NRS Certificate of Merit, 1948
Introduced in 1949 by the Wheatcroft Brothers

NRS Annual 1949 p173

OK: Kim? Anyone? My dilemma: I bought "Opera" from Vintage...............what I GOT looks just like what is pictured here OTHER THAN THAT CATALOG PIC from 1950. I have 3 old rose books with pics of OPERA and no, there is nothing HOT PINK about it! OPERA is/was/should be (?) red with a yellow-ish or yellow shot with red, reverse? And DARK GLOSSY LEAVES? What I grow is, sigh, cerise to "hot pink" with MAYBE a "glow" to the petal bases but no "reverse" color at all................it isn't modern, either. It is more advanced than a pernetiana although colored much like Cuba, yet nothing more modern than 1960 in my guess...............leaf color is matte medium green.............I cannot place it or name it..............it blackspots horrifically...............it is so NOT my favorite, so UNDER my radar that as I pare my project down to strict years 1960-1990, I actually forgot to toss it and/or give it away.........................does anyone have any clue what was being SOLD as OPERA? Are my books incorrect? Is Opera somehow hot pink?!