MIDTOWN — Sir Winston Churchill is at the center of an upcoming exhibit to be held at The Morgan Library & Museum on Madison Avenue near East 36th Street.
“Churchill: The Power of Words” will celebrate the British Bulldog’s prowess as a writer and orator, featuring letters, artifacts, original sound recordings and edited scripts of Churchill’s most famous speeches.
The exhibit kicks off on June 8 and runs through Sept. 23.
“Few modern statesmen have approached Sir Winston Churchill’s skill with the written and spoken word,” said William M. Griswold, director of The Morgan Library & Museum, in a statement. “This exhibition shows why words matter, and how they can make a difference for the better.”
The collection of items — which are on loan from the Churchill Archives Centre at the University of Cambridge, as well as from Churchill’s family home — include speeches that he made at the start of World War II and his correspondence with President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which proved vital in fostering American support for the war effort.
But not everything on display pertains to Churchill’s career as a statesman. The exhibit also includes personal items, such as a few handwritten pages from a draft of Churchill’s first book, as well as a letter written to his mother while he was serving as an officer in the British Army in 1897 in which he yearns to have "a reputation for personal courage."
The exhibit also includes a copy of Churchill's report card from 1884 in which he is described as being "very bad" and "a constant trouble to everybody." There is even an old prescription written in 1932 that allows Churchill to indulge in an "indefinite" amount of alcohol — during the height of Prohibition — after he was hit by a car on a visit to Manhattan.
To accompany the exhibit, The Morgan has planned a series of events, including a lecture on Churchill’s leadership skills and a free gallery talk. The museum will also screen two dramas and one documentary that explore Churchill's life.
For a full listing of events surrounding the exhibit, visit The Morgan’s website.
