Initialed Note confirming terms for Yankee at King Arthur's Court "opera.

1902. Riverdale on Hudson, NY: January 30-31, 1902. On envelope of letter from Miss Elisabeth Marbury (included). Signed "S.L.C.".

These two documents (letter, plus envelope with note) involve the planned production on Broadway of a musical version of Mark Twain's novel A YANKEE AT THE COURT OF KING ARTHUR, first published (with a slightly different US title) in 1889. The typed letter, dated Jan. 30th 1902, is on the stationery of Miss Elisabeth Marley ("Representing Dramatists | Empire Theatre Building, Broadway and 40th Street | Offices [in] London / Paris / Berlin", and reads: Dear Mr. Clemmens [sic], I have gone over the question of terms for the combination of Mark Twain, George Hobart and Ludwig Englander, on account of the proposed opera "A Yankee at the Court of King Arthur" for Mr. Dan Daly. Now, I have been figuring out terms with the manager, and it is pretty hard to get at terms, which could be cut into three parts satisfactorily. Both Mr. Englander and Mr. Hobart are high priced men, and as a rule divide royalties. However, they suggest that you should arrange to accept $150 weekly as your share of the royalties. This would be equal to 3% on $5,000, and of course $5,000 is a pretty good business as an average. Let me know how you feel about this, so that I can go ahead with the business. The opera of course to be produced next season. With kind regards, I am, Yours sincerely, [inkstamped] Elisabeth Marbury P.S. Many thanks for your check for $120 commission on "Huckleberry Finn". Included is her envelope (same stationery), with a 2¢ stamp, addressed to "Clemens [spelled correctly] Esq. | Riverdale on Hudson | New York" -- on which, turned 90 degrees, Twain wrote: Hobart & Englander offer me $150 per week for the dramatic rights of "Yankee at King Arthur's Court." Wrote Miss Marbury (Jan. 31/02) to accept. S.L.C." The letter is in fine condition, and the envelope would be, except that Twain tore off one end to open it. A word about the other people involved in this... The Canadian-American humorist and lyricist George V. Hobart (1867-1926) authored the librettos of more than fifty musical comedies, and the Austrian-American composer Ludwig Engländer (1853-1914) composed the music for more than thirty musicals. Together, they were the "Rodgers and Hart" or the "Lerner and Loewe" of the era; their show "The New Yorkers" had just run in late 1901 -- starring the ex-circus performer, sort-of singer, and "eccentric comedian" Dan Daly (c.1864-1904: he and his wife would die of tuberculosis within two weeks of each other, just two years after these documents; the last two years of his life, he is said to have eaten nothing but snails and champagne). And how about Twain's theatrical agent, Elisabeth "Bessie" Marbury? Per Wikipedia, "Elisabeth Marbury (1856-1933) was a pioneering American theatrical agent and producer who helped shape business methods of the modern commercial theatre, and encouraged women to enter that industry. Since 1892, Marbury had been living openly in a lesbian relationship with Elsie de Wolfe (later known as Lady Mendl, after a 1926 marriage of convenience), a prominent socialite and famous interior decorator." And what about the Twain "opera" -- "to be produced next season"? It never happened. Why, we do not know, but a good guess would be Daly's health (certainly not helped by his diet!). Finally, we are uncertain of the circumstances regarding the $120 commission paid by Twain to Marbury (referred to in the P.S.), but we do know that by early 1902, Twain and Marbury were working out the details for "Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain and adapted for the stage by Lee Arthur. (Inventory #: 15701)