Lewis Waller

British actor Lewis Waller (1860-1915) was best known as a matinee idol in the popular romantic plays of his day. His types were the handsaome, triumphant heroes, ready to make love to every pretty woman and skilled in the use of sword and rapier. Although Waller himself loved playing Shakespeare roles like Romeo, Othello, and Henry V, his most profitable plays were always his swashbuckling romances. The good-looking actor attracted large female audiences who made themselves in a fan club known as the K.O.W. (Keen On Waller) Brigade. Waller also worked as a playwright and a stage manager and appeared in a few early British films.


British postcard by J. Beagles & Co, E.C., no. G 703 O. Photo: Langfler Ltd. Lewis Waller as Henry V, in the eponymous Shakespeare play.


British postcard by J. Beagles & Co, E.C., no. 703 B. Photo: Langfler Ltd., London.


British postcard by Rotary Photo, E.C., no. 4222 C. Photo: Foulsham & Banfield. Publicity still for the stage production 'Robin Hood' (1906).


British postcard by Rotary Photo, EC, no. 107 G. Sent by mail in 1905.


British postcard in the Philco Series, no. 3008. Photo: Bassano. Written on the card: Love. Is he not sweet?

Vigorous Acting

Lewis Waller was born William Waller Lewis in Bilbao, Spain, in 1860, the eldest son of an English civil engineer, William James Lewis, and his wife, Carlotta née Vyse. He was educated at King's College School in south west London, after which, intending to pursue a commercial career, he studied languages on the continent.

From 1879 to 1883 he was a clerk in a London firm owned by his uncle. In 1882 he married Florence Isabella Brandon (1858–1912), who shortly afterwards became a professional actress under the name of Florence West. They had a son and a daughter. After acting in amateur performances, Waller decided to make a career on the stage and was engaged by J. L. Toole in 1883.

He first appeared on the London stage in 1883. His debut was as the Hon. Claude Lorrimer in H. J. Byron's 'Uncle Dick's Darling', in which he was billed as "Waller Lewis". By May of the same year, he had adopted the stage name Lewis Waller. He got his start in the companies of the famous Dame Helena Modjeska and J. L. Toole.

Waller came to the front with a fine performance as Buckingham in 'The Three Musketeers' under legendary English actor Herbert Beerbohm Tree's management at His Majesty's in 1895.Soon afterwards Waller organised a company of his own, first at the Haymarket and afterwards at other theatres. His fine voice and vigorous acting earned him critical acclaim in a number of Shakespeare roles, such as the title character in 'Henry V', Brutus in 'Julius Caesar', and Faulkenbridge in 'King John'.

He had his greatest successes, however, in romantic roles, such as 'Monsieur Beaucaire', a dramatic adaptation of Booth Tarkington's novel. Waller also created the role of Sir Robert Chiltern in Oscar Wilde’s 'An Ideal Husband' (1895). His wife, Florence West, appeared often with Waller in his most successful romances. The critic Hesketh Pearson praised Waller for "his good looks [and] his virile acting and his vibrant voice" which "rang through the theatre like a bell and stirred like a trumpet".


Grace Lane and Lewis Waller. British postcard, no. 1595. Photo: Rotary Photo.


British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons in the Play Pictorial Series, no. 5A. Photo: publicity still for the stage play 'Monsieur Beaucaire'.


British postcard by J. Beagles & Co., London, no. 756V. Photo: Langfier Ltd. Lewis Waller and Evelyn Millard.


British postcard by Rotary Photo, E.C., no. 2183 E. Photo: Foulsham & Banfield. Publicity still for the stage play 'The Duke's Motto' (1908) with Lewis Waller and Valli Valli.


British postcard by Rotary Photo, E.C., no. 7413 Photo: C. Foulsham & Banfield. Lewis Waller as Jim Carston in the play 'A White Man'. On his lap, Miss Rita Leggiero as his son, Little Hal. Caption: And now daddy will undress you and hear your prayers.

