Sharon Tate archive reveals touching personal side of tragic actress

Consigned by cousin Kelley Denson, available at Heritage Entertainment Auction, Nov. 14; never before seen correspondence traces Tate’s family ties

BEVERLY HILLS, CA – A moving and heartbreaking archive of Sharon Tate’s childhood letters, holiday cards and adult correspondence with her grandmother form an emotional and fascinating facet of Heritage Auction Beverly Hills’ Nov. 14 Signature® Music & Entertainment Memorabilia Auction.

The archive is being offered by Tate’s cousin, Kelley Denson, who was very young at the time of Tate’s untimely death, but became the Tate’s de facto archivist in the four-plus decades that have passed since the night of Aug. 8, 1969. This is the first time that these documents have been made public. They carry estimates ranging from $700 up to $1,500.

“Sharon’s cousin Kelley has held on to these documents for a long time and now wants to share them with the public,” said Kristen Painter, Manager of Music & Entertainment Auctions at Heritage. “They reveal a very personal and loving side of Tate. She was always known more for her beauty or her love life. Now perhaps people will understand her better as the caring person her friends and family all loved very deeply.”

Tate was a Texas beauty queen who made several TV and film appearances throughout the 1960s, and was famously married to director Roman Polanski in 1967. Her credits scarcely numbered more than a dozen, but she was stunningly gorgeous, and a magnet for admirers and press.

With the release of these letters, Sharon is brought heartbreakingly back to life in the form of loving childhood and adult letters to her grandmother, or “Nannie,” as Sharon addressed her and, hopefully, re-defined in the public consciousness.

“Dear Nannie I wish you were here again I had so much fun!” 11-year-old Sharon writes in a 1954 letter, decorated with six red lipstick kisses. “Nannie when I phoned you Sunday I was crying because you were gon (sic) and I cryed (sic) the rest of the night because I love! You! so! much..."

Eleven years later, still very much in touch with her beloved grandmother, Tate would write from the Chateau de Castel-Novel in France, where she was filming The Eye of the Devil with David Niven, the film that was supposed to be her big break.

“Dear Nannie, I had a few clippings from various newspapers in London and thought you'd like to have them, since there (sic) my first,” she penned. “The pictures are bad but there (sic) special since I waited so long for this to happen. I must say all of this is very exciting but to my surprise very dull. The only thing I can think about is how soon can I get home…”

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