While shooting at the Lake Superior & Ishpeming ore dock at Presque Isle, MI on May 27, 1982, we were informed that they would be be taking one unit and heading a mile or so to downtown Marquette to retrieve an empty boxcar from a beer distributorship. This mile or so was remaining trackage from the abandoned line to Munsing, and to my knowledge the beer distributor was the last remaining customer. The trackage was in poor condition, even for a 4-axle unit, much less a U25C. So poor in fact, that they sent the car knockers down with them to rerail the unit if (or when) it got on the ground. Here U25C No. 2500 is in the process of running around the boxcar and passing under the approach to the abandoned Soo Line ore dock. Thankfully, it didn't get on the ground that day.

Lake Superior & Ishpeming U25C No 2500 pops out from behind the City Water Works building in Marquette, MI on May 27, 1982 as it heads downtown to retrieve a boxcar from a beer distributorship.

The few who do are the envy of the many who only watch.

Jim Rohn.

Emanuel James "Jim" Rohn (September 17, 1930 – December 5, 2009) was an American entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker. Rohn started his professional life by working as a stock clerk for department store Sears. Around this time, a friend invited him to a lecture given by entrepreneur John Earl Shoaff. In 1955, Rohn joined Shoaff's direct selling business AbundaVita as a distributor.

In 1957, Rohn resigned his distributorship with AbundaVita and joined Nutri-Bio, another direct selling company. It was at this point that the company's founders, including Shoaff, started to mentor him. After this mentorship, Rohn built one of the largest organizations in the company. In 1960 when Nutri-Bio expanded into Canada, Shoaff and the other founders selected Rohn as a vice president for the organization.

Rohn mentored Mark R. Hughes (the founder of Herbalife International) and life coach Tony Robbins in the late 1970s.[citation needed] Others who credit Rohn for his influence on their careers include authors Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield (Chicken Soup book series), author/lecturer Brian Tracy, Todd Smith, and T. Harv Eker. Rohn also coauthored the novel Twelve Pillars with Chris Widener.

Rohn was the recipient of the 1985 National Speakers Association CPAE Award for excellence in speaking. He is also the author of 17 different written, audio, and video media. Source Wikipedia.

Abandoned

I found this rather unique sign at the Wismer Distributing Co. in Baytown,TX. I had to ask permission to enter the property since it was impossible to shoot it from the street. This sign is believed to be at least 40 years old and will be dismantled when the company relocates to its new location. It will be displayed inside their new facility. Everything works including the clock. 600 S. Main St. Baytown,Texas. 6.11.2016.

From a distance I said to myself: 'What a strange looking MGA".

But it turned out to be something very different: a Swallow Doretti.

I had never heard of this car at all!

Production: 1 of only 276 (1954 & 1955)

"The Swallow Doretti is a British sports car built on Swallow's own custom chassis using Triumph TR2 mechanicals, made between 1954 and 1955. It was intended for the US market, as a more refined two-seater than what was available there at that time.

The car was built by the Swallow Coachbuilding Company Ltd., a Tube Investments Group subsidiary bought for its 1935–1946 association with Jaguar's prewar motorcycle sidecars.

The Doretti name was derived from Dorothy Deen, who managed the Western US distributorship Cal Sales.

Some observers find similarities between the Doretti and the 166MM 'Barchetta' and Austin-Healey 100. The Doretti had a tubular Reynolds 531 manganese–molybdenum, medium-carbon steel chassis. The double-skinned body had an inner structural skin made of steel and an aluminium outer skin. Power came from a 1,991 cc (121.5 cu in) Standard wet liner inline-four engine. Most cars were supplied with Laycock-de Normanville electric epicyclic overdrive and they were capable of 100 mph." (Wikipedia)

--------------------------------------

20e Oranje Klassieker Rit Velp

Velp, the Netherlands.

The Rusk County Bottling Works, owned by the Culp family of Henderson, began on W. Main St. in 1905, producing syrups for soft drink companies. In 1917 they contracted with Coca-Cola. This Coca-Cola bottling facility was built in 1935 on N. Marshall St. I'm guessing it closed in the 1980s. My grandmother lived just a couple of houses down from the plant and I remember hearing the constant clinking of the bottles on the old chain lines when I was a child. A&L Music Co.Inc. occupied the building when this picture was taken. Henderson, Texas. 7.25.2012.

From a distance I said to myself: 'What a strange looking MGA".

But it turned out to be something very different: a Swallow Doretti.

I had never heard of this car at all!

Production: 1 of only 276 (1954 & 1955)

"The Swallow Doretti is a British sports car built on Swallow's own custom chassis using Triumph TR2 mechanicals, made between 1954 and 1955. It was intended for the US market, as a more refined two-seater than what was available there at that time.

The car was built by the Swallow Coachbuilding Company Ltd., a Tube Investments Group subsidiary bought for its 1935–1946 association with Jaguar's prewar motorcycle sidecars.

The Doretti name was derived from Dorothy Deen, who managed the Western US distributorship Cal Sales.

Some observers find similarities between the Doretti and the 166MM 'Barchetta' and Austin-Healey 100. The Doretti had a tubular Reynolds 531 manganese–molybdenum, medium-carbon steel chassis. The double-skinned body had an inner structural skin made of steel and an aluminium outer skin. Power came from a 1,991 cc (121.5 cu in) Standard wet liner inline-four engine. Most cars were supplied with Laycock-de Normanville electric epicyclic overdrive and they were capable of 100 mph." (Wikipedia)

--------------------------------------

20e Oranje Klassieker Rit Velp

Velp, the Netherlands.

Swallow Doretti - Triumph at Malvern Aug 2013

They were based on the Triumph TR3. The factory was just a couple of miles away from me but there is no evidence of the factory today.

The Dorreti name was derived from Dorothy Deen, who managed the Western US distributorship Cal Sales. Swallow Coachbuilding was the original name for Jaguar which they sold in 1946 & became Jaguar Cars

Intermodal transfers among Chicago area railroads were very rare back in March 1983, but C&NW terminal crews operated "Extra 89s" between the Piggyback Ramp at Proviso and Wood Street Yard. Here, in a view at Harding Avenue from an E8 that was backing down to the California Avenue Coach Yard, we are about to be overtaken by an eastbound intermodal transfer on the Geneva Sub, behind GP7 No. 4164. There are some other interesting details in this photo, including an abbreviated view of the CTA loop track at far left in the ground-level Hamlin Avenue Yard. I regret that I never stuck my camera out the window and took a photo of Hamlin Avenue Yard the hundreds of times that I passed it on the C&NW. Also, note the insulated boxcars on one of the leads for 40th Street Yard. By this date, the yard had been closed, but traffic including the Oak Creek coal trains still used the mains through the yard. I think that the boxcars contained beer, as a beer distributorship was switched by one of the CFT jobs out of California Avenue Coach Yard. The beer cars were left here for security where the Harding Avenue switchtender could keep an eye on them. The Harding Avenue switchtender was still a 24/7/365 position as of this date.

Chassis n° DB4/606/L

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : 250.000 - 300.000

Sold for € 276.000

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

This lot is offered with an original State of Oklahoma Certificate of Title; other original USA paperwork; photocopies of purchase invoice dated March 2007; and copies of build sheet records.

"For many Aston Martin enthusiasts the DB4 was the best of the post-war cars. Previous cars were lacking in power while the later DB5 and DB6 put on weight and were more like fast tourers than high-speed thoroughbreds..." – Mike Twite, Motors, 1967.

Manufactured between October 1958 and June 1963, the DB4 developed through no fewer than five series. However, it should be made clear that the cars were not thus designated by the factory, this nomenclature having been suggested subsequently by the Aston Martin Owners Club to aid identification as the model evolved. The first series had already undergone a number of improvements, including the fitting of heavy-duty bumpers after the first 50 cars, before the second series arrived in January 1960. A front-hinged bonnet, bigger brake callipers and an enlarged sump were the major changes made on the Series II, while the third series featured separate rear lights, two bonnet stays and a host of improvements to the interior fittings.

Manufactured between September 1961 and October 1962, the fourth series was readily distinguishable by its shallower bonnet intake, recessed rear lights and new grille with seven vertical bars. The final, fifth, series was lengthened to 15' (allowing for increased legroom and a larger boot) and gained 15" wheels, an electric radiator fan and the DB4GT-type instrument panel. Including Vantage and convertible models, approximately 1,100 of these iconic 'Gentleman's Express' sports saloons were produced between 1958 and 1963.

This Series III DB4's guarantee form copy shows that it was manufactured in left-hand drive configuration and delivered to the J S Inskip distributorship in the USA in May 1961. The DB4 left the factory finished in Sea Green with White Gold interior trim and was equipped with chrome road wheels. Its first owner is recorded as one Robert S Mautner of Lindenhurst, New York and there is one subsequent owner listed: Mr P Sprague (no address given). The AMOC Register records the car as still in the USA in 1983.

Perhaps the most surprising aspect of this DB4's history is the amount of service work required during its early life, the first entry being dated 3rd July 1961 (at 1,000 miles) when the transmission was rebuilt! The clutch was replaced in February 1962 and then some seven years later the Aston was treated to a complete mechanical overhaul, including the suspension, brakes, steering and a full engine rebuild, at only 51,392 miles. These works also included repairs to body panels; repainting; a complete interior re-trim in natural leather; installing a new Bosch New Yorker radio; and fitting a Webasto sunroof. In fact, so extensive was the rebuild that the DB4's owner ended up with what was effectively a brand-new car.