Fires of Fate

In 1899 Lewis Waller appeared as Philip Faulconbridge in the short film drama King John (Walter Pfeffer Dando, William K.L. Dickson, 1899), based on a scene from William Shakespeare's play. 'King John' was played by Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree.

After the turn of the century, he returned to management, and remained an actor-manager for the rest of his career, both in London and on tour. Fifteen years later, Waller played the title role in the American historical film drama Brigadier Gerard (Bert Haldane, 1915), an adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s novel. In 1907 and 1911, Waller made a small number of recordings for the Gramophone Company, including Tennyson's 'Charge of the Light Brigade' and the speech from Shakespeare's 'Henry V'.

Two of his plays were filmed after his death. His play 'Fires of Fate', based on another novel by Arthur Conan Doyle, 'The Tragedy of Korosco', was filmed, Fires of Fate (Tom Terriss, 1923) with Wanda Hawley, Nigel Barrie and Stewart Rome.

Finally, Maurice Elvey directed Waller’s adaptation of the historical novel 'Henry, King of Navarre' by Alexandre Dumas père, Henry, King of Navarre (Maurice Elvey, 1924) starring Matheson Lang and Henry Victor.

In 1911 and 1912, Waller made a tour of the US, Canada and Australia. In his absence, his wife, Florence West, died. In 1915, Lewis Waller died from double pneumonia, in Nottingham, England, just two days shy of his fifty-fifth birthday. Their son Edmund Waller was also an actor.


British postcard by J. Beagles & Co., London, no. 782. Photo: J. Caswall Smith.


British postcard by J. Beagles & Co.,London, no. 1094. Photo: Louis Saul Langfier. Lewis Waller as Henry V (1900).


British postcard in The Wrench series, printed in Saxony, no. 997. Photo: Biograph Studio.


British postcard by E. Hildesheimer & Co, London/Manchester. Sent by mail in 1905. Photo: Lafayette. Waller in his stage role as Brutus in 'Julius Caesar'.


British postcard by Rotary Photo, no. 4252 K. Sent by mail in 1908. Photo: Foulsham & Banfield. Publicity still for the play 'The White Man' (1908). In this play, based on the Western play 'The Squaw Man' (1905) by Edwin Milton Royle, Lewis Waller appeared as Cowboy Bronco Buster at the Lyric Theatre in London. In the cast, there were also several American performers.


British postcard by Rotary Photographic Series, no. 4298 D. Photo: Foulsham & Banfield. Publicity still for the play 'A White Man' (1908). This play, based on the Western play 'The Squaw Man' (1905) by Edwin Milton Royle, was presented at the Lyric Theatre in London.


British postcard by Rotary Photo, no. E.C., 7414 E. Foulsham & Banfield. Lewis Waller as Jim Carston in the play 'A White Man', also with Herbert Sleath as the Earl of Kerhill, Nora Lancaster as the Countess of Kerhill, and A.G. Poullton as Sir John Applegate. Caption: I believe the gentleman does bear a certain resemblance to the man you mean.


British postcard By "My Queen"& "Romance" Novelettes. Caption: One penny weekly. Two Picture Postcards presented with each copy.

Sources: Harry Rusche (Shakespeare & The Players), IMDb and Wikipedia.

Raphael Tuck and sons

The British Tuck postcards were sent to millions all over the world, and decorated rooms in elegant mansions as well as country cottages. Publisher Raphael Tuck (1821–1900) and his sons caught the imagination of the public and created a new graphic arts business. Their business was one of the most well known in the 'postcard boom' of the late 1800s and early 1900s. Their contributions left a lasting effect on most of the artistic world.


Sir Henry Irving. British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons in the Oilette Series, no. 6671 Photo: Window & Grove.


Rita Sacchetto. German Postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons, and R. Wagner, München in the Fürstliche Frauen Series, no. 1238. Portrait by Baron B. de Szankowski.


Madge Lessing. British Postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons in the Framed Gem Series, no. 5773, ca. 1912.

