Autograph Note Signed to Alfred Eisenstaedt, n.p., n.d.

Pen and ink on paper. 7-1/2 x 5-1/2 inches. Fine. Pen and ink on paper. 7-1/2 x 5-1/2 inches. The actress writes, “To Alfred--Many thanks for your understanding and human traits / Bless you, Tallulah”. Tallulah Bankhead (1903-1968) was a more than competent actress (she won the Drama Critics award for her performances in The Little Foxes (1939), and The Skin of Our Teeth (1942), but off-stage she was larger than life. Her outrageous behavior (drinking, drugs, sex, and a forceful personality that caused one intimate to say “A day away from Tallulah is like a week in the country”) manifested a delicious wickedness that only began to pall towards the end of her life, when the two-bottle a day ration of bourbon began to take its toll. To those who knew her--and they were many, dahhhhhling--she is impossible to forget, even if you try.