Tom Lehrer

Tom Lehrer is a singer-songwriter who accompanies himself on piano. He is primarily a satirist whose songs are very humorous and were topical during the height of his popularity in the 1950s and 1960s. I became familiar with his songs when I lived in California in 1974-76. I heard several of them on the "Dr. Demento Show" on radio Sunday evenings.

I collected his albums which were not difficult to find because they had been re-issued several times over the years, and now they're all available on cd.

In 1979, I called Mr. Lehrer, who was living in Santa Cruz, California. We had a brief conversation, during which I told him of my enjoyment and interest in his music and songs. I did ask him why he wasn't still performing, and he told me he thought that current events in the past few years were too serious to satirize. I asked if he'd send me an autographed photo, and he said he had a small snap-shot-type photo he sent to people, but asked me to write to him.

I went to my public library and found a book of his songs in sheet-music format, and copied the first page of a couple of them. I sent him the copies, and within two weeks, I received this photo from him. He also signed the copies of sheet music, which can be seen here and here.

Here are some videos of Mr. Lehrer performing some of my favorites:
"National Brotherhood Week"


"Wernher Von Braun"


"We Will All Go Together When We Go"

Billy Halop

Billy Halop began his career as a juvenile as a juvenile actor in the Broadway production of "Dead End" in 1935. He went to Hollywood to appear in the movie version in 1937, and was known as one of the "Dead End Kids", a group which also included Leo Gorcey and Huntz Hall. Future roles generally typecast him as a street-wise character who'd be on the wrong side of the law.

He continued acting on many tv shows into the 1970s. One of his last roles was as 'Bert Munson', a taxi-driving friend of 'Archie Bunker' on the 1970s sitcom "All in the Family".

Mr. Halop died in 1976, and I'd never written to him for a photo.

In 1989, through the same reliable dealer from whom I'd purchased autographs previously, I bought the photo shown below. It's a post card photo, postmarked on the back "Los Angeles, Calif. - June 8, 1940". The postage stamp was 1 cent, but the photo cost me $3.

Una Merkel

Una Merkel was a popular supporting actress in many movies of the 1930s and 1940s. She continued her acting on tv shows right into the 1970s.

I never got around to writing to her while she was still alive, and regretted it, as I wanted to tell her of my enjoyment of her portrayals of various characters, both comedic and dramatic.

In 1989, I purchased the photo seen below from an autograph dealer. It's a post card photo, and the postmark on the back is "Los Angeles, Calif. - April 12, 1937".

Ted Lewis - "Is Everybody Happy?"

Ted Lewis was a bandleader-musician-singer-entertainer from about 1915 right through the 1950s. He was famous for introducing himself and his band with the direct question to the audience, "Is everybody happy?". Another of his famous trademarks was wearing a battered top hat.

During my early years of collecting 78rpm records, I'd acquired some of his records, including one of his most popular songs, "When My Baby Smiles at Me". I liked his band's style and his pleasant singing voice.

I wrote to Mr. Lewis in the late 1960s, requesting an autographed photo. He, or his secretary, misunderstood my request apparently, because I received an unsigned photo. I didn't write again, and Mr. Lewis died a few years later, in 1971.

Many years later, in 1989, I'd made contact with a reliable autograph dealer, who was selling pieces from collections. One that was offered, for a mere $3, was a signed album page, shown below.

Here is a clip of Ted Lewis and His Band:

Binnie Barnes

Binnie Barnes was an English-born actress who appeared mostly in American-made movies when she moved to the U.S. in the 1930s. She was very prolific in supporting roles.

In 1981, I sent her this photo, to her residence in Los Angeles, and she signed and returned it within two weeks.

Elsa Lanchester

Elsa Lanchester was an English character actress who worked for many years in both the UK and US from the 1920s into the 1980s. She is best remembered for her role as the title character character in 1935's "Bride of Frankenstein", playing opposite Boris Karloff.

Miss Lanchester was married for more than thirty years to actor Charles Laughton until his death in 1962.

I remember Miss Lanchester not only for that role, but for her many appearances on tv shows in the 1960s and '70s. Her roles were varied, but usually of the comedic variety and it was always an enjoyment to see her.

In 1982 I sent Miss Lanchester this photo to her residence in Los Angeles, and she signed and returned it within two weeks.

Here she is in her first scene in "Bride of Frankenstein".

Kent Smith and Edith Atwater

Kent Smith was an actor with a very long career on stage, and in movies and tv shows. He began his Broadway career in the early 1930s, and soon after, went to Hollywood and appeared in many movies over the next forty years.

Mr. Smith is best remembered in movies by me for his roles in two Val Lewton horror/suspense movies, "The Cat People" (1942), and "The Curse of the Cat People" (1944), in which he played the same character 'Oliver Reed', who was married to a woman who believed she was a victim of an ancient curse.

Mr. Smith appeared in many tv shows during the 1960s, but the one for which I best remember him, is his role as 'Edgar Scoville' in the 1967 sci-fi series "The Invaders".

He was married to an actress, Edith Atwater, since the early 1960s. In 1982, I sent a photo of each to their Los Angeles residence, and they signed and returned them within two weeks. Kent's photo can be seen here and Edith's photo can be seen here, the latter being signed on a dark portion as it was the only portrait I could find).