Blanche Walsh and Melbourne MacDowell

The collection includes posters advertising individual plays and operettas, burlesque, vaudeville, and specialty acts, dance companies, extravaganzas produced by the Kiralfy Brothers, portraits of entertainers, and stock posters. Featured performers include Julia Arthur, De Wolfe Hopper, Joseph Hart Vaudeville Co., Thomas W. Keene, Andrew Mack, Robert B. Mantell, Mathews & Bulger, Lewis Morrison, Phil Sheridan's New City Sports Co., Royal Lilliputians, and Jennie Yeamans. Directors, managers, and producers include Edward J. Abraham, Blaney, and Vance, William A. Brady, Sidney R. Ellis, W.J. Fielding, Charles Frohman, Hoyt & McKee, the Kiralfy Brothers, Jacob Litt, Rice & Burton, Rich & Harris, A.Q. Scammon, Sam S. Schubert, Thall & Kennedy, Fred E. Wright, Charles H. Yale, and others. Playwrights include David Belasco, George H. Broadhurst, Bartley Campbell, Charles Turner Dazey, Gilbert & Sullivan, William Gillette, Seymour Hicks, David Higgins, Bronson Howard, Cecil Raleigh, William Shakespeare, Sutton Vane, and others. Plays include such popular titles as Arizona, At Piney Ridge, By the sad sea waves, Devil's auction, Evangeline, Faust, Female drummer, H.M.S. Pinafore, The hidden hand, The last of the Rohans, Ole Olson, The Queen of Chinatown, Shenandoah, Siberia, The sporting life, Uncle Tom's cabin, Venice, The war of wealth, Way down East, Yon Yonson, and others. Images depicted include scenes from plays, portraits of performers, and performers performing. Featured entertainers are not always depicted in the image. Some posters are mainly textual with peripheral images.

Blanche Walsh was an American stage and screen actress who was born in New York City on 15 April 1873. She began her career as a child actress and made her professional debut in 1889 at the age of 16. Walsh became a successful stage actress, known for her strong performances in dramatic roles. In 1901, Walsh made her film debut in a short film called "The Tempest". She continued to appear in films throughout her career, becoming one of the first actresses to make the transition from stage to screen. Some of her notable films include "Resurrection" (1912), "The Call of the North" (1914) and "The Woman in the Case" (1916). Walsh was known for her strong and independent characters, often playing women who defied social norms. She was also an advocate of women's rights and was involved in the suffrage movement. Tragically, Walsh died at the age of 42 from complications during surgery for a chronic illness. She left a legacy as a talented actress and a trailblazer for women in the entertainment industry.