The Royal Warrant Of Appointment
The online database Tuck DB lists all the antique postcards by Rapahel Tuck and sons and tells the history of this publishing firm, which produced so many film star postcards. Raphael Tuck was born Raphael Tuch in Koschmin near Poznan, East Prussia (now Poland) in 1821. There he worked as a joiner and devoted his early years to the study of Judaism, including a working knowledge of Hebrew. Raphael was married to Ernestine Lissner in 1848. She gave birth to seven children, four boys, and three girls, all born in Prussia prior to their migration to England in 1865. In 1866, Raphael and Ernestine opened a little shop in London. The business began with the sale of pictures and frames but within a few months of their arrival Raphael has established himself as a distributor of graphic art printing which included chromos, oleographs, and black and white lithographs. Tuck had received training in graphic arts in his home country. Although he was not an artist himself, he had a flair for commercial art that prompted his interest in this new field. The Tucks displayed reproductions of famous and popular art along with those Victorian greeting cards that were available at the time. Raphael had made contact with lithographers in his native country to supply him with work from their presses suitable for British and American sales. Ironically a Jew, a respected Talmudic scholar, became the chief exponent and promoter of the Christmas card. Raphael discovered that Christmas card designs were mainly secular; and in spite of the increased religious consciousness of the Victorian age, these cards featured the gaiety and revelry of the holiday season. In 1871 Tuck supervised the design of Christmas cards featuring the religious aspects of the season: Jesus Christ, the Holy Pair, the Magi, the Nativity scene, as well as the traditional Santa Claus, holly and mistletoe. As the family of seven children grew, the children provided more help to the business. Three of the four sons participated in the firm. The greatest period of expansion of the Tuck firm came under the direction of Adolph, the second son, who had joined his father in 1870. Gustave and Herman soon followed their brother in 1871. Gustave directed the book and calendar departments, while Herman handled the financial end of the business. The business became known as Raphael Tuck and Sons. In 1875, Raphael became naturalized as a British citizen. In 1880, Adolph launched a nationwide contest offering 5,000 pounds in prizes for the best Christmas card designs. Over five thousand paintings were said to be have been entered in the contest. Entries were displayed in the Dudley Galleries and vast crowds visited the exhibition. Around 1880 the company moved to Coleman Street with a branch in Chiswell Street. Tuck established offices in Paris, Berlin, Montreal, and New York. In 1883, Queen Victoria granted the firm the Royal Warrant of Appointment.


Madge Lessing. British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons Real Photograph Post Card., no. T 708. Photo: Dover Street Studios.


Lewis Waller. British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons in the Play Pictorial Series, no. 5A. Photo: publicity still for the stage play Monsieur Beaucaire.

