...And They Wrote Back

By Ellen Granat, Donna Granat Schobel and Lynne Granat Stark

Growing up, our dad would write to people he had never met, but who he found interesting and wanted to know more about personally -. Remember, no Wikipedia! The replies to those letters were on the walls in many rooms of our home, displayed on shelves, and delicately stored in bookbinders. It was normal for our dad to be waiting for a reply from people like George H. W. Bush, Neil Armstrong, or Rudy Vallee.

The idea to write this book began after spending a day at our mom's apartment on Long Island. ,We had taken out the binders of correspondences and began to look through them. When we were done, we put them back carefully. On the way home, we both felt that it just did not seem right to have all these amazing letters tucked away in a cabinet in Hewlett, New York.

Our dad's interests, which leaned toward American History, but his Judaism,, and general interest in art, entertainment, space, and many other topics makes his collection unique and eclectic. Therefore, in this book, you will find our dad wrote to many different kinds of people. You'll read entertainer Rudy Vallee writing to our dad-- "Stop getting stupid feelings!!! Nothing could change the high regard and affection I feel for you, least of all whether or not Ronnie (Ronald Regan) signed the letter!!!", --as well as Minister of Armaments and War Production for Nazi German, Albert Speer telling him, "...I consider it wrong, not to describe also the good points of Hitler, for if we want to learn something for the future, then it is necessary to show that a man with normal characteristics can pursue such a criminal course."

Writing this book became a labor of love and was many years in the making. We are so proud of our dad and only wish he were still here to know we did this. Ever the pessimist, he always thought he would never hear from someone he wrote to. But he needn't have worried. They wrote back!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: May 18, 2024
• ISBN: 9781662475146

Book preview

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...And They Wrote Back

Ellen Granat, Donna Granat Schobel and Lynne Granat Stark

Copyright © 2024 Ellen Granat, Donna Granat Schobel, and Lynne Granat Stark

All rights reserved

First Edition

PAGE PUBLISHING

Conneaut Lake, PA

First originally published by Page Publishing 2024

ISBN 978-1-6624-7515-3 (hc)

ISBN 978-1-6624-7514-6 (digital)

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

How It Began

Introduction

B. Altman & Co.

Robert F. Kennedy

The Manuscript Society / Ford Portrait / Meeting Herman Darvick

UACC / Forbes / Pen and Quill

Hewlett-Woodmere Library Display

How Jerry Granat Manuscripts Began

We Hope You Enjoy the Book

Political Figures

Menachem Begin (Israeli Prime Minister) Anwar Sadat (Egyptian President)

Menachem Begin (Israeli Prime Minister) Anwar Sadat (Egyptian President)

Alisa Begin (Wife of Prime Minister Menachem Begin)

Alisa Begin (Wife of Prime Minister Menachem Begin)

Menachem Begin

David Ben-Gurion (First Prime Minister of Israel)

David Ben-Gurion (First Prime Minister of Israel)

George H. W. Bush (41st President of the United States)

George H. W. Bush (41st President of the United States)

Jimmy Carter (39th President of the United States)

Jimmy Carter (39th President of the United States)

Jimmy Carter Checks and How Dad Got Them

Gerald Ford (38th President of the United States) Lee Iacocca

(American Businessman)

Gerald Ford (38th President of the United States) Lee Iacocca (American Businessman)

Mrs. Lyndon Baines Johnson (Lady Bird Johnson) Mrs. Hubert H. Humphrey (Senator Muriel Humphrey)

Mrs. Lyndon Baines Johnson (Lady Bird Johnson) Mrs. Hubert H. Humphrey (Senator Muriel Humphrey)

Robert F. Kennedy (United States Senator)

Robert F. Kennedy (United States Senator)

Yitzhak Rabin (Prime Minister of Israel)

Yitzhak Rabin (Prime Minister of Israel)

Ronald Reagan (40th President of the United States)

Ronald Reagan (40th President of the United States)

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (32nd President of the United States)

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (32nd President of the United States)

Albert Speer

(German Architect, Minister of Armaments and War Production in Nazi Germany)