Chassis n° DB4/780/L

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 280.000 - 340.000

Sold for € 304.750

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

"When the products which are raced bear such a close resemblance to those which can be bought by the public, as do those of Aston Martin, only the most biased can deny the value of racing in improving the breed. It should be no surprise (that the DB4) should be based on an engine which first appeared in experimental form in some of last year's races." - The Autocar, 3rd October 1958.

At its launch in October 1958, the DB4 marked a major turning point for Aston Martin as it was the first car of the David Brown era that neither used a chassis derived from the experimental Atom of 1939 nor an engine designed by Willie Watson. Moreover, it was the first Aston Martin to carry Carrozzeria Touring's 'Superleggera' bodywork, in which light alloy panels were fixed to a framework of light-gauge steel tubes welded to a platform chassis. Although styled by Touring, the DB4's gorgeous fastback coachwork was built under license at Newport Pagnell by Aston Martin, which employed some of the finest panel beaters in the industry. The result was a car whose sleek lines were described as 'unmistakably Italian and yet... equally unmistakably Aston Martin.' The 3.7-litre, six-cylinder power unit was the work of Tadek Marek, and had first been seen at Le Mans the previous year in the DBR2.

Manufactured between October 1958 and June 1963, the DB4 developed through no fewer than five series. However, it should be made clear that the cars were not thus designated by the factory, this nomenclature having been suggested subsequently by the Aston Martin Owners Club to aid identification as the model evolved. The first series had already undergone a number of improvements, including the fitting of heavy-duty bumpers after the first 50 cars, before the second series arrived in January 1960. A front-hinged bonnet, bigger brake callipers and an enlarged sump were the major changes made on the Series II, while the third series featured separate rear lights, two bonnet stays and a host of improvements to the interior fittings. Manufactured between September 1961 and October 1962, the fourth series was readily distinguishable by its shallower bonnet intake, recessed rear lights and new grille with seven vertical bars. The final, fifth, series was lengthened to accommodate more rear legroom and a larger boot, and somewhat lost the sportiness of the earlier series cars.

This left-hand drive 'Series IV' DB4 was delivered new to the J S Inskip distributorship in the USA and first owned by one Edward R Nichold of Barnardsville, New Jersey. The accompanying guarantee form copy records that the car was finished in California Sage with fawn Connolly leather interior trim and that it was fitted with two wing mirrors. The AMOC Register records a subsequent owner in the USA as one D E Harvey.

Now being offered having been on static display, this matching numbers DB4 will naturally require recommissioning before returning to the road.

Chassis n° DB4/780/L

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 280.000 - 340.000

Sold for € 304.750

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

"When the products which are raced bear such a close resemblance to those which can be bought by the public, as do those of Aston Martin, only the most biased can deny the value of racing in improving the breed. It should be no surprise (that the DB4) should be based on an engine which first appeared in experimental form in some of last year's races." - The Autocar, 3rd October 1958.

At its launch in October 1958, the DB4 marked a major turning point for Aston Martin as it was the first car of the David Brown era that neither used a chassis derived from the experimental Atom of 1939 nor an engine designed by Willie Watson. Moreover, it was the first Aston Martin to carry Carrozzeria Touring's 'Superleggera' bodywork, in which light alloy panels were fixed to a framework of light-gauge steel tubes welded to a platform chassis. Although styled by Touring, the DB4's gorgeous fastback coachwork was built under license at Newport Pagnell by Aston Martin, which employed some of the finest panel beaters in the industry. The result was a car whose sleek lines were described as 'unmistakably Italian and yet... equally unmistakably Aston Martin.' The 3.7-litre, six-cylinder power unit was the work of Tadek Marek, and had first been seen at Le Mans the previous year in the DBR2.

Manufactured between October 1958 and June 1963, the DB4 developed through no fewer than five series. However, it should be made clear that the cars were not thus designated by the factory, this nomenclature having been suggested subsequently by the Aston Martin Owners Club to aid identification as the model evolved. The first series had already undergone a number of improvements, including the fitting of heavy-duty bumpers after the first 50 cars, before the second series arrived in January 1960. A front-hinged bonnet, bigger brake callipers and an enlarged sump were the major changes made on the Series II, while the third series featured separate rear lights, two bonnet stays and a host of improvements to the interior fittings. Manufactured between September 1961 and October 1962, the fourth series was readily distinguishable by its shallower bonnet intake, recessed rear lights and new grille with seven vertical bars. The final, fifth, series was lengthened to accommodate more rear legroom and a larger boot, and somewhat lost the sportiness of the earlier series cars.

This left-hand drive 'Series IV' DB4 was delivered new to the J S Inskip distributorship in the USA and first owned by one Edward R Nichold of Barnardsville, New Jersey. The accompanying guarantee form copy records that the car was finished in California Sage with fawn Connolly leather interior trim and that it was fitted with two wing mirrors. The AMOC Register records a subsequent owner in the USA as one D E Harvey.

Now being offered having been on static display, this matching numbers DB4 will naturally require recommissioning before returning to the road.

Alfred Alschuler, the architect of notable Chicago synagogues, designed the Spanish Renaissance showroom and offices at 2222 S. Michigan Ave. It was completed in 1922. Hudson automobile made it through the Great Depression and World War II before going out of business in the early 1950s.

In early 2018, ex-Chicago Bears Israel Idonije and Julius Peppers were part of a group that acquired the property. It will be renovated for office space, retail, gymnasium and four residential units.

NOTE: From an application for a zoning change, October 2022. "The Applicant requests a rezoning of the subiect propertv from the DS-3 and DS-5 Downtown Service Districts to a unified DX-5 Downtown Mixed-Use District, then to a Residential-Business Planned Development to permit the renovation of the existing 3-storv 6r8'"-tall building with approximately 4,700 sf of restaurant space in the basement. 25.000 sf of office, retail, or venue space. 9.000 sf of ground floor restaurant/commercial uses, 15,000 sf of rooftop entertainment uses, 38 residential units, and 18 extended-stav hotel rooms together with accessory and incidental uses."

Photograph taken during Chicago Architecture Foundation Motor Row walking tour.

Chassis n° LML/50/289

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 250.000 - 300.000

Sold for € 264.500

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

Aston Martin owner David Brown's 1947 acquisition of Lagonda made the latter's Willie Watson-designed, twin-overhead-camshaft, 2.6-litre six available for a new sports car: the DB2. (This power unit is commonly referred to as 'the Bentley engine', W O Bentley having been Lagonda's Chief Engineer at the time.) Announced in April 1950, with production commencing the following month, the DB2 owed much to the Claude Hill-designed DB1, using a shortened and modified version of the latter's chassis and identical suspension. Italian-inspired, the timelessly elegant GT bodywork was the creation of Frank Feeley, and with more power (105bhp at 5,000rpm) and less weight, the sleek DB2 comfortably out-performed its predecessor.

Writing in 1952, Autosport's John Bolster enthused: "The DB2 is a very fast sports car of immense stamina, as a long list of racing successes has proved. (The) model is remarkable for its comfort and luxury and is also about the easiest thing there is to drive, outside of the 'automatic transmission' carriages." Bolster enjoyed the DB2's outstanding performance, particularly that of the 120mph Vantage version, and remarked on the car's inherent safety and versatility: "Whether one would go shopping, to the theatre, on a long-distance tour, or even race at Le Mans, one could have no more perfect companion than the Aston Martin."

The body of the DB2 afforded its two occupants a generous amount of interior space and the considerable convenience, from the maintenance and accessibility point of view, of a forward-hinging entire front section. DB2 bodies were coachbuilt in the traditional manner, a situation that resulted in numerous differences between individual examples, most obviously in the treatment of the front grille. A drophead coupé version was announced towards the end of 1950. When production ceased in April 1953, a total of 411 DB2s had been made: 98 of them dropheads.

This DB2 drophead's guarantee form (copy on file) shows that it was built with the more powerful (125bhp-plus) VB6B 'Vantage' engine and left the factory in left-hand drive configuration. The original colour scheme was Silver Green with beige leather interior. The DB2 was destined for the USA, being delivered to the Arnolt distributorship in February 1953. Its first owner was J.J. Calvillo, Esq of Ferndale, Michigan. Offered today from long-term storage, and subject to EU import taxes, this rare and highly desirable British classic will require an element of recommissioning prior to road use.

Saleroom notices

Chassis n° DB4/606/L

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : 250.000 - 300.000

Sold for € 276.000

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

This lot is offered with an original State of Oklahoma Certificate of Title; other original USA paperwork; photocopies of purchase invoice dated March 2007; and copies of build sheet records.

"For many Aston Martin enthusiasts the DB4 was the best of the post-war cars. Previous cars were lacking in power while the later DB5 and DB6 put on weight and were more like fast tourers than high-speed thoroughbreds..." – Mike Twite, Motors, 1967.

