BOOTH, JOHN WILKES. 1838-1865. Photograph signed and inscribed ("J. Wilkes Booth") on the verso of a seated portrait of a young woman, 100 x 62 mm, with photographer's stamp "E.M. Strong / Photographer / Broadway / Aurora, Ill." Inscribed in Booth's hand on verso "This will admit miss ________," and dated June 6, 1864 at upper right, and Booth's signature at lower left.
Before his fame as an actor turned to infamy as the assassin who killed Abraham Lincoln, Booth had a reputation for his revolving-door romances. Most of these were with young actresses, but he had legions of adoring fans. The unidentified woman in the photo here has had her identity guarded by Booth, who left only a blank on the back of the card in place of her name. For the recipient of the card, the photograph would suffice to identify her as someone Booth wanted to see. At the time that Booth was finally cornered and killed by Union troops, he was found to have five photographs of young women on his person, including that of his fiancée, Lucy Lambert Hale, and four other women who were later identified as various actresses of his acquaintance.
BOOTH, JOHN WILKES. 1838-1865. Photograph signed and inscribed ("J. Wilkes Booth") on the verso of a seated portrait of a young woman, 100 x 62 mm, with photographer's stamp "E.M. Strong / Photographer / Broadway / Aurora, Ill." Inscribed in Booth's hand on verso "This will admit miss ________," and dated June 6, 1864 at upper right, and Booth's signature at lower left.
Before his fame as an actor turned to infamy as the assassin who killed Abraham Lincoln, Booth had a reputation for his revolving-door romances. Most of these were with young actresses, but he had legions of adoring fans. The unidentified woman in the photo here has had her identity guarded by Booth, who left only a blank on the back of the card in place of her name. For the recipient of the card, the photograph would suffice to identify her as someone Booth wanted to see. At the time that Booth was finally cornered and killed by Union troops, he was found to have five photographs of young women on his person, including that of his fiancée, Lucy Lambert Hale, and four other women who were later identified as various actresses of his acquaintance.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
