COLE PORTER (1936-56) Photo archive

Cole Porter. New York, Los Angeles: Various, 1936-1956. Set of 6 vintage original 8 x 10″ (20 x 25 cm) and 7 x 9″ (17 x 22 cm) black-and-white glossy silver gelatin photos. Near fine.

Cole Porter (1891–1964) was a legendary American composer and lyricist known for his sophisticated, witty and sensual songs. Renowned as one of the few songwriters to create both the words and music for his hits. From Paris at the end of World War II to hits on Broadway and the movies, his shows and song list is incomparable. (Wikipedia)

• Earliest photo date stamped Jan. 18, 1936 on verso, along with its newspaper publishing blurb, of Porter dining with actress Ruth Chatterton in Hollywood. This is before his 1937 riding accident which left him crippled. At the time he was in Hollywood working on MGM films Born to Dance and Rosalie.
• May 4, 1939 date stamped photo from Newark Airport TWA terminal shows him coming off a plane. During this time, he was in New York City working on the Broadway show Du Barry Was a Lady.
• Porter meeting Ed Sullivan for the CBS television show Toast of the Town in 1952.
• Two photos of Porter visiting the MGM film set for Kiss Me, Kate in 1953, appearing with director George Sidney, producer Jack Cummings and actor Ron Randall.
• Porter with Dinah Shore, which is unusual as there is not an archived meeting between the two, but looking at Shore’s styling it seems to be ca. 1957 when she released her album Dinah Shore Sings Porter and Rodgers on Harmony Records.