MERTON OF THE MOVIES, SIGNED by HARRY WILSON to SILENT ACTRESS WILNA HERVEY 1st

Description: WILSON, HARRY LEON. Merton of the Movies. Garden City: Doubleday, 1922. First Edition, First Printing of one of the great classics of the Hollywood novel. Signed presentation copy from Harry Leon Wilson to American silent film actress and artist Wilna Hervey. Fine in the rare pictorial dust jacket which is fine and fresh which shows a colorful painting showing the book’s hero Merton Gill and his girlfriend looking at a film poster outside a movie theater. Wilna Hervey was a fascinating woman. As a youth she studied acting and in 1919, she was cast in the role of "The Powerful Katrinka" in The Toonerville Trolley silent film series based on Fontaine Fox's Toonerville Folks comic strip, which was produced by Siegmund Lubin's Betzwood Motion Picture Studios in Pennsylvania. Much of the slapstick comedy in the series revolves around Hervey's imposing physical stature?she stood 6 feet 3 inches in contrast with her diminutive male co-stars. While Hervey was in Pennsylvania working on the production, she met the painter Nan Mason, the daughter of her co-star Dan Mason, who played the Skipper. Nan and Hervey became life partners, remaining together until Hervey's death in 1979. Harry Leon Wilson spent time in Hollywood to observe the film industry first hand. In 1922, the novel was adapted into a Broadway play by George S. Kaufman and Marc Connelly that ran for 392 performances before going on the road. A successful silent film was made in 1924 was directed by James Cruze (who had directed a film version of Harry Leon Wilson’s other classic, Ruggles of Red Gap, the year before). In 1947, a sound film version was made starring Red Skelton, Virginia O’Brien, and Gloria Graham. The novel tells the story of Merton Gill, an aspiring movie actor. The truth is, Merton is a terrible actor and when the movie executives see how funny that Merton's over-acting is, they cast him in a comedy, but tell him that he's acting in a drama. One noted Hollywood writer has remarked: “...What is surprising about Merton of the Movies is that it still entertains after more than 80 years. Its wit and satire have a freshness equal to that seen in Merton by the comedy director. The story of a young boy or girl trying to make good in Hollywood has been told and retold countless times since 1922, but never with such refreshing charm and understanding....” Listed in 100 Books on Hollywood & the Movies.

Price: 2100 USD

Location: Santa Barbara, California

End Time: 2024-11-03T20:29:44.000Z

Shipping Cost: 6 USD