Description:

Katharine Hepburn ALS Dated the Same Year as 10th & Last Oscar Nomination (& 4th Win!)

A 1p autograph letter signed by American actress Katharine Hepburn (1907-2003) as "Kate" at lower right. June 9, 1982. N.p. On a leaf of custom stationery with Hepburn's name, "Katharine Houghton Hepburn," printed in red along the letterhead. Expected wear includes a flattened horizontal paper fold, and a few minor discolored spots mostly confined to the upper left corner, else near fine. 6" x 8."

Katharine Hepburn wrote this thank-you note to Laura Dubman (ca. 1925-1993), the classically trained concert pianist who had worked with Hepburn during the production of the MGM romantic drama "Song of Love" (1947). Hepburn and Dubman remained friends and correspondents during the following decades.

Hepburn wrote in full:

"VI - 9 - 1982

Dear Laura -

Your flowers are sitting in the corner of my bedroom looking absolutely adorable - You are sweet to welcome me back. Thank you -

Kate."

1981 had been an especially successful acting year for the 74-year-old Katharine Hepburn, which would culminate in her tenth nomination for and fourth win of an Academy Award for Best Actress the following year, in 1982. In 1981, Hepburn had been acting on stage in "The West Side Waltz," and on the silver screen in "On Golden Pond."

In early 1981, Katharine Hepburn and Dorothy Loudon starred off-Broadway (in Beverly Hills, California) in Ernest Thompson's play, "The West Side Waltz." Hepburn portrayed Margaret Mary Elderdice in this gentle play about the eccentric residents of an Upper West Side apartment building. Hepburn reprised her role during the on-Broadway season of "The West Side Waltz," at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre, from November 19, 1981 - March 13, 1982. Hepburn was also starring in "On Golden Pond," a family drama written by Ernest Thompson; the movie co-starring real-life father and daughter Henry Fonda and Jane Fonda was theatrically released in December 1981. In March 1982, just a few months before writing this letter, Hepburn won her fourth Best Actress Oscar for her "On Golden Pond" performance.

Over Katharine Hepburn's 66-year-long acting career, she would star in dozens of films, television movies, and stage productions. Named the leading female actress of Hollywood Classic Cinema by the American Film Institute, Hepburn also won four Academy Awards: 1934's "Morning Glory," 1968's "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner," 1969's "The Lion in Winter," and 1982's "On Golden Pond"  and racked up eight further Oscar nominations but interestingly, she never showed up to accept any of them in person! Hepburn was as comfortable in serious theatrical dramas as she was in screwball comedies or period pieces.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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October 18, 2023 11:00 AM EDT
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