Manufactured between October 1958 and June 1963, the DB4 developed through no fewer than five series. However, it should be made clear that the cars were not thus designated by the factory, this nomenclature having been suggested subsequently by the Aston Martin Owners Club to aid identification as the model evolved. The first series had already undergone a number of improvements, including the fitting of heavy-duty bumpers after the first 50 cars, before the second series arrived in January 1960. A front-hinged bonnet, bigger brake callipers and an enlarged sump were the major changes made on the Series II, while the third series featured separate rear lights, two bonnet stays and a host of improvements to the interior fittings.

Manufactured between September 1961 and October 1962, the fourth series was readily distinguishable by its shallower bonnet intake, recessed rear lights and new grille with seven vertical bars. The final, fifth, series was lengthened to 15' (allowing for increased legroom and a larger boot) and gained 15" wheels, an electric radiator fan and the DB4GT-type instrument panel. Including Vantage and convertible models, approximately 1,100 of these iconic 'Gentleman's Express' sports saloons were produced between 1958 and 1963.

This Series III DB4's guarantee form copy shows that it was manufactured in left-hand drive configuration and delivered to the J S Inskip distributorship in the USA in May 1961. The DB4 left the factory finished in Sea Green with White Gold interior trim and was equipped with chrome road wheels. Its first owner is recorded as one Robert S Mautner of Lindenhurst, New York and there is one subsequent owner listed: Mr P Sprague (no address given). The AMOC Register records the car as still in the USA in 1983.

Perhaps the most surprising aspect of this DB4's history is the amount of service work required during its early life, the first entry being dated 3rd July 1961 (at 1,000 miles) when the transmission was rebuilt! The clutch was replaced in February 1962 and then some seven years later the Aston was treated to a complete mechanical overhaul, including the suspension, brakes, steering and a full engine rebuild, at only 51,392 miles. These works also included repairs to body panels; repainting; a complete interior re-trim in natural leather; installing a new Bosch New Yorker radio; and fitting a Webasto sunroof. In fact, so extensive was the rebuild that the DB4's owner ended up with what was effectively a brand-new car.

The Roger Maris Museum is in a Mall in Fargo, No. Dakota. Part of the deal was that it would be easily accessible for people and remain on display. The collection has a lot of value.

During his career, Roger Maris played in seven World Series and seven All-Star games. He hit 275 career home runs and won the Gold Glove Award for outstanding defensive play. The New York Yankees retired his number "9" in 1984.

Roger founded Maris Distributing Company, an Anheuser-Busch distributorship, in 1967 with his brother Rudy, which he operated until his death in 1985.

In 1998, Roger's home run record was surpassed by Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, both from the National League, 37 years after the 1961 season.

Roger Maris became one of the few baseball players ever featured on a United States postage stamp when the United States Postal Service issued its "Roger Maris, 61 in 61" stamp in 1999.

Billy Crystal's acclaimed film, 61*, starring Barry Pepper and Thomas Jane, about the home run race in 1961, premiered in 2001. The film was re-released on blue ray DVD in 2011.

In 2011, the New York Yankees celebrated the 50th year of Roger's American League Home Run record, which remains unbeaten.

From a distance I said to myself: 'What a strange looking MGA".

But it turned out to be something very different: a Swallow Doretti.

I had never heard of this car at all!

Production: 1 of only 276 (1954 & 1955)

"The Swallow Doretti is a British sports car built on Swallow's own custom chassis using Triumph TR2 mechanicals, made between 1954 and 1955. It was intended for the US market, as a more refined two-seater than what was available there at that time.

The car was built by the Swallow Coachbuilding Company Ltd., a Tube Investments Group subsidiary bought for its 1935–1946 association with Jaguar's prewar motorcycle sidecars.

The Doretti name was derived from Dorothy Deen, who managed the Western US distributorship Cal Sales.

Some observers find similarities between the Doretti and the 166MM 'Barchetta' and Austin-Healey 100. The Doretti had a tubular Reynolds 531 manganese–molybdenum, medium-carbon steel chassis. The double-skinned body had an inner structural skin made of steel and an aluminium outer skin. Power came from a 1,991 cc (121.5 cu in) Standard wet liner inline-four engine. Most cars were supplied with Laycock-de Normanville electric epicyclic overdrive and they were capable of 100 mph." (Wikipedia)

--------------------------------------

20e Oranje Klassieker Rit Velp

Velp, the Netherlands.

Our friends increasingly electric

More and more manufacturers are introducing electric buses and here’s an example of an electric minibus: It’s produced by Mellor Coachcraft, an English firm. This particular bus is based on an adapted FIAT Ducato van chassis, which is then adapted with electric drivetrain and bodywork. This is SJ69EXU running for Community Transport Glasgow, with support from Scottish Power.

For those not familiar with Mellor, it’s based in Bolton near Manchester and has a factory in nearby Rochdale. Founded in the 1960s, Mellor have primarily produced bodywork for various different minibus chassis throughout its history.

It was founded by Tom Mellor. Initially, Mellor specialised in providing bodywork for commercial vehicles including ambulances, before later moving into minibus manufacturing. Following a period of growth spurred on by the move into the minibus market, Mellor moved into a new purpose-built factory in Miall Street, Rochdale which they still occupy today, although the company headquarters have relocated to nearby Bolton.

Throughout the 'minibus revolution' of the 1980s in the United Kingdom, Mellor provided bodies for a number of different chassis, with a large number of deliveries going to Transit Holdings and their various subsidiaries, mainly on adapted Ford Transit chassis, hence the name of the company.

In 1989, the company was sold by Henlys Group to Plaxton. In February 1992, the company's assets were transferred to a new entity, Deckglade Limited, in preparation for a management buyout by the Woodall Nicholson Group that was completed in May 1992, with the company name reverting to Mellor Coachcraft in July 2003. Success was found in the late 1990s and early 2000s with a bodywork for the low-floor Iveco Daily chassis, with a capacity of between 16 and 25 passengers; fitted with an optional rear lift, the body was popular with the early access bus market. Later, bodywork was launched for the Fiat Ducato, Ford Transit and Mercedes-Benz T2, Vario and Sprinter chassis, with many minibuses being sold to local authorities in the access bus market.

Mellor purchased rival minibus manufacturer Bluebird Vehicles in July 2014, after the latter company had entered administration, taking over manufacture of their successful Fiat Ducato-based Orion and Volkswagen Transporter-based Tucana minibuses. Mellor later launched the updated Tucana II and an updated version of the Orion, sharing features with a number of Mellor's own products.

In 2016, Mellor launched the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter-based Strata minibus, with a capacity of up to 22 seated passengers. The Strata has sold well in the market of the United Kingdom's 'second minibus revolution' of the mid to late 2010s, winning orders from a number of operators including Arriva North West, McGill’s Buses and Bus Vannin.

The Strata was followed by the Maxima on high-floor Iveco Daily chassis, aimed at local authorities for the access bus and community transport markets, with a capacity of up to eight wheelchairs or 30 seated passengers.[15] In August 2017, Mellor signed a distributorship arrangement deal in Germany and Austria with E-Vade as part of plans to expand into the mainland European market.

Chassis n° 06002

RM Sotheby's

Place Vauban

Parijs - Paris

Frankrijk - France

February 2020

Estimated : € 380.000 - 420.000

Sold after auction (Highest bid : € 350.000)

The Dino 246 GTS was introduced as an open-air companion to its beginning in 1971, two years after the first upsized 2.4-litre V-6 had been installed in the mid-engined sports car. The reinforcements necessary for the open roof added up to just a 20-kilogram increase in kerb weight, which helped maintain the car’s exceptional handling.

Open-air driving is perhaps associated better with the West Coast of the United States than anywhere else, where the California dream for many is a jaunt up the Pacific Coast Highway on a sunny afternoon.

This 246 GTS was built on 11 September 1973 in bright Giallo Fly over a Pella Nera interior with grey carpets and was well equipped with air conditioning and power windows, as well as Daytona-style seats and Campagnolo wheels with the associated fender flares. It was dispatched to the legendary American importer William F Harrah’s distributorship. It was delivered new through the equally celebrated Ron Tonkin showroom in Portland, Oregon. There, it was earmarked for Tonkin’s cousin Bert in San Francisco, who would go on to keep the Dino for more than two decades. According to Ferrari historian Marcel Massini, nearly 48,000 miles were accumulated by Tonkin on California’s winding roads. A subsequent owner relocated the car across the Pacific to Japan in March of 1995, where it remained for two decades before passing back through California before being sold to an owner in Switzerland.

Recently refinished in striking Nero, the car retains the unique American-market extended bumpers and has been converted to European-style turn indicators. Chassis no. 06002 received Ferrari Classiche certification in October of 2018, although it should be noted that while the car retains its original gearbox, the original engine has been replaced with a unit of the correct type.

Boasting a fascinating history on three continents, this Dino would surely be a thrill to drive and enjoy.

The Roger Maris Museum is in a Mall in Fargo, No. Dakota. Part of the deal was that it would be easily accessible for people and remain on display. The collection has a lot of value.

During his career, Roger Maris played in seven World Series and seven All-Star games. He hit 275 career home runs and won the Gold Glove Award for outstanding defensive play. The New York Yankees retired his number "9" in 1984.

Roger founded Maris Distributing Company, an Anheuser-Busch distributorship, in 1967 with his brother Rudy, which he operated until his death in 1985.

In 1998, Roger's home run record was surpassed by Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, both from the National League, 37 years after the 1961 season.

Roger Maris became one of the few baseball players ever featured on a United States postage stamp when the United States Postal Service issued its "Roger Maris, 61 in 61" stamp in 1999.

