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autographs 
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Document 250626 JOHN F. KENNEDY'S HAIR Cut at brother-in-law Peter Lawford's beach house in 1963. Six authenticated strands of John F. Kennedy's hair. PROVENANCE: (1) ACCOMPANIED by photocopy of the October 2, 1995 letter of Los Angeles barber Harry Gelbart, the person who snipped the hair off President Kennedy's head. In full: "This letter will serve to verify that the hair I have sent you indeed once belonged to the 35th President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy. I have been a professional barber since 1919, having apprenticed as a boy in my native Latvia at the age of 12. I have attended to clients from every walk of life, from the underworld (Bugsy Siegel, Mickey Cohen, and, believe it or not, Jack Ruby), to sporting figures (Barney Ross, Max Baer) to members of the press (Walter Winchell), and to what was once the cream of the entertainment industry (Charles Chaplin, David O. Selznick, William S. Paley, Gregory Peck, Kirk Douglas, Jascha Heifetz, and literally dozens more). I would say that of them all, it was cutting of the hair of John F. Kennedy that has given me the most pleasure; certainly the most personal and professional pride. I was first introduced to him when he was Senator John Kennedy by another of my clients, the actor, Peter Lawford, JFK's then-brother-in-law. I would bring my bag of tools to Lawford's residence to attend to the grooming of Senator, and then later, President Kennedy in these private, relaxed surroundings. On one occasion, on a Sunday afternoon in July of 1963, after giving the President a haircut at Lawford's beach house in Santa Monica, Lawford's manager, a gentleman named Milt Ebbins, suggested that I collect the hair that I had cut to save as a momento (sic). Who would have dreamt that in a few short months, the head upon which President Kennedy's hair grew in such abundance would be so cruelly destroyed? But there were no morbid thoughts on the day I gathered these cuttings. The President was in his usual good humor, joking and smiling and making me feel very relaxed and welcome, as he always did. It is a pleasure for me to pass this evidence of his existence on to you, so that it can be shared by others. I have sent you all that I collected on that memorable Sunday, making what you now own all the more rare and precious. I swear that the facts presented in this letter are to the best of my knowledge true." (2) ACCOMPANIED BY a color copy of a notarized document attesting to the fact that Gelbart signed the October 2, 1995 original letter. (3) ALSO, photocopies of two newspaper articles about Gelbart cutting JFK's hair. (4) With a photocopy of the October 17, 1949 "Life" magazine article entitled "Barbershop War" about rival Hollywood barbers, Harry Gelbart and Harry Drucker, picturing Gelbart cutting the hair of, among others, Gregory Peck, Robert Young, and Mickey Cohen. All items in fine condition. THESE STRANDS OF KENNEDY'S HAIR WERE PART OF THE "BIGGEST FAMOUS HAIR COLLECTION" LISTED IN THE GUINNESS 1999 BOOK OF RECORDS. THE GUINNESS LISTING SPECIFICALLY MENTIONS JOHN F. KENNEDY'S HAIR. Gelbart's October 2, 1995 letter is to John Reznikoff of University Archives, the owner of the "Biggest Famous Hair Collection", the immediate previous owner of the strands of Kennedy's hair offered for sale in this lot. Expertly displayed on an 8½x11 page bearing a printed photograph of Kennedy. Five items. SEE IF DOCUMENT 250626 IS FOR SALE RIGHT NOW!!
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