.
5 2 copies videocassettes of The Glass Menagerie. Date unknown.

Box 6

3 videorecordings (VCR)

(1 DVD), MGM, 2001
Box Folder Contents
6 Star! (Set containing 2 videocassettes), Fox, 1993
6 Stage Door Canteen (videocassette) Image Entertainment, 2001
6 Rembrandt

Box 7

3 Videocassette (2 VHS and 1 PAL) Recordings

Box Folder Contents
7 Videocassette (VHS) Eventide Arts Festival 2003: “G!”: a tribute to Gertrude Lawrence. An original play with music in two acts. June 2003 at the Gertrude Lawrence Memorial Stage, Dennis Union Church, Dennis Massachusetts.
7 Videocassettes (1 VHS, 1 PAL format) Eventide Arts Festival 2005 presents “G!” a return of the hit musical tribute to Gertrude Lawrence by Natalie Ross Miller. Gertrude Lawrence Memorial Stage, Dennis Union Church, Dennis.

Box 8

13 Audio CDs

Box Folder Contents
8 The King and I, MCA 1993
8 The King and I, Decca, 1993
8 Gertrude Lawrence: Star Quality, AEI, 1998
8 Noel Coward and Gertrude Lawrence, Pavillion Records, Ltd., 1990.
8 Star! ASV Ltd., 1999
8 Lady in the Dark, Prism Leisure, 2003
8 Lady in the Dark, AEI, 1992
8 Gertie, Naxos, 2001
8 Noel & Gertie: 2 Disc Set, Past Times, 1999
8 London Pride: Noel Coward Featuring Gertrude Lawrence, Conifer, 1993.
8 Charleston: Great Stars of the 1920s, Glass Gramophone, 1998
8 Cocktails & Laughter… Noel Coward Society, 2004.
8 Phantom of the Opera & Other Broadway Favorites, publisher and date unknown.

Box 9

Personal Papers

Folders 1-4

Box Folders Contents
9 1 Christmas card from Gertrude Lawrence and Richard Aldrich, 1947.
9 2 Copy of a letter from Gertrude Lawrence to Ward and (illegible)
9 3 Copy of Certificate of Marriage, Dennis Massachusetts, July 4, 1940.
9 4 Certified copy of Birth Certificate, 1898.

Box 10

Programs and related material (undated unless indicated)

Folders 1-12

Box Folder Contents
10 1 Theatre Incorporated presents, Pygmalion
10 2 Pygmalion: The Playbill for the Ethel Barrymore Theatre
10 3 National Theatre presents Gertrude Lawrence in Pygmalion
10 4 Two Harris Theatre Chicago stagebills: Susan and God, On Borrowed Time
10 5 Cape Playhouse program, Week of August 18th 1941. Signed by Richard Aldrich and Philip Merivale.
10 6 Playbill for the Morosco Theatre Gertrude Lawrence in Skylark (beginning January 15, 1940)
10 7 Programme: The Golders Green Hippodrome Charlot’s Revue
10 8 Times Square Theatre: Programme for Andre Charlot’s Revue of 1924
10 9 Playbill for the St. James Theatre: The King and I with Yul Byrnner, week beginning Monday, September 3, 1951..
10 10 Forest Theatre. Gertrude Lawrence in Lady in the Dark by Moss Hart. Beginning Monday, September 28, 1942.
10 11 Playbill for the Plymouth Theatre. Gertrude Lawrence in Susan and God with Paul McGrath. Week beginning May 9th, 1938.
10 12 The Play Pictorial Vol. LXI, No. 367 (1932?). Article and photographs on Behold, We Live starring Gertrude Lawrence and Daphne du Maurier, produced at The St. Jame’s Theatre, August 16, 1932.
10 13 Laminated copy of the front and back cover of the programme for: Tonight at Eight-thirty: three plays by Noel Coward. Colinail Theatre Oct. 26
10 14 Laminated copy of the cover of the programme for: The Cape Playhouse production of Private Lives by Noel Coward. Week beginning Monday, June 24th, 1940.
10 15 Laminated copy of the cover of the playbill for the St. James Theatre production of The King and I.
10 16 Laminated copy of the cover of the playbill for the Alvin Theatre, Gertrude Lawrence in Lady in the Dark.
10 17 Laminated copy of the cover of the playbill Noel and Gertie: Comedy Theatre.
10 18 Laminated copy of the cover of the Playbill for the National Theatre.

