World War II-dated TLS as president, one page, 7 x 9, White House letterhead, May 7, 1945. Letter to Oscar-winning film executive Darryl F. Zanuck of Twentieth Century-Fox Films, in full: “I have read your letter of April sixteenth with sincere appreciation and your assurances of confidence have moved me deeply. It is helpful indeed to know that you liked my Message to the Congress, and that I can call upon you for any assistance in the days ahead.” In very fine condition.
Truman’s referenced “Message to the Congress” pertains to his congressional speech given on April 16, 1945, four days after the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt on April 12, 1945. His message served as both a solemn remembrance of FDR’s impact and memory and as a staunch reassurance to the American people that he would adhere to Roosevelt’s foreign and domestic policies while pledging victory in World War II.
The date of this letter coincides with the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allied forces, which took place at the SHAEF (Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force) headquarters in Reims, France, on May 7, 1945. The moment marked the collapse of the Third Reich and effectively ended the war in Europe.
A day later, President Truman, on his 61st birthday, gave his first major wartime speech to the American public when he announced the German surrender on May 8, 1945, V-E Day. Truman’s speech, which was coordinated with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin to synchronize public declarations, was delivered via radio at 9:00 a.m. (EWT) and heard by tens of millions of American citizens, making it one of the most widely heard presidential speeches of the war. A significant letter from America’s new commander-in-chief, dated less than a month after he became president and mere hours before Victory in Europe Day.
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