Professional Tennis Program 1936 Tour w/Autographs of: Vines-Stoefen-Lott-Bell

Description

This is your chance to own a piece of Tennis History!
***** READ TO THE END FOR A HISTORY OF THIS TOURNAMENT FROM A FELLOW EBAYER, WHO UNSOLICITED, SHARED THEIR KNOWLEDGE!
******
Up for your consideration is this Professional Tennis Program 1936 Tour w/Autographs: Vines, Stoefen, Lott, Bell.  There are no dates or notations as to where or when this tournament took place, however based on ads in the program I feel this took place in 1936. I was advised by an appraiser to tear out the signature pages & sell them separately, but to me,
the uniqueness to this piece is that it is still all intact!
Includes original ink autographs of:
Ellsworth Vines / Lester Rollo Stoefen / George Lott / Berkeley Bell
Each player signed his name in original ink on his individual page in the program, most wrote right on their picture. Besides the players that signed the program, it has extensive bio’s on each player in the tournament such as Bill Tilden, Bruce Barnes & 2 women players Jane Sharp & Ethel Arnold, as well as the gentlemen listed above.
This is an inherited piece from my family.
This is the assumption of what I believe took place. My grandfather played in a city tennis league in Reading, PA. He was appx 28 years old in 1936. He & his tennis buddies most likely went together to see this tournament. As you will see in the pictures, the program has a crease vertically down the middle. I think he must have had it folded in his pocket as he watched the games. Like today, after the games were over, you could approach the players for autographs.
*******************Step in knowledgeable eBayer dgobbie1
**********************
(reprint
ed & edited with his permission)
You have a wonderful piece of tennis history - please do not take the appraiser's advice - please keep it intact - I wrote my PhD dissertation on how the women's pro tour started in 1970, and I wrote an introductory chapter on previous pro tours.
Bill Tilden did his first pro tour in 1931 - he was a bad businessman, spending lots of money unwisely - within a few years he let Bill O'Brien (who started as the tour's masseur) invest in the tour, and soon O'Brien would own the tour and Tilden would have nothing (notice O'Brien's name on the letterhead) - O'Brien recruited George Lott to play on the 1935 tour - Lott and Tilden despised each other, going back to an incident on the 1928 Davis Cup team - on the 1935 tour, Lott would call Tilden "Tillie" and imitated his effeminate walk during matches, making spectators laugh - Tilden demanded that O'Brien put a clause in Lott's contract forbidding him from making fun -
for the 1936 tour,
which is your program
. Bill O’Brien tolerated Tilden for one more year, promoting two tours in 1936. He gathered eight professionals for and opening night on January 11 at Madison Square Garden. The troupe included Tilden, Vines, Lott Bruce Barnes, Berkeley Bell, Lester Stoefen, as well as two women: Ethel Burkhardt Arnold and Jane Sharp, both of California.
After the opener at Madison Square Garden with 14,800 in attendance, and then Chicago with 5,500 spectators - after four dates where all 8 players were together, the group split up - Vines, Bell, Lott and Stoefen went to the West Coast and then Florida, and Tilden, Barnes, Sharp and Arnold toured the Midwest before going to California.
The group led by Vines did reasonably well with attendance, drawing about two-thirds of the numbers who came to watch the previous year. The program usually opened with a singles match between Lott and Bell, followed by Vines versus Stoefen, and concluding with a doubles match. The other group fared much worse and attendance was bad, with only one thousand fans showing up in Pittsburgh and only five hundred in Philadelphia, Tilden’s hometown. The dismal revenues began to take a toll on Tilden, whose impatience with umpires, photographers, and spectators worsened as the unsuccessful tour progressed. In late April 1936, Sharp needed to be hospitalized and never rejoined the group. Several engagements had to be cancelled, after which O’Brien decided to end his partnership with Tilden. With O’Brien no longer involved, the two groups reunited for a tour finale at the Orange Lawn Tennis Club in New Jersey in late May.
It looks like your grandfather attended the portion of the tour that included Vines, Stoefen, Lott and Bell
– so that’s why there is no autograph of Tilden. I do not have a listing of the tour locations. When I get a chance, I will do some research in
New York Times
archives to see what I can find.
SEE THE PICTURE OF THE ARTICLE HE FOUND
OF THE MATCH PLAYED IN ALLENTOWN, PA, JUST A 45 MINUTE DRIVE FROM READING. I BELIEVE THIS IS WHERE MY GRANDFATHER ACTUALLY ATTENDED THE MATCH & GOT THE AUTOGRAPHS!!
*****MANY THANKS TO DGOOBIE1
FOR SHARING YOUR KNOWLEDGE & RESEARCH SKILLS!!! ******
CONDITION INFORMATION
:  Scorecard pages are unmarked. Has 22 pages plus cover. Measures 10-1/2 inches high x 8-1/2 inches wide. Program will come in an acid-free protective cover. The program is in
Very Good Condition
with no missing or torn pages. Besides the crease mentioned above, there is some minor wear to edges & corners from handling & storage through the years. Stapled spine is tight w/only ¼ inch split at the top.
Please see pictures because they are part of the description for this listing & what you see in the pictures is what you will receive. This listing will be shipped via USPS Priority Mail with Signature Confirmation. Insurance & a tracking number are provided for your convenience. Message me through eBay if you have any questions concerning this listing.
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