Box 11

Playbill covers, magazines, pictures and clippings (oversize)

Folders 1-21

Box Folder Contents
11 1 Copy of the cover of Theatre World Vol. xxv, No. 133. February, 1936 Special Supplement: To-night at 8.30. Gertrude Lawrence, Noel Coward.
11 2 Copy of the famous circus scene in Lady in the Dark. Scene includes actors: Danny Kaye, Victor Mature, Gertrude Lawrence.
11 3 Original cover of Stage October 1936. Drawing of Gertrude Lawrence. Printed at bottom of cover: Gertrude Lawrence , who will appear with Noel Coward in the one-act play cycle, Tonight at 8:30.
11 4 Gertrude Lawrence pictured on the original cover of Life, November 27, 1944.
11 5 One copy of Life magazine, November 27, 1944.
11 6 Gertrude Lawrence pictured on the original cover of Life, June 13, 1938.
11 7 One copy of Life, June 13, 1938.
11 8 Copy of photograph of Gertrude Lawrence with the Coast Artillery, Sandwich, Christmas, 1944. © Jim Carr Collection
11 9 Four pages from a magazine (unnamed). Pictures from Johnny Belinda, Arsenic and Old Lace.
11 10 Copy of photograph of Gertrude Lawrence in Pygmalion, 1946. © Jim Carr Collection
11 11 Picture of Gertrude Lawrence as a girl, in a pink dress with pink bows, just before her first audition. London, 1910. © Jim Carr Collection
11 12 Original page from Vanity Fair magazine, September 1926. Gertrude Lawrence portrait.
11 13 Copy of a photograph of Gertrude Lawrence. The Lady Maria, 1947. © Jim Carr Collection.
11 14 Three separate sheets from a magazine (unnamed). Chiefly pictures of Gertrude Lawrence in various plays.
11 15 Two separate sheets from a magazine (unnamed). Features the play Skylark.
11 16 Two separate sheets from a magazine (unnamed). Features Gertrude Lawrence in Pygmalion.
11 17 One sheet from a magazine (unnamed). Color portrait of Gertrude Lawrence in Pygmalion.
11 18 Copy of a portrait of Gertrude Lawrence, her autograph at the bottom of the sheet. © Jim Carr Collection.
11 19 Magazine photograph of Gertrude Lawrence as Anna in The King and I. 29 March 1951. © Jim Carr Collection.
11 20 One sheet from a magazine (unnamed). Gertrude Lawrence in an Avon advertisement.
11 21 Four pages from a magazine (unnamed). Louella O. Parson’s column In Hollywood. Interview with Gertrude Lawrence in which she mentions Cape Cod.

Box 12

Posters

Folders 1-2

Box Folder Contents
12 1 Original color poster for Gertrude Lawrence in The Battle of Paris.
12 2 Copy of a poster from the Cape Playhouse, Dennis (Massachusetts) Gertrude Lawrence. Mentions War Stamps and Bonds for Victory.

Box 13

Eventide Arts Festival – various years (chiefly 2002)

Folders1-30

Box Folder Contents
13 1 Original poster for the Eventide Arts Festival 2002 Series Presentation of G by Natalie Ross Miller.
13 2 Three copies of the program (2002). Some signed. 1 ticket.
13 3 Program of events for May-September, 2002
13 4 Flyer for the 2002 festival; advertisement for the 2003 festival.
13 5 Two newspaper clippings stapled together from The Register, Thursday, August 12, 2002. Article about G. Title of article: A lifetime around the world, but roots in Dennis.
13 6 Two newspaper clippings. One from the Cape Cod Times, August 18, 2002. Review of G. Second clipping; Review of "G" from the Cape Codder.
13 7 One newspaper clipping from The Register, Thursday, August 12, 2002. Article about "G". Title of article: A lifetime around the world, but roots in Dennis.
13 8 One complete original issue of Cape Week insert from The Cape Cod Times. August 16, 2002. Spotlight article on Gertrude Lawrence, title: Private Life Plus copy of cover and article Private Life.
13 9 Three posters, Eventide Arts Festival 2003, for “G!”.
13 10 One mounted poster for the Eventide Arts Festival 2003 for “G!”.
13 11 Four programs for the Eventide Arts Festival 2003 Series for “G!”. One program is autographed. Two tickets.
13 12 Two flyers for the Eventide Arts Festival 2003. One Cape Cod Theater Guide addressed to Natalie and Lorimer Miller.
13 13 One newspaper clipping from The Register, Thursday, June 19, 2003. Review of G! by Glenn Ritt.
13 14 Two newspaper clippings and one copy of a newspaper article. Review of G! by Johanna Crosby.
13 15 One newpaper clipping, Review of G! by Glenn Ritt.
13 16 Two posters. Eventide Arts 2005 presents G!.
13 17 Two programs. Eventide Arts 2004-2005 season presents G! One ticket for 2005 presentation.
13 18 Two sheets from "Cape Experience", insert in The Cape Codder, May 13, 2005. Article on Natalie Ross Miller, author of G!
13 19 One news paper clipping from The Cape Codder May 27, 2005, A Perfect Tribute by Laurie Higgins.
13 20 Two newspaper clippings. Cape Cod Times, Sunday May 22, 2005, "G! a Tribute to Forgotten Stage Star", by Johanna Crosby.
13 21 Copy of a letter to the G! production team from Rebecca, June 12, 2003.
13 22 Copy of color photograph of three unidentified individuals.
13 23 One newspaper clipping, The Daily Telegraph, Tuesday February 28, 2006, "Show that Shocked Society Returns to Stage After 72 Years". Show Title: Nymph Errant by Cole Porter.
13 24 Copy of two pages of an untitled article for the Noel Coward Society Newsletter.
13 25 Copy of chapter 23 (Noel and Gertie) from Radie’s World: The Memoirs of Rodie Harris.
13 26 Internet printout ( 3 pages) from database Biography Resource Center. Gertrude Lawrence 1898-1952.
13 27 Copy of script for G!
13 28 Copy of email. Subject: Permission and Credits from [email protected] to [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]. Lists musical numbers. Copies of seven pieces of sheet music and lyrics.
13 29 Four copied pages, G!....Props, includes handwritten notes.
13 30 Six pages of costume notes, 2003.