Successful Postcard Competitions
In 1888 Raphael Tuck laid the cornerstone of a splendid building on the corner of Moorfield and Tener Street. Raphael House opened the next year and the five-storey building enabled the Tuck firm to consolidate their various offices and departments that had spread throughout various parts of the city. In addition to the administrative offices, the new building provided adequate space for eight functioning departments: Card Department (Toy-Books, Gift-Books, Booklets); Birthday Book Department; Educational Department; Wall Text and Scripture Motto Department; Engraving Department; Chromo, Oleograph, and Art Study Department; Relief and Art Novelty Department; and Show-Card Department. These Tuck departments attest to the fact that the Victorian age was the age of printed pictorials that took shape by means of the various printing and engraving processes. In 1895 Ernestine died and Raphael’s health began to fail. At the turn of the century, Tuck was into printing almost anything in paper. Through the early 1900s, Tuck’s continued to run very successful postcard competitions with the focus changing to collectors of Tuck postcards rather than the artists whose work was depicted. The prize competitions aroused much interest and proved to be an effective marketing technique. Although the Tuck firm did some black and white printing in their London offices, the majority of color work was contracted for in Germany, Raphael’s home country. This is evidenced by the printed in Bavaria, Germany, or Saxony inscribed on the majority of the early Tuck postcards. It was not until 1899 that Tuck issued its first regular Series of Postcards, a group of twelve consecutively numbered chromographic (i.e. colored) views of London. These issues, frequently referred to as ‘early Tuck’s’ are numbered on the front left edge along with the publisher’s name. Tuck numbered almost 4,000 cards consecutively but at the same time began to use Series numbering which usually consisted of six cards in a Series with the same number. It was due to the efforts of Adolph Tuck that the size of the postcard in England was increased to the size allowed by the Universal Postal Union. Only a small picture and brief message had been allowed on one side with just address and stamp on the other. After four years of negotiations, Adolph succeeded in convincing the British Postmaster General that a larger card could have a picture on one side and a brief message as well as the address and stamp on the other. In 1898, the Postmaster General finally agreed and a new era was begun. On 29 November 1899, the regulations were promulgated and Tuck’s were ready with their first cards as Adolph Tuck was aware of the coming change. Raphael Tuck died in 1900. He did not live to see the postcard blossom into the popular form of social communication that it became just a decade after his death. He did have the vision and that vision was passed on to his sons in good Jewish custom. Adolph and his brothers continued to expand the business after Raphael’s death. The final change to the postcard happened in the first half of 1902 when the address and message were allowed to be printed on the back of the card (split back) leaving the maximum area for an artist drawn and photographic view pictures to appear on the front.


British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons in the Real Photograph Series, no. 176. Photo: Gaumont-British. Herbert Marshall in I was a Spy (Victor Saville, 1933).


A.W. Baskcomb. British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons' Real Photograph, no. 20-S. Photo: Gaumont-British.


A.W. Baskcomb. British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons' Real Photograph, no. 42-S. Photo: Gaumont-British.

The Blitz
In the early 1900, Tuck issued sets covering topics such as London and other Thames river views, military and war drawings of Harry Payne and others, and well-known paintings by Turner. Later in the year Tuck issued more sets bringing the yearly total of sets to almost 100. In 1901 Tuck continued their frantic pace, issuing many new sets of postcards. By the end of 1903 Tuck had in production over 10,000 different cards. 1904 was yet another banner year for Tuck. Such sets as the Olde Print Series, the Connoisseur Series and the Silverette Series came into production. By the close of 1904 over 15,000 designs were in production. 1909 through 1914 saw continued growth of sets and Series including the Postcard Painting Books and Picture Postcard Puzzles. The sons of Adolph Tuck, Reginald and Desmond continued the business their grandparents had started. With the advent of World War I, they volunteered for military service. Queen Victoria later knighted Adolph. He died shortly after and was succeeded to the title by Reginald, his oldest son. Soon after that Gustave retired and the business was left in the hands of Sir Reginald and Desmond. Many cards are in the Oilette style but some were published under common European Series trademarks such as Platemarked, Real Photograph, and Photogravure. Others were printed in some of the less known Series trademarks such as Opal, Charmette, and Excelsior. During The Blitz, on 29 December 1940, the Nazis bombed London, and Raphael House was ruined. Records of seventy-four years and 40,000 or more original pictures and photographs by the best artists were in ashes. In spite of having to start over, the company was soon making great progress. Sir Reginald Tuck died in 1954, and Desmond continued the business until 1959 when he retired. The company combined with two others to become the British Printing Corporation, which was located only a short distance from where the first shop of Ernestine and Raphael Tuck once stood.


Jessie Matthews. British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons in the Real Photograph Series, no. 138a. Photo: Gaumont-British.


British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons, no. 14. Photo: Gaumont-British. Cicely Courtneidge in Soldiers of the King/The Woman in Command (Maurice Elvey, 1933).


Madeleine Carroll. British postcard by Raphael Tuck & Sons in the Real Photograph Series, no. 7-8. Photo: Gaumont-British.

Sources: Tuck DB Postcards, Henry Wimbush Home Page and Wikipedia (English, German and French).