Billy Crystal's acclaimed film, 61*, starring Barry Pepper and Thomas Jane, about the home run race in 1961, premiered in 2001. The film was re-released on blue ray DVD in 2011.

In 2011, the New York Yankees celebrated the 50th year of Roger's American League Home Run record, which remains unbeaten.

Chassis n° DB4/780/L

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 280.000 - 340.000

Sold for € 304.750

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

"When the products which are raced bear such a close resemblance to those which can be bought by the public, as do those of Aston Martin, only the most biased can deny the value of racing in improving the breed. It should be no surprise (that the DB4) should be based on an engine which first appeared in experimental form in some of last year's races." - The Autocar, 3rd October 1958.

At its launch in October 1958, the DB4 marked a major turning point for Aston Martin as it was the first car of the David Brown era that neither used a chassis derived from the experimental Atom of 1939 nor an engine designed by Willie Watson. Moreover, it was the first Aston Martin to carry Carrozzeria Touring's 'Superleggera' bodywork, in which light alloy panels were fixed to a framework of light-gauge steel tubes welded to a platform chassis. Although styled by Touring, the DB4's gorgeous fastback coachwork was built under license at Newport Pagnell by Aston Martin, which employed some of the finest panel beaters in the industry. The result was a car whose sleek lines were described as 'unmistakably Italian and yet... equally unmistakably Aston Martin.' The 3.7-litre, six-cylinder power unit was the work of Tadek Marek, and had first been seen at Le Mans the previous year in the DBR2.

Manufactured between October 1958 and June 1963, the DB4 developed through no fewer than five series. However, it should be made clear that the cars were not thus designated by the factory, this nomenclature having been suggested subsequently by the Aston Martin Owners Club to aid identification as the model evolved. The first series had already undergone a number of improvements, including the fitting of heavy-duty bumpers after the first 50 cars, before the second series arrived in January 1960. A front-hinged bonnet, bigger brake callipers and an enlarged sump were the major changes made on the Series II, while the third series featured separate rear lights, two bonnet stays and a host of improvements to the interior fittings. Manufactured between September 1961 and October 1962, the fourth series was readily distinguishable by its shallower bonnet intake, recessed rear lights and new grille with seven vertical bars. The final, fifth, series was lengthened to accommodate more rear legroom and a larger boot, and somewhat lost the sportiness of the earlier series cars.

This left-hand drive 'Series IV' DB4 was delivered new to the J S Inskip distributorship in the USA and first owned by one Edward R Nichold of Barnardsville, New Jersey. The accompanying guarantee form copy records that the car was finished in California Sage with fawn Connolly leather interior trim and that it was fitted with two wing mirrors. The AMOC Register records a subsequent owner in the USA as one D E Harvey.

Now being offered having been on static display, this matching numbers DB4 will naturally require recommissioning before returning to the road.

Chassis n° LML/50/289

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 250.000 - 300.000

Sold for € 264.500

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

Aston Martin owner David Brown's 1947 acquisition of Lagonda made the latter's Willie Watson-designed, twin-overhead-camshaft, 2.6-litre six available for a new sports car: the DB2. (This power unit is commonly referred to as 'the Bentley engine', W O Bentley having been Lagonda's Chief Engineer at the time.) Announced in April 1950, with production commencing the following month, the DB2 owed much to the Claude Hill-designed DB1, using a shortened and modified version of the latter's chassis and identical suspension. Italian-inspired, the timelessly elegant GT bodywork was the creation of Frank Feeley, and with more power (105bhp at 5,000rpm) and less weight, the sleek DB2 comfortably out-performed its predecessor.

Writing in 1952, Autosport's John Bolster enthused: "The DB2 is a very fast sports car of immense stamina, as a long list of racing successes has proved. (The) model is remarkable for its comfort and luxury and is also about the easiest thing there is to drive, outside of the 'automatic transmission' carriages." Bolster enjoyed the DB2's outstanding performance, particularly that of the 120mph Vantage version, and remarked on the car's inherent safety and versatility: "Whether one would go shopping, to the theatre, on a long-distance tour, or even race at Le Mans, one could have no more perfect companion than the Aston Martin."

The body of the DB2 afforded its two occupants a generous amount of interior space and the considerable convenience, from the maintenance and accessibility point of view, of a forward-hinging entire front section. DB2 bodies were coachbuilt in the traditional manner, a situation that resulted in numerous differences between individual examples, most obviously in the treatment of the front grille. A drophead coupé version was announced towards the end of 1950. When production ceased in April 1953, a total of 411 DB2s had been made: 98 of them dropheads.

This DB2 drophead's guarantee form (copy on file) shows that it was built with the more powerful (125bhp-plus) VB6B 'Vantage' engine and left the factory in left-hand drive configuration. The original colour scheme was Silver Green with beige leather interior. The DB2 was destined for the USA, being delivered to the Arnolt distributorship in February 1953. Its first owner was J.J. Calvillo, Esq of Ferndale, Michigan. Offered today from long-term storage, and subject to EU import taxes, this rare and highly desirable British classic will require an element of recommissioning prior to road use.

Saleroom notices

Photo of the main strip in the western Twin Cities lake suburb of Wayzata, MN, including a Standard service station that gave S&H Green Stamps. From the June 1968 issue of a Grain Belt Breweries, Inc. company magazine called the Grain Belt Diamond, in an article profiling a beer distributorship in that town.

British postcard by Pictures Ltd. for Pictures for the Picturegoer.

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty, and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest-paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival, Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam, and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure-costume picture, a genre that was then out of favor with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smash success and parlayed the actor into the rank of superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films, he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work, or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and footprints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith, and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during its making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the aging Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933 after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years, he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent traveling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, "I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia, and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

Ad for a wine and alcohol distributorship in Valencia, Spain.

ODC = Begins with S

I guess some of my flickr contacts realize by now that we have a rather eclectic front yard between Superman in a phone booth Superman a boat filled with flowers (a boatload of flowers flowers & outhouse an out house that holds my gardening tools and a UFO UFO in a tree but you have not seen the shoe tree. One day some months back I was out watering flowers and saw these shoes hanging in the Katalpa tree, for the life of me I could not figure out why my husband hung them there so finally had to ask. The answer....a shoe tree. Well I started laughing so hard I had to sit down. You might notice there are some hangers also that joined the shoes later, this is also a hanging tree. In case you are wondering what kind of shoes these are they are Z-coils and excellent for runners and walkers and folks that have plantar fasciitis. We used to be a distributor for years and wore them all the time until they took our distributorship away, Sold off most of the stock and here is the rest of the story:)

Chassis n° LML/50/289

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 250.000 - 300.000

Sold for € 264.500

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

Aston Martin owner David Brown's 1947 acquisition of Lagonda made the latter's Willie Watson-designed, twin-overhead-camshaft, 2.6-litre six available for a new sports car: the DB2. (This power unit is commonly referred to as 'the Bentley engine', W O Bentley having been Lagonda's Chief Engineer at the time.) Announced in April 1950, with production commencing the following month, the DB2 owed much to the Claude Hill-designed DB1, using a shortened and modified version of the latter's chassis and identical suspension. Italian-inspired, the timelessly elegant GT bodywork was the creation of Frank Feeley, and with more power (105bhp at 5,000rpm) and less weight, the sleek DB2 comfortably out-performed its predecessor.

Writing in 1952, Autosport's John Bolster enthused: "The DB2 is a very fast sports car of immense stamina, as a long list of racing successes has proved. (The) model is remarkable for its comfort and luxury and is also about the easiest thing there is to drive, outside of the 'automatic transmission' carriages." Bolster enjoyed the DB2's outstanding performance, particularly that of the 120mph Vantage version, and remarked on the car's inherent safety and versatility: "Whether one would go shopping, to the theatre, on a long-distance tour, or even race at Le Mans, one could have no more perfect companion than the Aston Martin."

The body of the DB2 afforded its two occupants a generous amount of interior space and the considerable convenience, from the maintenance and accessibility point of view, of a forward-hinging entire front section. DB2 bodies were coachbuilt in the traditional manner, a situation that resulted in numerous differences between individual examples, most obviously in the treatment of the front grille. A drophead coupé version was announced towards the end of 1950. When production ceased in April 1953, a total of 411 DB2s had been made: 98 of them dropheads.

This DB2 drophead's guarantee form (copy on file) shows that it was built with the more powerful (125bhp-plus) VB6B 'Vantage' engine and left the factory in left-hand drive configuration. The original colour scheme was Silver Green with beige leather interior. The DB2 was destined for the USA, being delivered to the Arnolt distributorship in February 1953. Its first owner was J.J. Calvillo, Esq of Ferndale, Michigan. Offered today from long-term storage, and subject to EU import taxes, this rare and highly desirable British classic will require an element of recommissioning prior to road use.

Saleroom notices

British postcard by Cinema Art LTD, London. Douglas Fairbanks as D'Artagnan in The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921).

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty, and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest-paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival, Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam, and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure-costume picture, a genre that was then out of favor with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smash success and parlayed the actor into the rank of superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films, he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work, or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and footprints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith, and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during its making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the aging Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933 after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years, he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent traveling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, "I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia, and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 4115/3, 1929-1930. Photo: United Artists. Douglas Fairbanks in The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929).

