This vintage real photo postcard features a handsome soldier. He is wearing a military uniform and cap. The pin on his hat indicates that he was a member of the 9th regiment of the infantry. I do not know the soldiers nationality. The message on this card includes the word “captivite”. Captivite, translated from the French means “captivate”. Was the writer of this postcard talking about capturing the town of Munsterlager, or was he referring to himself as being a prisoner of war? Perhaps a visitor to the cabinet card gallery will be able to translate the message for those of us with a French language deficit. This photo was taken in the mid 1910’s by the Schubert studio in Munsterlager. During the first World War (1916), the Breloh Camp was built in Munster by a regiment of gas warfare engineers. The next year there was construction of a facility for gas munitions. In all, three factories were built for the purpose of manufacturing chemical war material and related munitions. (SOLD)
This vintage real photo postcard features German actress, Else Kupfer (1888-1974) as she appearss in Nestroy’s play, “Revolution im Krahwinkel” (1908) at the Deutsches Theater in Berlin, Germany. She is most known for her performance in “A Dangerous Woman” (1913). The IMDb lists this performance as her only film credit. This postcard portrait of Miss Kupfer presents her wearing a pretty dress and carrying a parasol. She looks adorable. Kupfe was married to Albert Arnold, brother of artist Karl Arnold. The Becker Maass studio photographed Else Kupfer for this postcard. The publisher of this card is Louis Blumenthal. His company operated in Berlin, Germany. (SOLD)
This vintage real photo postcard features beautiful actress, Berthe Bady (1872-1921). She was born in Belgium but her nationality was French. Berthe Bady attended the Brussels Conservatory and was active on the stage between 1893 and 1913. She was a companion to both Lugne-Poe and Felix-Henri Bataille. Lugne-Poe was a French actor, theatrical director, and scenic designer. He and Bady were involved in symbolist movement of the arts. Bataille was a French dramatist and poet. A brief explanation of symbolism seems to be merited. In theatre, symbolism is a way to bring a greater meaning to something than is apparent at face value. The use of color, characters, movement, props and costumes are all methods of presenting symbolism. In 1897 Bady was the subject of a portrait by Toulouse Lautrec and her death was the subject of a poem by a leading French poet, Louis Aragon. In addition, playwright Fernand Crommelynck dedicated a play to her. Wikipedia credits her with sixteen “notable” play appearances between 1893 and 1913. She appeared in Ibsen’s “The Master Builder” on an international tour. The tour took her to London, Brussels, Amsterdam, Milan, and additional cities. In 1918 she appeared in her one and only film, “Ecce Homo”. This photo of Miss Bady was taken by the studio of Boyer & Bert. Paul Boyer (1861-1908) operated his studio in Paris. He was very talented and won many awards. He produced many portraits of theater performers as well as other celebrities. This postcard was published by F. C. & C. (Frederick Charles Cooper. The firm was located in Eastbourne, England. It was published circa 1905.This portrait postcard is in very good condition (see scans).
This vintage real photo postcard features two very pretty young women wearing kimono type dresses or robes. The fabric patterns are beautiful. Occasionally, I encounter cdv’s, cabinet cards, and postcards featuring women wearing kimonos. These early photographs document that kimono popularity in the western world was evident as early as the 1880’s. The postcard was published by “NPG” (Neue Photographische Gesellschaft) as part of a series (no. 208/4). The company was a leading bromide photo printing company for many years. A. G. Steglitz, is also noted as the publisher and this photo was published circa 1905 in Berlin, Germany. Note the initial “F. E. D.” at the bottom of the image. The initials stand for Friedrich Eyfried, the printer of this card. The company was located in Dusseldorf, Germany. This postcard is in good condition. Note the slight discoloration in and near the bottom left hand corner of the card. SOLD
This vintage real photo postcard features actress Miss Mildred Claire. She is quite pretty and is dressed for cold weather (pre global warming). A fur muff protects her hands and a fur stole (pre PETA) wrapped around her shoulders. I could find very little information on this pretty actress. I learned from the Internet Broadway Data Base (IBDb) that Mildred Claire had acted in three Broadway shows between 1900 and 1905. I discovered little else. An actress named “Mildred Clair” appeared in a film titled “Treason” (1918). Perhaps this film actress was our Mildred Claire. There was also an actress named Mildred Claire who changed her name to Claire Rochelle and than had a successful film career. I do not believe the two “Mildred Claire’s” are one and the same person because Claire Rochelle was born in 1908, too late to be an adult when this postcard was issued. This portrait postcard was published by Rotary Photo as part of a series (no.4373 C). It was part of the Rotary Photographic series. The postcard is in very good condition (see scans). (SOLD) 
THE CABINET CARD GALLERY 