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Gus Edwards (vaudevillian)
Gustave Edwards (August 18, 1878 – November 7, 1945) was an American composer, songwriter and film director. He also was a vaudevillian, organised his own theatre companies and was a music publisher. Early life Edwards was the son of Morris and Johanna Simon. He was born Gustav Schmelowsky in Inowrazlaw, German Empire (present-day Inowrocław, Poland). His family boarded the steamship ''Spaarndam'' as steerage passengers; they arrived at the Port of New York on 29 July 1891 ending up in Williamsburg. During the day, he worked in the family cigar store, and in the evenings, he wandered looking for any sort of show business job. He found work as a singer at various lodge halls, on ferry boat lounges, in saloons, and even between bouts at the athletic clubs. As a very young boy, Edwards worked as a song plugger at Koster and Bial's, at Tony Pastor's theatre, and at the Bowery Theatre. In those old vaudeville days, song publishers would often hire a very young boy to sit in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inowrocław
Inowrocław (; german: Hohensalza; before 1904: Inowrazlaw; archaic: Jungleslau) is a city in central Poland with a total population of 70,713 in December 2021. It is situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999, previously in the Bydgoszcz Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is one of the largest and most historically significant cities within Kuyavia. Inowrocław is an industrial town located about southeast of Bydgoszcz known for its saltwater baths and salt mines. The town is the 5th largest agglomeration in its voivodeship, and is a major railway junction, where the west–east line (Poznań–Toruń) crosses the Polish Coal Trunk-Line from Chorzów to Gdynia. History The town was first mentioned in 1185 as Novo Wladislaw, possibly in honor of Władysław I Herman or after the settlers from Włocławek. Many inhabitants of Włocławek settled in Inowrocław fleeing flooding. In 1236, the settlement was renamed Juveni Wladislawia. It was incorporated two year ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell (April 7, 1897 – February 20, 1972) was a syndicated American newspaper gossip columnist and radio news commentator. Originally a vaudeville performer, Winchell began his newspaper career as a Broadway reporter, critic and columnist for New York tabloids. He rose to national celebrity in the 1930s with Hearst newspaper chain syndication and a popular radio program. He was known for an innovative style of gossipy staccato news briefs, jokes and Jazz Age slang. Biographer Neal Gabler claimed that his popularity and influence "turned journalism into a form of entertainment". He uncovered both hard news and embarrassing stories about famous people by exploiting his exceptionally wide circle of contacts, first in the entertainment world and the Prohibition era underworld, then in law enforcement and politics. He was known for trading gossip, sometimes in return for his silence. His outspoken style made him both feared and admired. Novels and movies were based ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ina Ray Hutton
Ina Ray Hutton (born Odessa Cowan; March 13, 1916 – February 19, 1984) was an American singer, bandleader, and the elder sister of June Hutton. She led one of the first all-female big bands. Biography A native of Chicago, Hutton began dancing and singing on stage at the age of eight. Her mother was a pianist in Chicago. At age 15, she starred in the Gus Edwards revue ''Future Stars Troupe'' at the Palace Theater and Lew Leslie's ''Clowns in Clover''. On Broadway she performed in George White's revues ''Melody'', ''Never Had an Education'' and ''Scandals'', then with the Ziegfeld Follies of 1934. In 1934, she was approached by Irving Mills and vaudeville agent Alex Hyde to lead an all-girl orchestra, the Melodears, As part of the group's formation, Mills asked her to change her name. The group included trumpeter Frances Klein, Canadian pianist Ruth Lowe Sandler, saxophonist Jane Cullum, guitarist Marian Gange, trumpeter Mardell "Owen" Winstead, and trombonist Alyse Well ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lane Sisters
The Lane Sisters were a family of American singers and actresses. The sisters were Leota Lane (October 25, 1903 – July 25, 1963), Lola Lane (May 21, 1906 – June 22, 1981), Rosemary Lane (April 4, 1913 – November 25, 1974) and Priscilla Lane (June 12, 1915 – April 4, 1995). Lola, Rosemary, and Priscilla co-starred with Gale Page in four films together: ''Four Daughters'' (1938), '' Daughters Courageous'' (1939), '' Four Wives'' (1939) and '' Four Mothers'' (1941). Leota did not find the same success as her sisters and left Hollywood for New York City before the sisters' breakthrough. Sisters Early life The four sisters, Leotabel (Leota), Dorothy (Lola), Rosemary and Priscilla, were from a family of five daughters born to Dr. Lorenzo A. Mullican and his wife, Cora Bell Hicks. (Their other daughter, Martha, did not enter show business.) The first three children had been born in Macy, Indiana, but the family moved in 1907 to Indianola, Iowa, a small college town s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack Pearl
Jack Pearl (born Jack Perlman; October 29, 1894 – December 25, 1982) was a vaudeville performer and a star of early radio. He was best known for his character Baron Munchausen. Vaudeville and early films Born in New York, Pearl debuted as an entertainer in ''School Days'', Gus Edwards's vaudeville act. He made the transition from vaudeville to broadcasting when he introduced his character Baron Munchausen on '' The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air'' in 1932. His creation was loosely based on the Baron Munchausen literary character. As the Baron, Pearl would tell far-fetched stories with a comic German accent. When the straight man (originally Ben Bard, but later Cliff Hall) expressed skepticism, the Baron replied with his familiar tagline and punchline: "Vass you dere, Sharlie?" ("Was you there, Charlie?"). This catch phrase soon became part of the national lexicon. Typical of the dialogue: :Hall: You seem to be effervescent tonight. :Munchausen: Haff you effer seen me ven I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sally Rand