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty, and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure-costume picture, a genre that was then out of favor with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smash success and parlayed the actor into the rank of superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work, or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and foot prints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during it's making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films, were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the aging Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933, after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent traveling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, "I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

Photos by: Beppe Sabatini

Email: bsabatini@hotmail.com

Portfolio: www.flickr.com/photos/8703833@N08/sets/72157633608989882/

Here is our next float sponsored by Peroni Nastro Azzuro - DBI Beverage. DBI Beverage is the parent company of eight distributorships throughout Northern California, offering the finest selection of domestic, import, craft beers and wine, water and soft drinks.

Our thanks to them for their support of the parade.

There are many ways to identify the maker of a guitar. The easiest is to read the information on the sticker if there is one on the inside. This is a Dauphin guitar, made in Japan circa 1995. They were originally made in Spain. In the 1970's. in Japan. These guitars were imported by George Dauphanis to his distributorship in Springfield, Illinois.

This particular guitar was obtained in a trade with my son about 15 years ago. Plays and sounds terrific. Think I'll keep it.

For 52 in 2016 - week #4 - theme:"what's inside"

German postcard. Photo: Alex Binder. Collection: Didier Hanson.

Ernst Lubitsch (1892-1947) was a German-American actor, screenwriter, producer and film director. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; as his prestige grew, his films were promoted as having ‘the Lubitsch touch.’ He was nominated three times for the Oscar for Best Director and in 1947, he received an Honorary Academy Award.

Ernst Lubitsch was born in Berlin, Germany, in 1892. He was the son of Anna (née Lindenstaedt) and Simon Lubitsch, a tailor. His family was Ashkenazi Jewish, his father born in Grodno and his mother from Wriezen (Oder), outside Berlin. Ernst was drawn to the stage while participating in plays staged by his high school, which he quit at 16. He worked as a bookkeeper at his father's store by day and appeared in cabarets and music halls by night. By 1911, he was a member of Max Reinhardt's renowned Deutsches Theater, where he quickly advanced from bit parts to character leads. He made his film debut the following year and appeared in approximately thirty films as an actor between 1912 and 1920. Lubitsch appeared in a series of very successful film comedies as a character named Meyer in which he emphasized ethnic Jewish humour. In 1914 he began to write and direct his own films, and made his mark as a serious director with the drama Die Augen der Mumie Ma/The Eyes of the Mummy (Ernst Lubitsch, 1918), starring Pola Negri. He gradually abandoned acting to concentrate on directing and his last film appearance was opposite Pola Negri and Paul Wegener in the drama Sumurun (Ernst Lubitsch, 1920). As a director, Lubitsch alternated between escapist comedies and large-scale historical dramas, enjoying great international success with both. A triumph was Die Austernprinzessin/The Oyster Princess (Ernst Lubitsch, 1919), featuring Ossi Oswalda, a sparkling satire caricaturizing American manners. His reputation as a grand master of world cinema reached a new peak after the release of his spectacles Madame Du Barry/Passion (Ernst Lubitsch, 1919) with Pola Negri, and Anna Boleyn/Deception (Ernst Lubitsch, 1920) starring Henny Porten and Emil Jannings. Both of these films found American distributorship by early 1921. They, along with his Carmen/Gypsy Blood (Ernst Lubitsch, 1921) were selected by The New York Times on its list of the 15 most important movies of 1921. With glowing reviews under his belt, and American money flowing his way, Lubitsch formed his own production company and made the high-budget spectacular The Loves of Pharaoh (Ernst Lubitsch, 1921).

Ernst Lubitsch left Germany for Hollywood in 1922. He was contracted by Mary Pickford to direct her in the film Rosita. The result was a critical and commercial success, but director and star clashed during its filming, and it ended up as the only project that they made together. A free agent after just one American film, Lubitsch was signed to a remarkable three-year, six-picture contract by Warner Brothers that guaranteed the director his choice of both cast and crew, and full editing control over the final cut. Settling in America, Lubitsch established his reputation for sophisticated comedy with such stylish films as The Marriage Circle (1924), Lady Windermere's Fan (1925), and So This Is Paris (1926). But his films were only marginally profitable for Warner Brothers, and Lubitsch's contract was eventually dissolved by mutual consent, with MGM-Paramount buying out the remainder. His first film for MGM, The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (1927) with Ramon Novarro, was well regarded, but lost money. Lubitsch seized upon the advent of talkies to direct musicals. With his first sound film, The Love Parade (1929), starring Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald, Lubitsch hit his stride as a maker of worldly musical comedies and earned himself another Oscar nomination. The Love Parade (1929), Monte Carlo (1930), and The Smiling Lieutenant (1931) were hailed by critics as masterpieces of the newly emerging musical genre. Lubitsch served on the faculty of the University of Southern California for a time. His next film was a romantic comedy, written with Samson Raphaelson, Trouble in Paradise (1932). Later described (approvingly) as "truly amoral" by critic David Thomson, the cynical comedy was popular both with critics and with audiences. But it was a project that could only have been made before the enforcement of the Production Code, and after 1935, Trouble in Paradise was withdrawn from circulation. It was not seen again until 1968.

Ernst Lubitsch continued to specialize in comedy, whether with music, as in MGM's opulent The Merry Widow (1934) and Paramount's One Hour with You (1932), or without, as in Design for Living (1933). He made only one other dramatic film, the anti-war Broken Lullaby/The Man I Killed (1932). In 1935, he was appointed Paramount's production manager, thus becoming the only major Hollywood director to run a large studio. But Lubitsch had trouble delegating authority, which was a problem when he was overseeing sixty different films. He was fired after a year on the job, and returned to full-time moviemaking. In 1935 he married British actress Vivian Gaye. They had one daughter, Nicola Lubitsch in 1938. In 1936, he became a naturalized US citizen. Lubitsch moved to MGM, and directed Greta Garbo in Ninotchka (1939). The famously serious actress' laughing scene in this satirical comedy was heavily promoted by studio publicists with the tagline "Garbo Laughs!" In 1940, Lubitsch directed The Shop Around the Corner, an artful comedy of cross purposes. The film reunited Lubitsch with his Merry Widow screenwriter Raphaelson, and starred James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan as a pair of bickering co-workers in Budapest, each unaware that the other is their secret romantic correspondent. Lubitsch went independent to direct That Uncertain Feeling (1941, a remake of his 1925 film Kiss Me Again), and the dark anti-Nazi farce To Be or Not to Be (1942). A heart condition curtailed his activity, and he spent much of his time in supervisory capacities. Heaven Can Wait (1943) was another Raphaelson collaboration. Then, Lubitsch worked with Edwin Justus Mayer on the scripting process of A Royal Scandal (1945), a remake of Ernst Lubitsch's silent film A Forbidden Paradise. The script was written and prepared under Lubitsch, and he was the original director of this film, and directed the rehearsals. He became ill during shooting, so hired Otto Preminger to do the rest of the shooting. After A Royal Scandal, Lubitsch regained his health, and directed Cluny Brown (1946), with Charles Boyer and Jennifer Jones. In 1947, he was awarded a Special Academy Award. Ernst Lubitsch died later that year in Hollywood of a heart attack, his sixth. His last film, That Lady in Ermine (1948) with Betty Grable, was completed by Otto Preminger and released posthumously.

Sources: Ephraim Katz (The Film Encyclopedia), William McPeak (IMDb), Wikipedia and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 3243/2, 1928-1929. Photo: United Artists. Douglas Fairbanks in The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927).

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty, and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest-paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival, Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure-costume picture, a genre that was then out of favor with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smashing success and parlayed the actor into the rank of a superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films, he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work, or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and footprints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith, and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during its making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the aging Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933 after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years, he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent traveling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, "I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia, and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

s/n 1489GT

240 bhp, 2,953 cc, overhead-camshaft alloy block and head V12 engine, with four-speed gearbox, independent front suspension via A-arms, coil springs and telescopic shocks, and rear suspension via live axle, semi-elliptic springs and hydraulic shocks, and four-wheel hydraulic disc brakes. Wheelbase: 102.4"

- One of only 50 built

- Delivered new to Prince Vittorio Emanuele di Savoia

- Matching numbers

- Multiple awards, including Platinum Award and Pebble Beach class win

The 250 GT Pinin Farina Spyder

Towards the end of 1957, when the Ferrari 250 GT Pinin Farina Cabriolet went into production, a prototype for another open-top car appeared, aimed squarely at the U.S. market. It was called the Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder and was thought by many aficionados to be one of the most beautiful cars ever to come out of Maranello – a view still held by many to this day.

The California Spyder’s development was spurred on by the recognition that Stateside buyers wanted a fast, sparsely equipped convertible Ferrari sports car, the convertible counterpart of the Tour de France berlinettas. Whether it was Luigi Chinetti or John von Neumann who first pointed this out to Ferrari is immaterial. What is important, however, is that Ferrari responded with the California Spyder.

