[THE KING AND I]
Celeste Holm's red morocco scrapbook for The King and I, 1952, and Anna Christie, 1953. A fine gilt lettered red morocco album with slipcase. 15 1/4 x 11 inches. The King and I section opens with the sheets of a large format program mounted to several pages and includes the signatures of star Yul Brynner and eleven other cast members; clippings follow before about ten 8 x 10 original production photographs stamped Vandamm. The album continues similarly with mounted playbills and clippings from Eugene O'Neill's Anna Christie, 1953, with a signed cast list including co-star Kevin McCarthy, and about twenty-two mounted original 5 x 7 black and white production photographs. Some wear to joint, a few nicks to spine, split to slipcase, internally fine, an attractive album.

Celeste Holm's finely bound scrapbook for both her legendary performances in The King and I, 1952, and Eugene O'Neill's Anna Christie, 1953. Celeste Holm assumed the lead role of Anna in The King and I in summer 1952, relieving original star Gertrude Lawrence, whose sudden illness threatened the cancellation of the wildly successful show. It was a highly unusual move to replace the star of a major Broadway musical. Rodgers and Hammerstein had denied Gertrude Lawrence's requests for rest and would only allow her to step aside when a star of the caliber of Celeste Holm agreed to take over the part. Given top billing, the show remained wildly popular and took on a new life with Ms. Holm in the role. Gertrude Lawrence would return to the show in August 1952 but unfortunately collapsed backstage and died of liver cancer that September. This scrapbook includes a large signature of co-star Yul Brynner on his page of the playbill, this his best known role for which he won two Tony Awards. A fine scrapbook documenting this legendary moment of the theater.