Box 14

Sheet Music

Folders 1-14

Box Contents
14 1 2 original scores of “I Whistle a Happy Tune” from The King and I.
14 2 1 original score of “We Kiss in a Shadow” from The King and I.
14 3 2 original scores of “Getting to Know You” from The King and I.
14 4 1 original score “Hello, Young Lovers” from The King and I.
14 5 1 original score “Limehouse Blues”, “Memory Lane”.
14 6 1 original score “My Ship” from Lady in the Dark.
14 7 1 original score “Someday I’ll Find You” from Private Lives.
14 8 1 original score “Someone to Watch Over Me”, deluxe edition.
14 9 2 original scores of “A Cup of Coffee, and You” from Charlot’s Revue of 1926.
14 10 2 photocopied scores of “It Ain’t All Honey and It Ain’t All Jam”.
14 11 2 photocopied scores of “If Love Were All” and “Shall We Dance?”.
14 12 2 photocopied scores of “Let’s All Go Down the Strand”.
14 13 7 photocopied scores, various revues.

Box 15

Production Photos,Newspaper/Magazine Clippings

Folders 1-8

Box Contents
15 1 1 magazine clipping, copy of a signed photograph of Gertrude which she gave to her son Richard S. Aldrich, Jr. when he left for Korea.
15 2 1 photograph (clipping), Gertrude Lawrence singing “The Saga of Jenny”.
15 3 1 photograph (clipping), Gertrude Lawrence and Raymond Massey.
15 4 Photographs (clipping) of “Lady in the Dark”.
15 5 1 post card, Gertrude Lawrence and Noel Coward, London Calling.
15 6 1 photograph (clipping), Gertrude Lawrence and Walter Petrie in “Battle of Paris”.
15 7 1 drawing (copy), The King and I, September 1951. © Jim Carr Collection
15 8 1 original photograh, Gertrude Lawrence in Rembrandt, 1936 .

Box 16

Pictures

Folders 1-17

Box Contents
16 1 6 photocopies, photograph on Corporation Beach, Dennis, July 1948. Gertrude Lawrence and others.
16 2 1 framed color portrait of Gertrude Lawrence from the series “Portraits of Famous Stars”.
16 3 1 framed black and white portrait, Gertrude Lawrence.
16 4 1 photocopied, signed portrait, Gertrude Lawrence.
16 5 1 photocopied, signed group photograph.
16 6 1 photocopied photograph, “Miss Lawrence with Angus”, Summer of 1952.
16 7 1 copied photograph of the Aldriches.
16 8 1 photocopied photograph, “Raising the ‘V’ for Victory Flag at Hedge House".
16 9 1 photograh (clipping), Gertrude Lawrence, 1950
16 10 1 magazine clipping, Gertrude Lawrence, 1932.
16 11 1 Ogden cigarette card, Gertrude Lawrence as Doris Gow in “Fumed Oak”.
16 12 1 post card sized portrait, Gertrude Lawrence.
16 13 1 laminated color picture, summer house of Gertrude Lawrence, Cape Cod, Mass.
16 14 1 photograph, “Costumes and uniforms on display for a Museum of City of N Y exhibit in 1952”. © Jim Carr Collection
16 15 1 black and white photograph, Gertrude Lawrence in Playhouse Gardens with Dorothy Parker. © Jim Carr Collection
16 16 1 black and white group photograph taken at Cinema candy counter, c.1940. © Jim Carr Collection
16 17 1 photograph/portrait, Gertrude Lawrence taken by Dorothy Wilding of London and New York. © Jim Carr Collection

Index Terms

Gertrude Lawrence, Richard Aldrich, Noel Coward, Dorothy Parker, Cape Cod Melody Tent, Cape Playhouse, Dennis, Massachusetts