Laholm, Eyvind. (1894-1958)
Signed Photograph of Hitler's favorite Tenor
A scarce signed 8 X10 inch photograph of the Wisconsin-born tenor, who spent his early career in Europe and who changed his name from Johan Edwin Johnson. One of the most famous Wagnerian tenors in Germany, according to a 1939 TIME magazine article, he was Hitler's favorite singer. He made his Metropolitan debut as Siegmund in 1939: "Egg-bald Laholm, 40, an ex-boxer and heavyweight title holder in the U. S. Navy, exchanged his everyday toupee for a luxuriant blond Nibelung mop and took the stage as Siegmund, leaped upon Hunding's dining-room table like a tomcat after a mouse. His singing, less athletic than his jumps, was fresh and youthful, with less of the buzz saw than most run-of-the-mill German-style tenoring. His semaphoric acting bore witness to his Navy training." (TIME, Dec. 18, 1939) (2010)Signed Photograph Opera