[ John Henry Roberts, stage and screen actor. ] Autograph Letter Signed ('J. H. Roberts'), a letter of condolence to the widow of the composer Herman Finck, containing a personal anecdote.

Author: 
J. H. Roberts [ John Henry Roberts ] (1884-1961), stage and screen actor [ Herman Finck [ born Hermann Van Der Vinck ] (1872-1939), composer and conductor ]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of 66 The Ridgeway, N.W.11. 23 April 1939.
£30.00
SKU: 19644

2pp., 12mo. In fair condition, aged and worn, with a short closed tear along a fold line and small rust stain. He begins in conventional fashion, with a reference to 'Herman's countless friends', before continuing: 'As I write this there is in front of me part of a small collection of books I have each containing some personal inscription from its famous author. Among them is one from Herman. He had thought of me one evening, &, with his usual kindliness, he took a book from his collection, wrote in it, & brought it to me there & then. He spent most of that evening in my dressing room. - the last time I saw him. I am indeed proud to be called by him "my dear friend John"'. Roberts first appeared on stage in 1909. His first film was The Constant Nymph (1928). Other films were Night Train to Munich (1940) and Spitfire (1942). He also appeared in the BBC television series The Warden (1951). Finck's 'In the Shadows' was one of the last songs played as RMS Titanic went down.