Albert Speer (German Architect, Minister of Armaments and War Production in Nazi Germany)

Harold Alexander (1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, Senior British Army Officer)

Harold Alexander (1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, Senior British Army Officer)

Entertainers

Xavier Cugat

(Spanish Musician)

Xavier Cugat (Spanish Musician)

Kay Gable

(Wife of Clark Gable, American Actor)

Kay Gable (Wife of Clark Gable, American Actor)

Butterfly McQueen (American Actress)

Butterfly McQueen (American Actress)

Rudy Vallée (American Singer, Actor, Bandleader, and Entertainer)

Rudy Vallée (American Singer, Actor, Bandleader, and Entertainer)

Artists/Cartoonists/Authors/Athletes

Al Capp (American Cartoonist and Humorist)

Al Capp (American Cartoonist and Humorist)

Milton Caniff (American Cartoonist)

Milton Caniff (American Cartoonist)

Chester Gould (American Cartoonist)

Chester Gould (American Cartoonist)

Chaim Gross (American Artist)

Chaim Gross (American Artist)

Al Hirschfeld (American Artist and Caricaturist)

Al Hirschfeld (American Artist and Caricaturist)

Bob Mathias (American Decathlete)

Bob Mathias (American Decathlete)

Larry Rivers (American Artist)

Larry Rivers (American Artist)

Norman Rockwell (American Painter)

Norman Rockwell (American Painter)

Charles M. Schulz (American Cartoonist)

Charles M. Schulz (American Cartoonist)

Theodor Seuss Geisel (Dr. Seuss, American Children's Author and Cartoonist)

Theodor Seuss Geisel (Dr. Seuss, American Children's Author and Cartoonist)

Eric Sloane

(American Artist)

Eric Sloane (American Artist)

The Space Program—American Astronauts

Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr. (Buzz, American Astronaut)

Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr. (Buzz, American Astronaut)

Neil Armstrong (American Astronaut)

Neil Armstrong (American Astronaut)

Vance D. Brand (American Astronaut)

Vance D. Brand (American Astronaut)

Thomas P. Stafford (American Astronaut)

Thomas P. Stafford (American Astronaut)

Donald K. Slayton (American Astronaut)

Donald K. Slayton (American Astronaut)

James B. Irwin / David R. Scott /

Alfred M. Worden (American Astronauts)

James B. Irwin / David R. Scott / Alfred M. Worden (American Astronauts)

Bruce McCandless II (American Astronaut)

Bruce McCandless II (American Astronaut)

Alan B. Shepard Jr. (American Astronaut)

Alan B. Shepard Jr. (American Astronaut)

Dr. Werner von Braun (German-Born American Aerospace Engineer and Space Architect)

Dr. Werner von Braun (German-Born American Aerospace Engineer and Space Architect)

Inventor

Theodore M. Edison

(American Inventor and son of Thomas A. Edison)

Theodore M. Edison (American Inventor and son of Thomas A. Edison)

Journalists

David Brinkley (American Journalist)

David Brinkley (American Journalist)

Chris Matthews (American News Anchor)

Chris Matthews (American News Anchor)

Books

Richard Rodgers (American Composer)

Richard Rodgers (American Composer)

Harry S. Truman (33rd President of the United States)

Harry S. Truman (33rd President of the United States)

Donna's Autographs

Sonny Bono (American Entertainer, Musician and Politician)

Sonny Bono (American Entertainer, Musician and Politician)

Michael Crawford (English Actor and Singer)

Michael Crawford (English Actor and Singer)

Elton John (English Singer-Songwriter)

Elton John (English Singer-Songwriter)

Family Friends

Jiri Granat (Czechoslovakian Professional Tennis Player)

Jiri Granat (Czechoslovakian Professional Tennis Player)

Anna Sosenko

(American Songwriter and Manager)

Hildegarde (American Singer)

(American Singer)

Anna Sosenko (American Songwriter and Manager) Hildegarde (American Singer)

What Would Dad Think about How We Communicate Today?

Thank You

About the Authors

1

How It Began

Introduction

Maybe it shouldn't be surprising that a man who stuttered as a child would turn to writing. But what makes our dad's story unique is who he wrote to and, as the title indicates, the fact that they wrote back.

