| "Senator" Edward Hastings Ford Collection
Manuscript Collection 283
Description:
Papers, 1906-1951.
2.2 cubic ft.
Comedian and radio personality.
Family and publicity photographs, sound recordings and radio show transcripts
of the vaudeville comedian who starred on the radio series "Can You
Top This?" "Senator" Ford was a resident of Southold, N.Y.
Introduction
Edward Hastings Ford (1887-1970) was a vaudeville comedian and creator
of Can You Top This?, a joke-telling radio show that aired on WOR-Mutual
from 1940-1954. Mr. Ford was permanent member of the show's panel of joke-tellers,
along with Joe Laurie, Jr, and Harry Hersfield. He added the prefix "Senator"
to his name in his 20's to enhance his status as a performer. Senator
Ford was famous for his "wit, dolleries and pronouncements of plain
Yankee common sense, all reinforced with a dour demeanor."
Mr. Ford was a resident of Greenport, Long Island, New York. He died
in 1970 of lung and throat cancer.
Biography: Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of
953 Performers, 1920 through 1960, authored by Thomas De Long.
Collection Note
The "Senator" Edward Hastings Ford Collection was purchased
in 1980 by the Special Collections Department. It contains approximately
2.2 cubic feet of material. The contents date from 1906-1951, and include
correspondence, transcripts, cartoons, and publicity photographs. The
collection consists of 5 series: Photographs, Scrapbooks, Correspondence,
Pamphlets and Magazines, and Books.
The original order and folder headings have been maintained where applicable
and re-created in other instances to assist researchers. The photographs
within the albums and scrapbooks have remain intact. The descriptions
are representative of the original captions found in the albums. All metal
clips and fasteners have been removed, in accordance with accepted archival
standards of preservation. These materials have been placed in acid free
folders and containers.
Series I: Photographs
Box 1
Ford Family Photo Album (1 of 2)
Box 2
Ford Family Photo Album (2 of 2)
Box 3
Loose Photographs (1)
Loose Photographs (2)
Loose Photographs (3)
Loose Photographs (4)
Loose Photographs (5)
Loose Photographs (6)
Loose Photographs (7)
Loose Photographs (8)
Loose Photographs (9)
Family (1)
Family (2)
Family (3)
Family (4)
Family (5)
Family (6)
Family (7)
Family (8)
Family (9)
Family (10)
Family (11)
Family (12)
Family (13)
Family (14)
Family (15)
Ford Portraits
Ford Cartoons
Negatives
Celebrity Photographs (1)
Celebrity Photographs (2)
Celebrity Photographs (3)
Celebrity Photographs (4)
Celebrity Photographs (5)
Tin Types (1)
Tin Types (2)
1945 Program
Box 4
Can You Top This (1)
Can You Top This (2)
Can You Top This (3)
Can You Top This (4)
Can You Top This (5)
Can You Top This (6)
Can You Top This (7)
Can You Top This (8)
Can You Top This (9)
Can You Top This (10)
Can You Top This (11)
Can You Top This (12)
Can You Top This (13)
Can You Top This (14)
Can You Top This (15)
Can You Top This (16)
Can You Top This (17)
Can You Top This (18)
Can You Top This (19)
Can You Top This (20)
Can You Top This (21)
Can You Top This (22)
Can You Top This (23)
Can You Top This (24)
Can You Top This (25)
Can You Top This (26)
Can You Top This (27)
Can You Top This (28)
Can You Top This (29)
Can You Top This (30)
Can You Top This (31)
Can You Top This (32)
Can You Top This (33)
Can You Top This (34)
Box 5
Signed Photos
Loose Photographs (1)
Loose Photographs (2)
Loose Photographs (3)
Series II. Scrapbooks
Box 6
Scrapbook (1)
Scrapbook (2)
Scrapbook (3)
Box 7
Scrapbook (4)
Scrapbook (5)
Scrapbook (6)
Box 8
Scrapbook (7)
Scrapbook (8)
Box 9
Scrapbook (9)
Newspaper Clippings
Box 10
Cartoons
Cartoons (1) n.d.
Cartoons (2) n.d.
Cartoons (3) n.d.
Series III: Correspondence
Letters
Letters (1), Life Insurance
Letters (2)
Letters (3)
Series IV. Pamphlets and Magazines
Magazine (1)
Magazine (2)
Magazine (3)
Magazine (4)
Box 11
Magazine (5)
Magazine (6)
Magazine (7)
Box 12
Pamphlets (1)
Pamphlets (2)
Pamphlets (3)
Pamphlets (4)
Pamphlets (5)
Pamphlets (6)
Pamphlets (7)
Box 13
Pamphlets (8)
Pamphlets (9)
Pamphlets (10)
Pamphlets (11)
Pamphlets (12) |
