| page 2: Things found in books |
| The book on the left was found in a small second hand book shop. I'd originally gone in there to buy an old spoiled copy of Mein Kampf (published circa 1939) but it had already gone. So rather than have a wasted trip I bought this book. It's in bad condition.. It is mouldy and has suffered some water damage. It was a cheap buy and it had a certain purient appeal about it. |
| The Reichsmark (right) was printed in 1922, and was found amongst my late Grandmothers papers. |
| The ex libris is dated 1944 but the publication date is stated as 1899. The author, a Dr. Bell, has privately published this and it's really just a hodgepodge of basic anatomy and art appreciation. This isn't the scholarly exercise it pretends to be. It's possible that the author hoped to come across as a modern Richard Burton. Secreted inside the cover, was a selection of anatomical prints of the female anatomy. I won't print it here but the best bit was the flipbook effect, showing the physical movement during coitus. It's just a professional version of those dirty pictures found scribbled in the corner of school books and jotters. |
| Bell, T. "Kalogynomia or the Law of female beauty" 1899 |
| The old photo to the right was found in an old book. There were no names or markings to identify it. The book itself, an english language first edition of Nietzsche's Human, All-Too-Human (part one), which was badly damaged. |
| This letter, dated 1948, along with postcards and a study plan, was found in a 1934 edition of Deutche Kunft. It was a history of art kind of text book. The papers inside seem to indicate that the owner had been previously in France but had just moved to Munich, Germany by Christmas of that year. The letter suggests that the books were found and returned to the English address which was scribbled on the front piece. |
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| My Aunty Rose gave this to me and it came in an old cigarette tin, one of the ones issued by commercial airways. I carefully keep both. This is a handkerchief issued to military personnel operating in the Asian theatre during WWII. This is similar to the one sown onto flight jackets. It reads in many languages... Dear friend, I am an Allied fighter, I did not come here to do harm to you who are my friends. I only want to do harm to the Japanese and chase them away from this country as quickly as possible. If you assist me, my Government will sufficiently reward you when the Japanese are driven away. Note that it says "this" and not "your" country. I wonder how the locals differentiated between one imperial power and another when it came to making a decision? |
| This theatrical photo postcard was sent from "Mabs" to her friend "Floss" and is dated 4th March 1906. The photo is of the then musical comedy player, Billie Burke, while she was still an ascending theatre star. Early on her career was hampered by suggestions that her meteoric rise owed more to her powerful husband, Zigfried of the "Zigfried follies" fame. Despite this she was generally well liked by the public and managed to make a small name for herself in early movies. Her debut was in the 1915 silent film "Peggy". On the death of her husband, and finding that he was heavily in debt, Burke was forced out of retirement in the 1930's. This renewed her fortune as she played a number of "nice but dim" society ladies in a series of comedies. Burke is most probably remembered today by the role of Glenda, the good witch, in the 1939 version of "The Wizard of Oz" staring the illimitable Judy Garland |
| This photo is of Miss Mary Miles Minter, born Juliet Shelby nee Reilly. The card contained a birthday message from Betty to her friend Peg. The postal frank is unclear but the card probably dates around 1920 when Miss Minter moved from the stage to the start of a seemingly successful film career. Prior to this she had been forced, as she would latter claim, onto the stage by her possessive mother at the age of seven. When questions of probity arose when, as a minor, she worked long nights often-in romantic plays, her mother simply changed her identity with that of an older dead relative. Her theatrical career received a boost when, in 1909, she gained the supporting role in the play "A fool there was". This was quickly followed by the runaway success of "The littlest rebel". The photo dates from that period. |
| Miss Billie Burke. |
| Miss Mary Miles Minter |
| After a succession of popular plays, usually with her taking the role of a girl on the edge of womanhood, she moved to California and started making a name for herself in pictures. Soon she was seen as the new Mary Pickford. Her life changed when she developed a crush on William Desmond Taylor, a very successful director. They may have been lovers, Taylor being a notorious ladies man who dated numerous actresses and dancers. But it was unlikely to have been a proper relationship as he was having another affair at the time. There were also the persistent rumours of his homosexuality and the use of narcotics. Whatever the truth of the matter, he was found murdered in his house in 1922, Mary and the "other woman" being the last to have seen him. The police never found a suspect and the case remains unsolved. But the resulting scandal caused both women's careers to be blighted, though the case was quickly eclipsed by Fatty Arbuckle's trial for murder. Minter, who had a long life, never talked about the case though she was very forthcoming about her mother. Some believe that Minter did it, though there is no forensic evidence to support this. If she had then Minter, who by all accounts was rather immature, may have been mentally ill. It is more likely that it was connected with his links to the underworld; the murder looked professional, as it was quick and left few clues. Others believe Minter's mother, Charlotte Shelby, may have done it. She certainly spent a lot of time with the man and had used her daughter to attract male attention in the past. It isn't hard to imagine that if she felt humiliated by him or else that he was taking her "little" star then she might be moved to murder. But whatever the truth, like some corny melodrama, all the principles have taken the secret to their graves. |
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