The plethora of people he wrote to included notable world leaders as well as entertainers, astronauts, media personalities, artists, and authors. Among them were Robert F. Kennedy, David Ben-Gurion, George H. W. Bush, Norman Rockwell, Neil Armstrong, and Charles Schulz. Dad's letters were unique in that he rarely simply asked for an autograph. He would spend hours doing research at the library (these were the days before the Internet), and there was typically a confrontational question or point of view with which he began his letters. Some of the replies he received included information you cannot find anywhere else, and this is what we are most proud of.

As you can imagine, manuscripts were always a part of our lives. They were on our walls, in our mail, and always on our father's mind. So we asked our mom to tell us how and when it all began.

Donna and Lynne

B. Altman & Co.

Shortly after being married in 1958 and living in New York City, our mother had no idea where our Dad was. He sheepishly finally came home and begged Mom not to be mad. He had finally, after years of looking at the ads in The New York Times, gone off to B. Altman & Co. on the eighth floor, where four times a year, they sold original documents and letters of famous people. Dad had purchased two framed manuscripts. One was a large document signed by Queen Victoria with her seal and a framed document signed by King George III. He was the king when we got our freedom from England, and as a history buff, this document was very important to Dad. Although there was nothing particularly special about either of these documents, they were official. Queen Victoria signed this. King George touched that. They were authentic. And they were now his, prestigiously placed on the wall in their two-bedroom apartment on East Seventy-Ninth Street in Manhattan.

Dad always had an interest in history, but now for the first time, he experienced the passion of owning part of it. That was a feeling that would fuel his desire to collect for the rest of his life.

Robert F. Kennedy

It wasn't until three years later, 1964, that Dad actually wrote his first letter to Robert F. Kennedy (RFK). The impetus for him to contact RFK dates back to his childhood. Dad's family moved to Paris in 1932, and he was enrolled in the local public school. As you can imagine, this was less than a good experience for a young boy who spoke no French. So when his parents finally sent him to an English-speaking private school in the outskirts of Paris called Le Chateau de Bures, it quickly became one of the happiest times of his life. In years to come, he would take our mom, his mother-in-law, and then finally us, to visit his beloved school.

When years later, Dad's mother told him that then Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy also went to Le Chateau de Bures, he had to know if it was true. Without any belief that he would ever get a response, on February 11, 1964, he decided to write to ask RFK if it was, in fact, true. We do not have our dad's letter, but we do have Kennedy's response. Dad was absolutely amazed that a Kennedy would take the time to write back to an ordinary person.

While it turned out they did not in fact go to the same school in France, it was a nice end to our Kennedy story when, many years later, Dad's granddaughter Lauren went to Manhattanville College, which happens to be the same college that Bobby's wife Ethel went to many years before.

The Manuscript Society / Ford Portrait / Meeting Herman Darvick

During his purchase at B. Altman's, Dad got into a conversation with Bob Tollett, the director of autographs and manuscripts, who told him about an organization for collectors and dealers of authentic letters and documents, The Manuscript Society. Dad couldn't join fast enough. Before long (September of 1974), they were on a trip to Washington, DC. There were three highlights of the trip. One was visiting the Ford White House, where they were privileged to be greeted by Betty Ford, who was exceedingly charming. The second highlight was being welcomed into the National Portrait Gallery after hours, where they were guided on a private tour. And third, this is where they met Herman Darvick, who became a wealth of information for Dad, as well as a close family friend.

Dad with Herman Darvick and three others at NASA in Houston 1986

Dad in the Caucus Room in Washington, DC

It was quite amazing to be served cocktails in the National Portrait Gallery while viewing the presidential portraits. Dad stood in front of the portrait of Gerald Ford and remarked about the fact that Ford was an unusually good-looking man, but his portrait did not reflect it. Many years later, he decided to write to Ford to share his opinion. On July 6, 1987, Ford replied, agreeing with Dad and letting him know that he had commissioned well-known comic-book artist turned portrait artist Ray Kinstler to do a new portrait of him for that very reason. In