These open cars were quite different in concept and execution to their PF Cabriolet counterparts. The Pinin Farina Cabriolet was based on the Pininfarina Coupe, a luxurious gran turismo. The California Spyder was a much sportier car, based on the dual-purpose berlinettas also designed by Pinin Farina, though built in small numbers in Modena by Carrozzeria Scaglietti, which was partly owned by Ferrari. The procedure was described by Ferrari in their official history and catalogue as a simple one: “Pinin Farina prepared the prototype, which was then sent to Maranello to be inspected by Enzo Ferrari. Although the final decision was naturally his, the dealers also had an important say in the matter and were often called in to give their opinions.” Scaglietti would then take over: “His job was to produce the set number of ‘reproductions’ of the model and to equip himself for the task on the basis of the systems in use at Maranello, which was far more ‘artisan’ in approach than those used by Pinin Farina.”

California Spyder production began in 1958, and some 11 examples had been built by the time it was announced as a separate model in December 1958. All told, 14 California Spyders were built during 1958, with the remaining 36 cars built between 1959 and 1960, including at least three fitted with alloy bodies; they were constructed to full competition specifications.

Certainly in the case of the 250 GT California Spyder, Ferrari’s two US distributors did have serious input in the design of the new car. Luigi Chinetti, who set up the first, and for a while the only, Ferrari dealership in the US, later had all the territory east of the Mississippi River, which amounted to about half the country. Luigi Chinetti was also the founder of NART – the North American Racing Team, the racing arm of Chinetti’s distributorship. The other influential distributor was the Austrian-born John von Neumann, whose racing and dealership interests were based out of California.

Both Chinetti and von Neumann recognized a gap in the market for a higher performance open-top car in America that was not filled by the luxurious 250 GT Cabriolet. It seemed obvious to base this car on the 250 GT Berlinetta (Tour de France), which lacked a convertible version.

The Tour de France was originally known as the 250 GT Berlinetta. The Tour de France nickname was added after the car’s domination of the legendary and grueling ten-day French event, in which the car’s performance, reliability and durability made it a success.

In the end, 14 California Spyders were built during 1958, with the remaining 36 cars built between 1959 and 1960, including at least seven fitted with alloy bodies, constructed to full competition specification. When the 250 GT SWB (short wheelbase) Berlinetta was launched, it was followed shortly thereafter by the corresponding SWB California Spyder, which was introduced at Geneva in March 1960. By the time production came to a close, a total of just 106 California Spyders had been built, 50 of them on the LWB chassis.

One California Spyder was entered by NART at Sebring early in 1959 and driven by Richie Ginther and Howard Hively. It finished ninth overall (behind four Testarossas and four Porsche RSKs) and won the GT class. Le Mans in 1959 conclusively demonstrated the performance of the California Spyder as the NART-entered, alloy-bodied car driven by Bob Grossman and Fernand Tavano finished fifth overall.

Chassis no. 1489 GT

The original left-hand drive LWB California Spyder offered here, s/n 1489 GT, was completed by the factory on September 19th, 1959 as the 32nd of 50 examples that would ultimately be built and was delivered new to its first owner Prince Vittorio Emanuele di Savoia of Italy, resident in Geneva, Switzerland. Born in 1937, Vittorio Emanuele has led quite a colorful life and is the only son of the last King of Italy, Umberto II. He has lived most of his life outside Italy, primarily in Switzerland, following the referendum of 1946, whereby the Italian people voted in favor of a republic. He has worked in a variety of professions, from banker to aircraft salesman and was famously married to Swiss heiress and water skier Marina Ricolfi-Doria.

By 1962, 1489 GT was offered for sale by German racing driver and car dealer Wolfgang Seidel in Dusseldorf. The car was owned by Dr. Hans Hardt of Waldernbach, Germany in the mid-1960s before it was exported to the United States in 1968.

Mrs. Ellis Little of Greenfield, New Hampshire owned the car in 1970, and it has remained stateside ever since. It is known to have been in Philadelphia in 1980 at Mark Smith’s Old Philadelphia Motorcar Corp. before being restored two years later at Bob Smith Coachworks in Gainesville, Texas. At that time, it was converted to covered headlight specification and repainted black with a red stripe and red leather interior.

In 1992 Smith showed the car during the 27th Annual Ferrari Club of America National Meeting in the Washington, DC area, where it placed First in Class Three. Collector Anthony W. Wang then showed the car at the exclusive Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance later in the year, where it again placed first in its class (Class M – Ferrari Custom Coachwork through 1964). The car continued to participate in a number of events, including the Blackhawk Collection invitational at Danville, California and the third annual Colorado Grand in 1991.

Anthony Wang sold the car to RM Classic Cars Inc. in May 1998. While in RM’s possession, the car attended the 1998 FCA National Meet in Toronto, Ontario, where it was involved in both the track day and the concours, at which it won a gold award.

In September of 1998, Richard Sirota, another noted collector from New York, acquired the car and brought it to the Cavallino Classic in Palm Beach the following year, where it won the coveted Platinum Award. In fact, Sirota also participated in the Colorado Grand in 1999. One year later it was sold to a very prominent collection in Japan and later shown in 2004 at The Quail – A Motorsports Gathering in Carmel Valley. Noted enthusiast Enrique Landa purchased the car in 2006, brought it back to The Quail the same year and, once again, participated in the Colorado Grand.

The current owner has enjoyed the car since the summer of 2008. It has fulfilled its objective in providing sunny afternoon drives, trips to concours and shows and is certain to fulfill those same for its new owner. Few cars are as perpetually desirable, timelessly gorgeous and rarely available as a Ferrari California Spyder. This is one of the finest examples we’ve ever offered.

[Text from RM Auctions]

www.rmauctions.com/mo10/sports--classics-of-monterey/lots...

This Lego miniland-scale Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spyder' (1959 - Scaglietti), has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 89th Build Challenge, - "Over a Million, Under a Thousand", - a challenge to build vehicles valued over one million (US) dollars, or under one thousand (US) dollars.

This particular vehicle was auctioned by the RM Auction house on Saturday, August 14, 2010, where it sold for $2,612,500.

Central, Hong Kong

Hi-res: farm8.staticflickr.com/7176/6908416517_a38659419c_o.jpg

There is very little information concerning the 964 CTR on the internet, but I am pretty confident it exists after reading about it in a couple of places. I know the original CTR was based on the 930 and nicknamed the 'Yellowbird', but I would like to know for sure that RUF continued the lineage with the 964 before producing the 993 CTR 2 in '93. If so then this is a very rare car indeed. Can anyone confirm this as an original 964 CTR?

www.wix.com/juanchaihk/rprocter

UPDATE: After a couple of years still not knowing the full-story on this one, I now have the facts from a Mr Jimmy Yee. It's "This car was originally a late 80's 930 Turbo owned by Tony Cruz. Tony took the Ruf sole distributorship for Hong Kong market in early 90's. He shipped his 930 to Ruf and have it converted into a twin-turbo Yellow Bird spec and at the same time changed the bumpers to 964 version and subsequently fitted a 993 GT2 rear wing. The wheels fitted were BBS magnesium 3-piece racing, which did not last long and started to leak after some years. I made a set of 3-pc wheels for him to replace the BBS in mid 2000's when he wanted to sell the car. I drove the car, which the condition was very poor due to badly maintained at that time. The one who bought the car from Tony had obviously spent a lot of money to make it looks good again." So, there you go. Thanks, Jimmy!

Chassis n° 679471

RM Sotheby's

Place Vauban

Parijs - Paris

Frankrijk - France

February 2020

Estimated : € 70.000 - 90.000

Sold for € 122.475

This gorgeous XK 120 Fixed Head Coupé was delivered new to the U.S. Completed by Jaguar on 7 March 1952, the car was subsequently shipped to Charles Hornburg’s distributorship in Los Angeles finished in Pastel Green with a Suede Green interior. The first owner was H E Bauer, an airline pilot who kept the car until 2010. During his ownership it was parked in his garage in 1967, and there it sat until 2010.

After emerging from over five decades of single ownership, it was subjected to a full body-off restoration by John Pollock Restorations of Reseda, California. There, the car was restored in its stunning original colours and received several factory upgrades, including a five-speed gearbox, front disc brakes, a lightened flywheel, and an aluminium radiator for greater performance and drivability in modern traffic. Following the completion of the restoration, it won Best Jaguar at the Beverly Hills Concours d’Elegance prior to being exported to the UK in 2014.

Considered by many to be one of Jaguar’s most spectacular designs, this example’s colour scheme showcases the XK 120’s curves beautifully, and considering its modern upgrades, it would be a spectacular driver’s example.

The Daytona is for many the last "real" Ferrari since it incorporates front engine, rear wheel drive, transaxle gearbox and the legendary V12 engine. It was the last front-engine Ferrari, featured the unique traditional 12-cylinder sound and with its 4 overhead camshaft engine with 4.4 litres and 352 horsepower produced a performance which was not equalled by any other car manufacturer of that moment. An acceleration of zero to 100 km/h in 5.7 seconds and a top speed of over 280 km/h speak volumes.

Even more special was the open version of the Daytona, the Daytona Spider, combining the striking Daytona performance with the fresh air open feeling. While 1.300 examples of the Daytona Coupé were produced, a mere 123 Daytona Spider left the factory.

This particular Daytona Spider, chassis no. 16801, was delivered new to William F. Harrah's US west coast Ferrari distributorship and subsequently owned by Jeff Weiss, resident in Miami Florida. By 1987 the car was owned by Eric Y. Eichler from Pennsylvania who had reached a mileage of 15.000 miles from new. Between 1995 and 1996, Mr Eichler was very active in showing the car in various Concours d'Elegance including in the Annual Ferrari Club or North America National Meet at Columbus Ohio and the Annual Ferrari Concours at Reading Pennsylvania.

