Celebs' Letters to Kisco Playhouse Director Up for Auction

When Frank Day Tuttle served as director of the former Westchester Playhouse from 1932 to 1940, he accumulated a large collection of correspondances from numerous celebrities.

Tuttle's archived collected of correspondances are up for auction today from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., by Manhattan-based Swann Auction Galleries. They carry an estimated valued of $1,500 to $2,500.

According to Swann, the items being auctioned include some records from the defunct Mount Kisco-based theater, photos, financial records and notes for Tuttle's unpublished The Golden Age of US Summer Theatre.

One of the items was a 1937 letter from Henry Fonda, writing about the birth of Jane Fonda. He wrote, "How is your family? As one father to another, I think the guy who thought of having children has really got something there. I've got a prize."

Other letters up for auction include those from Elia Kazan, Olivia de Havilland and Joan Crawford.

During Tuttle's time at the Westchester Playhouse, prominents actors that came through included Fonda, Vincent Price and José Ferrer.

The Westchester Playhouse was on the site of what is now the Mount Kisco Country Club, according to a Journal News article about the auction, with its building used for storage.

For more information about Tuttle's items, click here for Swann's description and for a chance to bid.