The offered form is signed by actor Henry Fonda, and it authorizes the use of this very signature for fan mail. The form is for the "United Fan Club and Fan Mail Service, 8966 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood 46, California" and it states "I hereby grant the United Fan Club and Fan Mail Service the right to use my autographs and signatures listed below for reproduction in direct connection with all my fan mail and fan club activities. Sincerely, Henry Fonda. DATED: Feb 23, 1956." This is a fascinating little piece of evidence of the common usage of what we call "secretarial" signatures on mailed letters and photos to fans. The hobby is replete with them, certainly, but we have never seen the form itself. Very interesting.
Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor and made his Hollywood film debut in 1935. His film career began to gain momentum with roles such as Bette Davis's fiancé in her Academy Award-winning performance in Jezebel (1938), brother Frank in Jesse James (1939), and the future President in Young Mr. Lincoln (1939), directed by John Ford. His early career peaked with his Academy Award-nominated performance as Tom Joad in The Grapes of Wrath (1940), about an Oklahoma family who moved to California during the Dust Bowl in the 1930s. This film is widely considered to be among the greatest American films, based on a novel of the same name by Nobel laureate for literature, John Steinbeck.
Accompanied by a COA from Beckett Authentic. The form measures 8 1/2 x 4 inches and is matted with a magazine page of Ford as Young Mr. Lincoln. The form has edge wear and some small tears. Excellent condition.