Martin Luther King

King, Martin Luther

American clergyman, prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement, and Nobel laureate (1929-1968). Rare original photograph boldly signed and inscribed “Best Wishes to Mr. & Mrs. Ken Browne, From Martin L. King.” 3.5 inches by 5 inches. Double matted and framed. The entire piece measures 12 inches by 13 inches. In very good condition.
$ 22,058 / 20.000 € (81719)

Rare vintage glossy photograph of King sitting in a half profile pose to his left in a sharp suit and tie, signed and inscribed in fountain pen, "Best Wishes to Mr. & Mrs. Ken Browne, From Martin L. King.” Reverse bears the photographer's credit stamp of Arthur Freeman of Montgomery, Alabama, and a typed collector's notation indicating that the autograph was received in 1957. In very good to fine condition, with a few creases, two paperclip impressions (one to the top, the other to the upper right edge), surface impressions across King's forehead from typed notations on the reverse, and somewhat irregular ink adhesion to portions of the signature. Photographs signed by King are extremely rare and desirable..

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King, Martin Luther

Bürgerrechtler u. Nobelpreisträger (1929-1968). Unique memorandum of agreement for the right of translation of his last book with signature. Düsseldorf. Folio. 3 pp. Am linken oberen Rand geheftet.
$ 15,992 / 14.500 € (83310)

Typed memorandum of agreement for the right of translation of his last book „Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community“ between German publishing house Econ Verlag GmbH and „Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. c/o Joan Daves, 145 East 49th Street, New York, N.Y. 10017“. With autograph signature „Martin L. King, Jr.“ on the last page and autograph initials „MLK“ on all other pages, plus signatures by the representative of the publishing house and Dora E. McDonald, Mr. King’s assistant.

The Memorandum of Agreement deals with the German translation of „Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community“ (German title is added by hand: „Wohin führt unser Weg?“). The document contains details on the publishing deal, the consideration of One Dollar and other good and valuable considerations: The publisher receives the „World German-language rights“, MLK is granted a non-refundable advance of US-$ 1,500 and royalities: • 7 1/2 per cent of the retail price on the first 5,000 copies sold; • 10 per cent on the next 10,000 copies sold; • 12 1/2 per cent on all copies sold thereafter. If the work is issued in two or more styles of binding the royalty shall be calculated according to the price of each. The Copyright notice reads „©1967 by Martin Luther King, Jr.“. The translation into German has to be completed and published within 18 months from the date of the agreement. Die Übersetzung muss innerhalb 18 Monate erfolgen. Die Abrechnung der Lizenzgebühr erfolgt alle sechs Monate. For any money the publishing house makes through rights for newspapers etc. King is granted 50 per cent of the proceeds. King’s book agent, Joan Daves, who is acting in all matters for King, will retain 20 per cent of all sums. „Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community“ was published in 1967, it is the fourth and last book by Martin Luther King, Jr.. In order to write it, King retired to Jamaica. In the book, King reflects on hope, the civil rights movement, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, poverty and how a social movement can establish itself jointly in the two parties. There is also a chapter which is fed by King's Nobel Prize lecture at the University of Oslo in December 1964. MLK was preoccupied by the social question in the last months of his life. He tried to achieve better living conditions for all disadvantaged people, especially of course for the black community. This is why he had planned to organize a Poor People’s March in Washington in 1968. In this context he went to Memphis where King gave a speech on April 3. On the evening of April 4, 1968 he was shot dead..

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King, Martin Luther

American clergyman, prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement, and Nobel laureate (1929-1968). Typed letter signed „Martin L. King, Jr.“. Atlanta. Small 4to. 1 p. On his Ebenezer Baptist Church stationery. Folded with the original envelope and in excellent condition.
$ 18,198 / 16.500 € (87929)

To Dorothy Riggle of Philadelphia. “This is just a note to acknowledge receipt of your very kind letter of recent date. Your letter is very helpful and is of inestimable value in the continuance of my humble effort. It was very kind of you to take the time to write…” The son of a minister, King studied theology before joining the ministry and, simultaneously, fighting for civil rights. His leadership during the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott, and subsequent bombing of his home, brought him into national prominence.

As the head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, King advocated for non-violent resistance to end Birmingham, Alabama’s racist policies and led the historic March on Washington on August 28, 1963. The demonstration’s highpoint was King’s celebrated “I Have a Dream” speech that set the stage for his selection as Time magazine’s 1963 “Man of the Year.” In October 1964, King won the Nobel Peace Prize, making him – at age 35 –- its youngest recipient up to that time. In March 1965, King led the famous march from Montgomery to Selma to bring attention to the ongoing problem of segregation, despite the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. Written while King was co-pastor of Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church..

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King, Martin Luther

Bürgerrechtler u. Nobelpreisträger (1929-1968). Eigenh. Widmung und Unterschrift auf dem Vorsatz von: „Vägen Heter Icke-Vald“. Gummessons Bokförlag, Stockholm, 1964. ohne Ort und Datum. 8vo. 170 pp.
$ 15,992 / 14.500 € (89375)

„To Verner Klausen With Best Wishes and Deep Appreciation for Your Support. Martin Luther King Jr.“ auf dem Vorsatzblatt. Die Widmung wurde vermutlich geschrieben, als Martin Luther King Jr. in Schweden war, um 1964 den Friedensnobelpreis entgegen zu nehmen.

