Royal Reels: Gambling

Arts and Artists

MINNIE TITTELL BRUNE, MOST POPULAR ACTRESS IN AUSTRALIA in 1904-09 [USA]

This postcard was sent from BRIGHTON STATION/ SP 7/ (19)08/ TASMANIA to Elizabeth Street, Hobart and the personal message was of no consequence (Figure 1). The illustrated side shows a picture of Miss Tittell Brune in a dramatic pose in ‘Parsifal’ on a Talma & Co., Sydney and Melbourne, copyright postcard (Figure 2). Minnie Tittell Brune was the most popular actress on the Australian stage between the years 1904 and

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MAUD EVELYN CRAVEN JEFFRIES, ACTOR, with STRONG AUSTRALIAN CONNECTION [USA]

The address side of this postcard has the N.S.W. red 1d ‘Shield’ stamp postmarked with a duplex NEWCASTLE/OC 11/ 12.15 P.M./05/ N.S.W with the barred numeral ‘55′, and it was sent to a Hobart, Tasmania address (Figure 1). The picture side of the postcard shows Miss Maud Jeffries, in her acting role costume, the card being one made by Talma & Co., Melbourne and Sydney copyright (Figure 2). Maud Evelyn

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LADY RODWELL, WIFE of a FORMER GOVERNOR of SOUTHERN RHODESIA

This envelope was addressed to Lady Rodwell, C/o The Forum Club, Grosvenor St., London, W.1, England and was readdressed to 82 Avenue Rd, Regents Park, NW 3. The sender was The Melbourne Little TheatrE. There was a manuscript ‘ALL AIR ROUTE’ and the 1/ 6d ‘Hermes’ air mail stamp was postmarked SHIP MAIL ROOM/ 1-P 8 DE 34/ MELBOURNE as well as by a LONDON arrival postmark. The reverse was not

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LADY JANE SHELLEY, BOSCOMBE PLACE, RINGWOOD HANTS, ENGLAND

The cover was addressed to Lady Shelley, Boscombe Place, Ringwood-Hants, England, and it has a manuscript ‘per Geelong’ and the purple 6d N.S.W. stamphas two cancellations of the duplex 71/ SP 6/ C/ SYDNEY with a 3-ring oval, vertically placed, N.S.W. obliterator (Figure 1). The reverse had a reception postmark in England at RINGWOOD/ NO 6/ 71 (Figure 2). The Geelong was a P & O ship which between 1860 and 1874 traveled the

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KARL LEWIS, AMERICAN PAINTER & PHOTOGRAPHER, BASED in JAPAN

This colorful hand-painted cover by the renowned artist Karl Lewis has the green 1d, orange 2d and chocolate 1½d KGV heads with the C of A watermark, postmarked with two NORFOLK ISLAND/ 30 SP 38/ AUST postmarks, addressed to Toledo, Oregon U.S.A. In a recent auction it has an estimate of AUD 1,000 placed on it (Figure 1). Any collector who has marveled at the beauty of the covers produced

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JANET GAYNOR, AMERICAN FILM STAR, FIRST IMAGE ON AUSTRALIAN T.V. [USA]

This somewhat battered cover was sent to Miss J. Gaynor, C/- United Artists, Hollywood, California and has a roller cancel on the green 1d Queen Elizabeth and the red 2d KGVI stamps, ASHFIELD/ 945 AM/ 19 JUL/ 1941 with the slogan MINIMUM LETTER/ RATE TO U.S.A. 3D/ ADDRESSEE PAYS/ DOUBLE/ DEFICIENCY. In addition there was a delay in sending as shown by the handstruck ASHFIELD/ 22 JL (41)/ N.S.W cancel. The

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JAMES ERSKINE CALDER , SURVEYOR of TASMANIA & SERJEANT-AT-ARMS

The cover is addressed to J. E. Calder Esq, Surveyor General, Hobarton. At the left hand border there is a manuscript ‘Swansea 1861′, and there is a vertical pair of the imperforate slate green Van Diemens Land (1860 printing) canceled with the second allocation BN ‘94′, paying the 4d per ½ oz. inland letter rate. There is a red handstrike of PRE-PAID/ 21 MY 21/ 1861 on arrival at Hobart.

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JAMES CHARLES WILSON NICHOLSON, MUSIC PUBLISHER, NICHOLSON & CO.

Two identical rose on buff Victoria 1885 1d ‘Naish’ Stamp Duty Post Cards issued on 1 January 1885 were posted to the same musical firm, Nicholson & Co. in September and October 1885 with requests for sheet music.  Nicholson was a contemporary of music dealer, George Leavis Allan, but Nicholson is less known to-day.  The first postcard is addressed to Mr. Von Geyer, Nicholson’s & Co., Melbourne and is postmarked

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J.W. PLOOS VAN AMSTEL & Co., MELBOURNE, SENT to FRANCE

This difficult to date early stampless cover (stated to be 1862 by vendor) was sent from Melbourne to a company in Tarnac near Cognac, France with a manuscript ‘via Marseille’.  It had a black ‘18′ and a red possibly ‘4′ ratings with two additional postmarks, one a boxed red GB ‘diamond’ and the other a red Marseille double circle transit postmark.  The sender was identified by a blue J.W. PLOOS

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