Offered is a collection of more than 100 photographs and newspaper clippings documenting the early decades of the famous "handprint" ceremonies at Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Hollywood's Walk of Fame. Built by theatre mogul Sid Grauman over 18 months beginning in January 1926, the theater opened May 18, 1927, with the premiere of Cecil B. DeMille's The King of Kings. It has since been home to many premieres, including the 1977 debut of Star Wars, as well as many private events and three Academy Awards ceremonies. Nearly 200 Hollywood celebrity handprints, footprints and Signeds are in the concrete of the theater's forecourt. Though many other handprints have been added nearby in recent years, the ones placed within the forecourt are still chosen by a special committee which selects celebrities based on their contributions to Hollywood cinema. Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford were the first, done on April 30, 1927. Master of Ceremonies Jean Klossner appears with his signature beret in many of the photos. During the theatres initial construction, Grauman hired Klossner to formulate an extremely hard concrete for the forecourt of the theater. Klossner later became known as "Mr. Footprint", performing the ceremonies from 1927 through 1957.
The collection includes: 8 X 10 PHOTOGRAPHS (34): Jean Klossner, Sid Grauman, Gene Tierney, Lana Turner, Joe E. Brown (2); Susan Hayward (9), Victor McLaglen (3), Elanor Powell, Jeane Crain (3), Janette McDonald, Irene Dunne/Rex Harrison (4), Al Jolson, Freddie Bartholomew, Ava Gardner, Adolph Zukor, Van Johnson (2), Don Ameche; SMALLER PHOTOGRAPHS (23): Betty Grable, Chinese Theatre and Sidewalk (3), Freddie Bartholomew, Deanna Durbin, Don Ameche (2), Eleanor Powell (2), Al Jolson (2), RIchard Widmark, Irene Dunne, Sonja Henie, Victor McLaglen, Fred Astaire, Jimmy Stewart (2), Monte Wooley, Maurice Chevalier and Bing Crosby (2); NEWASPAPER CLIPPINGS (46); and 1946 Chinese Theatre Official Souvenir Book. The vast majority of the photos would be considered TYPE I by PSA/DNA, but a decent number are obviously second generation, but still period pieces. Excellent condtion overall with some photos nicer.