In 2002, when the car had reached a mileage of 19.000 miles, the car was restored by Rich Mullin at the official Ferrari Workshop "Karrosseria". The car was completely original but at that time had started showing its age. The car was restored to 100 point show condition, which also included a mechanical overhaul.

In 2003 the car was sold by Connecticut Ferrari dealer Miller Motors to collector Peter Livanos who brought the car to Switzerland and had it homologated on Swiss plates.

Having covered only another 1.500 miles since 2003, the car is still in outstanding condition, a rare opportunity to find an excellent example of a genuine Daytona Spider.

Chassis number : 16801

Engine specification : V12 4 overhead camshaft, 4.4 litre engine with 352 HP

Colour : Rosso Chiaro

Hood : black

Interior : Nero VM8500

Original equipment : air conditioning, radio

Mileage : 20.000 miles from new

Chassis n° LML/50/289

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 250.000 - 300.000

Sold for € 264.500

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

Aston Martin owner David Brown's 1947 acquisition of Lagonda made the latter's Willie Watson-designed, twin-overhead-camshaft, 2.6-litre six available for a new sports car: the DB2. (This power unit is commonly referred to as 'the Bentley engine', W O Bentley having been Lagonda's Chief Engineer at the time.) Announced in April 1950, with production commencing the following month, the DB2 owed much to the Claude Hill-designed DB1, using a shortened and modified version of the latter's chassis and identical suspension. Italian-inspired, the timelessly elegant GT bodywork was the creation of Frank Feeley, and with more power (105bhp at 5,000rpm) and less weight, the sleek DB2 comfortably out-performed its predecessor.

Writing in 1952, Autosport's John Bolster enthused: "The DB2 is a very fast sports car of immense stamina, as a long list of racing successes has proved. (The) model is remarkable for its comfort and luxury and is also about the easiest thing there is to drive, outside of the 'automatic transmission' carriages." Bolster enjoyed the DB2's outstanding performance, particularly that of the 120mph Vantage version, and remarked on the car's inherent safety and versatility: "Whether one would go shopping, to the theatre, on a long-distance tour, or even race at Le Mans, one could have no more perfect companion than the Aston Martin."

The body of the DB2 afforded its two occupants a generous amount of interior space and the considerable convenience, from the maintenance and accessibility point of view, of a forward-hinging entire front section. DB2 bodies were coachbuilt in the traditional manner, a situation that resulted in numerous differences between individual examples, most obviously in the treatment of the front grille. A drophead coupé version was announced towards the end of 1950. When production ceased in April 1953, a total of 411 DB2s had been made: 98 of them dropheads.

This DB2 drophead's guarantee form (copy on file) shows that it was built with the more powerful (125bhp-plus) VB6B 'Vantage' engine and left the factory in left-hand drive configuration. The original colour scheme was Silver Green with beige leather interior. The DB2 was destined for the USA, being delivered to the Arnolt distributorship in February 1953. Its first owner was J.J. Calvillo, Esq of Ferndale, Michigan. Offered today from long-term storage, and subject to EU import taxes, this rare and highly desirable British classic will require an element of recommissioning prior to road use.

Saleroom notices

Chassis n° LML/50/289

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 250.000 - 300.000

Sold for € 264.500

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

Aston Martin owner David Brown's 1947 acquisition of Lagonda made the latter's Willie Watson-designed, twin-overhead-camshaft, 2.6-litre six available for a new sports car: the DB2. (This power unit is commonly referred to as 'the Bentley engine', W O Bentley having been Lagonda's Chief Engineer at the time.) Announced in April 1950, with production commencing the following month, the DB2 owed much to the Claude Hill-designed DB1, using a shortened and modified version of the latter's chassis and identical suspension. Italian-inspired, the timelessly elegant GT bodywork was the creation of Frank Feeley, and with more power (105bhp at 5,000rpm) and less weight, the sleek DB2 comfortably out-performed its predecessor.

Writing in 1952, Autosport's John Bolster enthused: "The DB2 is a very fast sports car of immense stamina, as a long list of racing successes has proved. (The) model is remarkable for its comfort and luxury and is also about the easiest thing there is to drive, outside of the 'automatic transmission' carriages." Bolster enjoyed the DB2's outstanding performance, particularly that of the 120mph Vantage version, and remarked on the car's inherent safety and versatility: "Whether one would go shopping, to the theatre, on a long-distance tour, or even race at Le Mans, one could have no more perfect companion than the Aston Martin."

The body of the DB2 afforded its two occupants a generous amount of interior space and the considerable convenience, from the maintenance and accessibility point of view, of a forward-hinging entire front section. DB2 bodies were coachbuilt in the traditional manner, a situation that resulted in numerous differences between individual examples, most obviously in the treatment of the front grille. A drophead coupé version was announced towards the end of 1950. When production ceased in April 1953, a total of 411 DB2s had been made: 98 of them dropheads.

This DB2 drophead's guarantee form (copy on file) shows that it was built with the more powerful (125bhp-plus) VB6B 'Vantage' engine and left the factory in left-hand drive configuration. The original colour scheme was Silver Green with beige leather interior. The DB2 was destined for the USA, being delivered to the Arnolt distributorship in February 1953. Its first owner was J.J. Calvillo, Esq of Ferndale, Michigan. Offered today from long-term storage, and subject to EU import taxes, this rare and highly desirable British classic will require an element of recommissioning prior to road use.

Saleroom notices

Chassis n° LML/50/289

Zoute Sale - Bonhams

Estimated : € 250.000 - 300.000

Sold for € 264.500

Zoute Grand Prix 2021

Knokke - Zoute

België - Belgium

October 2021

Aston Martin owner David Brown's 1947 acquisition of Lagonda made the latter's Willie Watson-designed, twin-overhead-camshaft, 2.6-litre six available for a new sports car: the DB2. (This power unit is commonly referred to as 'the Bentley engine', W O Bentley having been Lagonda's Chief Engineer at the time.) Announced in April 1950, with production commencing the following month, the DB2 owed much to the Claude Hill-designed DB1, using a shortened and modified version of the latter's chassis and identical suspension. Italian-inspired, the timelessly elegant GT bodywork was the creation of Frank Feeley, and with more power (105bhp at 5,000rpm) and less weight, the sleek DB2 comfortably out-performed its predecessor.

Writing in 1952, Autosport's John Bolster enthused: "The DB2 is a very fast sports car of immense stamina, as a long list of racing successes has proved. (The) model is remarkable for its comfort and luxury and is also about the easiest thing there is to drive, outside of the 'automatic transmission' carriages." Bolster enjoyed the DB2's outstanding performance, particularly that of the 120mph Vantage version, and remarked on the car's inherent safety and versatility: "Whether one would go shopping, to the theatre, on a long-distance tour, or even race at Le Mans, one could have no more perfect companion than the Aston Martin."

The body of the DB2 afforded its two occupants a generous amount of interior space and the considerable convenience, from the maintenance and accessibility point of view, of a forward-hinging entire front section. DB2 bodies were coachbuilt in the traditional manner, a situation that resulted in numerous differences between individual examples, most obviously in the treatment of the front grille. A drophead coupé version was announced towards the end of 1950. When production ceased in April 1953, a total of 411 DB2s had been made: 98 of them dropheads.

This DB2 drophead's guarantee form (copy on file) shows that it was built with the more powerful (125bhp-plus) VB6B 'Vantage' engine and left the factory in left-hand drive configuration. The original colour scheme was Silver Green with beige leather interior. The DB2 was destined for the USA, being delivered to the Arnolt distributorship in February 1953. Its first owner was J.J. Calvillo, Esq of Ferndale, Michigan. Offered today from long-term storage, and subject to EU import taxes, this rare and highly desirable British classic will require an element of recommissioning prior to road use.

Saleroom notices

Italian postcard by G.B. Falci, Editore, Milano, no. 452. Douglas Fairbanks in Don Q Son of Zorro (Donald Crisp, 1925).

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest-paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival, Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure costume picture, a genre that was then out of favour with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smash success and parlayed the actor into the rank of superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films, he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and footprints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected the first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during its making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the ageing Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933 after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years, he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent travelling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, "I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

French postcard by Cinémagazine-Édition, Paris, no. 54. Photo: United Artists. Douglas Fairbanks in The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927).

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty, and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest-paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival, Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam, and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure-costume picture, a genre that was then out of favor with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smashing success and parlayed the actor into the rank of a superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films, he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work, or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and footprints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith, and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during its making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the aging Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933 after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years, he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent traveling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, " I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia, and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

The Roger Maris Museum is in a Mall in Fargo, No. Dakota. Part of the deal was that it would be easily accessible for people and remain on display. The collection has a lot of value.

During his career, Roger Maris played in seven World Series and seven All-Star games. He hit 275 career home runs and won the Gold Glove Award for outstanding defensive play. The New York Yankees retired his number "9" in 1984.

Roger founded Maris Distributing Company, an Anheuser-Busch distributorship, in 1967 with his brother Rudy, which he operated until his death in 1985.

In 1998, Roger's home run record was surpassed by Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, both from the National League, 37 years after the 1961 season.

