A 1p autograph letter signed by future 40th U.S. President Ronald Reagan (1911-2004), then in his role as host of the incredibly popular television show, General Electric Theater. June 16, [n.y.] but almost certainly 1959 based on information which will be elaborated below. N.p. Inscribed in blue ink on watermarked white stationery paper. Expected wear including flattened paper folds and a few ghost ink impressions, else near fine. 6.125" x 8.375."

Ronald Reagan wrote to a fan named "Mrs. Albert" in part: "Thanks for your very kind letter, I hope we can continue to please you with the G.E. Theatre. The music you mentioned was an original score composed from the play 'At Miss Minners' [sic] by Elmer Bernstein. This music is unpublished but in the near future an album of records will be on the market consisting of musical scores of the 'G.E. Theatre' and this particular music will be included…"

Ronald Reagan served as the host and program supervisor of a CBS radio and television series called General Electric Theater between September 1954 and March 1962. The show consisted of abbreviated adaptations of popular short stories, novels, plays, and movies, with guest appearances by famous actors of the time. The televised 30-minute episodes (20 minutes excluding commercial breaks) were in black and white and aired at a desirable Sunday evening time slot. General Electric Theater reached its peak viewership, according to Nielsen ratings, at #3 from 1956-1957.

"At Miss Minner's" aired on General Electric Theater on October 26, 1958 (Season 7, Episode 6) just in time for Halloween. The episode starred Joan Fontaine and John Newland, who also directed it, and was based on an original ghost story by Jameson Brewer adapted for television by Leslie Gordon Barnard. Joan Fontaine plays Laurel, the neighbor of an eccentric spinster named Miss Minner, this last who lives all alone in a decrepit mansion with a Siamese cat named Mr. Choo Choo. During an overnight visit during a thunderstorm, Laurel realizes that Miss Minner is trying to gaslight her, because Laurel's aunt had harmed Miss Minner when a child. The episode is definitely spooky, thanks in part to Elmer Bernstein's eerie piano composition, "Lavender Waltz," the piece that Reagan's correspondent Mrs. Albert so admired.

Ronald Reagan was indeed correct: the vinyl LP of "Themes from the General Electric Theater" was released in 1959 by Columbia Records, which enables us to posit a year for our autographed letter signed of 1959. "Themes" included 13 tracks, among which Elmer Bernstein's "Lavender Waltz" appeared as Track 6 on Side A. Elmer Bernstein (1922-2004) was a prolific composer and conductor of television and movie scores. Over the course of his 50+-year career, Bernstein would win multiple awards including an Oscar, an Emmy, Tonys (2), Grammys (5), and Golden Globes (7). In the 1950s, however, Bernstein was still painstakingly rehabilitating his image after being interviewed by the House of Un-American Activities Committee earlier that decade. Bernstein's career suffered greatly from the suspicion of Communist associations, and he was temporarily relegated to the Hollywood junk barrel and forced to compose sci-fi musical scores in the early 1950s. Yet Bernstein's career had been revived sufficiently by the late 1950s; he composed and conducted all of the tracks on the "Themes" record.

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

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