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King, Martin Luther

Ms. Brief m. e. U.
Autograph ist nicht mehr verfügbar

Martin Luther King (1929-1968). Typed Letter Signed on his Southern Christian Leadership Conference letterhead, Selma, Alabama, March 15, 1965, to Forio. This was the very day that King eulogized Rev. Reeb in Selma. “In the rush surrounding Selma in our Alabama voting project, I neglected to express my deep gratitude for your sponsorship of the dinner honoring me on January 26 [27]. Please accept this belated note of appreciation. I must confess that few events have warmed my heart as did this occasion. It is a testimonial not only to me but to the greatness of the City of Atlanta, the South, the nation and its ability to rise above the conflict of former generations and really experience that beloved community where all differences are reconciled and all hearts in harmony with the great principles of our Democracy and the tenets of our Judeo-Christian heritage.” Also present is Forio’s printed invitation to the dinner, with his name and the new head of Coca Cola’s written on it, inviting the recipient “to attend a dinner honoring the 1964 Nobel Prize winner Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., an Atlanta citizen...” A list of the scores of sponsors follows. We obtained this unique and important set directly from Mr. Forio’s grandson. They have never previously been offered for sale. – After King won the 1964 Nobel Prize, some members of the community in his native Atlanta felt that this extraordinary accomplishment by a local man merited a testimonial dinner to honor him for that achievement. However, the decision to honor KIng was a very controversial one as there was still substantial prejudice as well as resistance to the civil rights movement at the time. Mayor Ivan Allen told the organizers that white leaders he approached “won’t go along.” But Allen was worried and visited the president of the city’s dominant corporation, Coca Cola, Robert Woodruff. Allen told Woodruff that “the city would be humiliated if the white community boycotted it.” Woodruff agreed and Coca Cola called a meeting of the city’s power structure to present the issue to them head on. At the meeting, Allen and the Cocoa Cola officials stressed that neglect of King would be morally reprehensible and also be an international embarrassment to Atlanta. They pressed the bankers, lawyers and businessmen to not merely support the dinner through contributions, but urged on them the necessity to personally attend. The leaders swung into line and agreed. – Coca Cola, which took responsibility for the dinner’s planning and logistics, named its vice president, Edgar Forio, to head the effort. The dinner took place on January 27, 1965, and marked the first time an integrated audience of civic leaders publicly honored a black person in the 20th century south. Joining Mayor Allen and the luminaries in attendance was former Mayor William Hartsfield, religious figures like Archbishop Paul Hallinan and Rabbi Jacob Rothschild, Ralph McGill, editor of the Atlanta Constitution, and academic leaders like Benjamin Mays, president of Morehead College. King was presented a bowl, which he accepted saying it was a moment of unspeakable fulfillment and satisfaction for him, one that he would treasure the rest of his days. He spoke of the South, of the need for progress, and then made a statement that would become one of his most famous quotations: "The ultimate test of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and the moments of convenience, but where he stands in moments of challenge and moments of controversy." This dinner and speech were considered a magnificent success by both progressive southerners and civil rights advocates, and were featured in the film, “Driving Miss Daisy.” But the battle for civil rights was far from won. – Immediately after this honor, King went to Selma, Alabama, where, as King said, “we see a classic pattern of disenfranchisement typical of the Southern Black Belt areas where Negroes are in the majority.” The goal was to register blacks to vote, and the confrontation that resulted was one of the great moments of the civil rights era. On February 1, King was jailed with more than two hundred others after a voting rights march in Selma. March 7 saw voting rights marchers being beaten at the Edmund Pettus Bridge, an incident shown on the television news throughout the nation that night. Four days later, Rev. James Reeb died after a beating by white racists. Then, on March 25, the Selma-to-Montgomery march concluded with an address by King, and hours afterward, Klan night riders killed Viola Liuzzo while she transported marchers back to Selma. – Amidst all this, King wrote Edgar Forio, thanking him for making the Nobel dinner possible and making an extraordinary assessment of the progress that had been made by Atlanta, the South, the nation, and the civil rights movement.


King, Martin Luther

Ms. Brief m. e. U.
Autograph ist nicht mehr verfügbar

Martin Luther King (1929–1968), American clergyman, prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement, and Nobel laureate. Typed letter signed. Presumably Atlanta, Georgia, July 30, 1964. 1 p. Large 4°. – To Arthur Leonard Ross, sending thanks for his contribution and outlining the ambitions and challenges for the civil rights movement: „[...] Now that the civil rights bill has been signed into law, we move into a new phase of the freedom struggle [...] We look forward now to consolidating these gains, and helping the law to reign in the hearts of Americans as well as in the courts. There is still much work to be done. Employment is a serious problem for all America. Voting rights are still not insured for Negroes in many Southern States, in spite of the clarity of the law on the issue. Police protection will be a problem until there is a change in the political structure of things [...]“. – On stationery with printed letterhead „Southern Christian Leadership Conference“; in splendid condition.


King, Martin Luther

Typed letter signed.
Autograph ist nicht mehr verfügbar


King, Martin Luther

Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story: Inscribed and signed by King on the front free endpaper: „To | Harold Isaacs | With best wishes | and warm Personal | Regards | Martin L. King Jr“.
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King, Martin Luther

Two signatures on entrance tickets.
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King, Martin Luther

Typed letter signed.
Autograph ist nicht mehr verfügbar