Roger Maris became one of the few baseball players ever featured on a United States postage stamp when the United States Postal Service issued its "Roger Maris, 61 in 61" stamp in 1999.

Billy Crystal's acclaimed film, 61*, starring Barry Pepper and Thomas Jane, about the home run race in 1961, premiered in 2001. The film was re-released on blue ray DVD in 2011.

In 2011, the New York Yankees celebrated the 50th year of Roger's American League Home Run record, which remains unbeaten.

French postcard in the Les Vedetttes de Cinéma series by A.N., Paris, no. 54.

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty, and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure-costume picture, a genre that was then out of favor with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smash success and parlayed the actor into the rank of superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work, or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and foot prints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during it's making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films, were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the aging Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933, after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent traveling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, "I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

Bay Colony RR 25-tonner #151 at Westoort, MA on the ex-NH, ex-PC, ex-CR Watuppa Secondary.

Just out of sight to the right was the MassCrinc plant, which had a siding that they used to ship out recycled goods. This portion of the line is long gone now. The plant was located next to White's Restaurant and today is the site of the Towneplace Suites by Marriott hotel which can be seen here alongside Rt 195 east.

At the time, Mid-City Scrap was the only other BCLR consignee on this branch. Conrail's WAMI-3 ran to New Bedford & out the Watuppa to N. Dartmouth, where Colonial Beverage and JJ Taylor's beer distributorships were located. Both were important CR customers and typically switched on Mon-Wed-Fri. They interchanged with BCLR at the runaround track near Hixville Rd.

March 13, 1986 rescan

Austrian postcard by Iris Verlag, no. 783. Photo: United Artists / Apollo Verleih.

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty, and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest-paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival, Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam, and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure-costume picture, a genre that was then out of favor with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smash success and parlayed the actor into the rank of superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films, he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work, or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and footprints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith, and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during its making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the aging Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933 after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years, he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent traveling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, "I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia, and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 3949/1, 1928-1929. Photo: United Artists.

American actor Douglas Fairbanks (1883-1939) was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films such as The Mark of Zorro (1920), Robin Hood (1922), and The Thief of Bagdad (1924), but spent the early part of his career making comedies. Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists and of The Motion Picture Academy. He hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty, and Fairbanks was referred to as The King of Hollywood'', but his career rapidly declined with the advent of the 'talkies. His final film was made in Great Britain, The Private Life of Don Juan (1934).

Douglas Fairbanks was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in 1883 in Denver, Colorado, the son of H. Charles Ullman, a prominent New York attorney, and ‘Southern belle’ Ella Adelaide Marsh. Ullman abandoned the family when Douglas was five years old and he and his older brother Robert were brought up by their mother, who gave them the family name Fairbanks, after her first husband. Douglas Fairbanks began acting at an early age, in amateur theatre on the Denver stage, performing in summer stock, and becoming a sensation in the local theatre community. Fairbanks moved to New York to pursue an acting career. He joined the acting troupe of British actor Frederick Warde who had seen Fairbanks performing in Denver. In 1902, he made his Broadway debut as Florio in the Frederick Warde Company's production of The Duke's Jester. In 1907, Fairbanks married Anna Beth Sully, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. They had one son, Douglas Elton Fairbanks (1909), who later became known as actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. In 1915, the family moved to Los Angeles. The then 31-years old Fairbanks signed a contract with Triangle Pictures and began working under the supervision of D.W. Griffith. His first film was titled The Lamb (W. Christy Cabanne, 1915), in which he debuted the athletic abilities that would gain him wide attention among theatre audiences. His athleticism was not appreciated by Griffith, however, and he was brought to the attention of Anita Loos and John Emerson, who wrote and directed many of his next films. Fairbanks became the top moneymaker for Triangle, starring in an average of 10 pictures a year for a weekly salary of $2000. He specialized in comedies-not the slapstick variety, but free-wheeling farces in which he usually played a wealthy young man thirsting for adventure. In 1916, Fairbanks established his own company, the Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation, and would soon get a job at Paramount. His films ranged from romances to wacky, madcap comedies; from social satires to Westerns. At a party in 1916, Fairbanks met actress Mary Pickford, and the couple began an affair. In 1917, they joined Fairbanks's friend Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds by train across the U.S. Pickford and Chaplin were then the two highest-paid film stars in Hollywood. To curtail these stars' astronomical salaries, the large studios attempted to monopolize distributors and exhibitors. By 1918, Fairbanks was Hollywood's most popular actor, and within three years of his arrival, Fairbanks's popularity and business acumen raised him to the third-highest paid. In late 1918, Sully was granted a divorce from Fairbanks, the judgment being finalized in early 1919. To avoid being controlled by the studios and to protect their independence, Fairbanks, Pickford, Chaplin, and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists in 1919, which created their own distributorships and gave them complete artistic control over their films and the profits generated. The company was kept solvent in the years immediately after its formation largely by the success of Fairbanks's films.

Douglas Fairbanks was determined to have Mary Pickford become his wife, but she was still married to actor Owen Moore. He finally gave her an ultimatum. She then obtained a fast divorce in the small Nevada town of Minden and the couple married in 1920. The public went wild over the idea of ‘Everybody's Hero’ marrying ‘America's Sweetheart.’ They were greeted by large crowds in London, Amsterdam, and Paris during their European honeymoon, becoming Hollywood's first celebrity couple. Fairbanks and Pickford were regarded as ‘Hollywood Royalty,’ famous for entertaining at their 42-room mansion in Beverly Hills, Pickfair. By 1920, Fairbanks had completed twenty-nine films (twenty-eight features and one two-reel short), which showcased his ebullient screen persona and athletic ability. By 1920, he had the inspiration of staging a new type of adventure-costume picture, a genre that was then out of favor with the public; Fairbanks had been a comic in his previous films. In The Mark of Zorro (Fred Niblo, 1920), Fairbanks combined his appealing screen persona with the new adventurous costume element. This genre-defining swashbuckler adventure was the first film version of The Mark of Zorro. It was a smash success and parlayed the actor into the rank of superstar. For the remainder of his career in silent films, he continued to produce and star in ever more elaborate, impressive costume films, such as The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921), Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, 1922), The Thief of Bagdad (Raoul Walsh, 1924), The Black Pirate (Albert Parker, 1926, the first full-length Technicolor film), and The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927) with Lupe Velez. Fairbanks spared no expense and effort in these films, which established the standard for all future swashbuckling films. In 1921, he, Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, and others, helped to organize the Motion Picture Fund to assist those in the industry who could not work, or were unable to meet their bills. During the first ceremony of its type, in 1927, Fairbanks and Pickford placed their hand and footprints in wet cement at the newly opened Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Fairbanks was elected first President of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences that same year, and he presented the first Academy Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel. Today, Fairbanks also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7020 Hollywood Boulevard.

While Douglas Fairbanks had flourished in the silent genre, the restrictions of early sound films dulled his enthusiasm for film-making. He was 44 years old, and could no longer look the part of the youthful swashbuckler or romantic lead, nor could he safely perform the dangerous stunts his audiences expected of him. In 1929, at Pickford's bungalow, United Artists brought together Pickford, Fairbanks, Charles Chaplin, Norma Talmadge, Gloria Swanson, John Barrymore, D.W. Griffith, and Dolores del Rio to speak on the radio show The Dodge Brothers Hour to prove Fairbanks could meet the challenge of talking movies. Fairbanks's last silent film was the lavish The Iron Mask (Allan Dwan, 1929), a sequel to The Three Musketeers (Fred Niblo, 1921). The Iron Mask included an introductory prologue spoken by Fairbanks. He and Pickford chose to make their first talkie as a joint venture, playing Petruchio and Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew (Sam Taylor, 1929). The film was a colossal disaster, and the pair fought constantly during its making. When it flopped at the box office, Doug and Mary blamed each other. Doug’s subsequent sound films were also poorly received by Depression-era audiences. The last film in which he acted was the British production The Private Life of Don Juan (Alexander Korda, 1934), with Merle Oberon. The film is a revealing look at the life of the aging Don Juan, whose reputation has outrun him. The film, based on the 1920 play L'homme à la Rose by Henry Bataille, was made by Korda's London Film Productions at Elstree Studios and distributed by United Artists under an agreement Korda had recently signed with them. Fairbanks and Pickford separated in 1933 after he began an affair with Sylvia, Lady Ashley. They divorced in 1936, with Pickford keeping the Pickfair estate. Within months Fairbanks and Ashley were married in Paris. He continued to be marginally involved in the film industry and was disturbed by the new direction of his own company, United Artists, now under the iron fist of Samuel Goldwyn. His health continued to decline, and in his final years, he lived in Santa Monica, California, although much of his time was spent traveling abroad with Sylvia. At the end of 1939, Fairbanks had a mild heart attack. He died later that day at his home in Santa Monica. He was 56. Fairbanks's famous last words were, "I've never felt better."

Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Ed Stephan (IMDb), The Douglas Fairbanks Museum, Wikipedia, and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

Kaiser-Frazer had planned to be the Fiat importer for the USA, but that didn't work out. Franklin Roosevelt Jr. was a distributor of FIAT and Jaguar automobiles in the United States. In 1970, he sold the distributorship Roosevelt Automobile Company.[1] He was a personal friend of Fiat chairman Gianni Agnelli.