Sally Rand (born Helen Gould Beck; April 3, 1904 – August 31, 1979) was an American burlesque dancer, vedette, and actress, famous for her ostrich feather fan dance and balloon bubble dance. She also performed under the name Billie Beck. Early life Rand was born in the village of Elkton, Hickory County, Missouri. Her father, William Beck, was a West Point graduate and retired U.S. Army colonel, while her mother, Nettie (Grove) Beck, was a school teacher and part-time newspaper correspondent.''Dictionary of Missouri Biography'', Lawrence O. Christensen, University of Missouri Press, 1999. The family moved to Jackson County, Missouri while she was still in grade school. Helen got her start on the stage quite early, working as a chorus girl at Kansas City's Empress Theater when she was only 13. An early supporter of her talent was Goodman Ace, drama critic for the '' Kansas City Journal'' who saw her performing in a Kansas City nightclub and wrote glowing reviews. Aft ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ray Bolger
Raymond Wallace Bolger (January 10, 1904 – January 15, 1987) was an American actor, dancer, singer, vaudevillian and stage performer (particularly musical theatre) who started in the silent-film era. Bolger was a major Broadway performer in the 1930s and beyond. He is best known for his roles in ''The Wizard of Oz'' (1939) as the Scarecrow and in Walt Disney's holiday musical fantasy '' Babes in Toyland'' as the villainous Barnaby. Bolger was the host of ''The Ray Bolger Show'' on TV from 1953 to 1955, originally titled ''Where's Raymond?'' Early life Bolger was born at 598 Second St., South Boston, Massachusetts, into a Catholic family of Irish descent, the son of James Edward Bolger and Anne C. née Wallace. His father James was first-generation Irish, and was born in Fall River, Massachusetts; his mother "Annie" who had a large Irish family, was born in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. He grew up and attended school in the Codman Square section of Dorchester neighborhood ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hildegarde
Hildegarde Loretta Sell, known as Hildegarde (February 1, 1906 – July 29, 2005) was an American cabaret singer, who was well known for the song " Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup". Early life She was born Hildegarde Loretta Sell in Adell, Wisconsin, and raised in New Holstein, Wisconsin, as a Roman Catholic in a family of German extraction. She trained at Marquette University's College of Music in the 1920s. Vaudeville and cabaret Hildegarde worked in vaudeville and traveling shows throughout her career, appearing across the United States and Europe. She was known for 70 years as The Incomparable Hildegarde, a title bestowed on her by columnist Walter Winchell. She was also nicknamed the "First Lady of the Supper Clubs" by Eleanor Roosevelt. She was once referred to as a "luscious, hazel-eyed Milwaukee blonde who sings the way Garbo looks". During the peak of Hildegarde's popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, she was booked in cabarets and supper clubs at least 45 weeks a year. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eleanor Powell
Eleanor Torrey Powell (November 21, 1912 – February 11, 1982) was an American dancer and actress. Best remembered for her tap dance numbers in musical films in the 1930s and 1940s, she was one of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's top dancing stars during the Golden Age of Hollywood. Powell appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and most prominently, in a series of movie musical vehicles tailored especially to showcase her dance talents, including ''Born to Dance'' (1936), '' Broadway Melody of 1938'' (1937), '' Rosalie'' (1937), and ''Broadway Melody of 1940'' (1940). She retired from films in the mid-1940s and then began hosting a Christian children's TV show, but she resurfaced for the occasional specialty dance scene in films such as '' Thousands Cheer'' and eventually headlined a successful nightclub act in Las Vegas. She died from cancer at 69. Powell is known as one of the most versatile and powerful female dancers of the Hollywood studio era. Early life Powell was born in Springf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lila Lee
Lila Lee (born Augusta Wilhelmena Fredericka Appel; July 25, 1905 – November 13, 1973) was a prominent screen actress, primarily a leading lady, of the silent film and early sound film eras. Early life The daughter of Augusta Fredericka Appel and Carl Appel, Lee was born Augusta Wilhelmena Fredericka Appel on July 25, 1905, in Union Hill, New Jersey (now part of Union City), into a middle-class family of German immigrants who relocated to New York City. She had an older sister, Pauline ("Peggy"), who was born in Hamburg, Germany. Searching for a hobby for their gregarious young daughter, the Appels enrolled Lila in Gus Edwards' kiddie review shows where she was given the nickname of "Cuddles"; a name that she would be known by for the rest of her acting career. Her stagework became so popular with the public that her parents had her educated with private tutors. Edwards would become Lee's long-term manager. Lillian Edwards, wife of Gus Edwards, was Lee's guardian. When ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phil Silvers
Phil Silvers (born Phillip Silver; May 11, 1911 – November 1, 1985) was an American entertainer and comedic actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah". His career as a professional entertainer spanned nearly sixty years. Silvers achieved major popularity when he starred in '' The Phil Silvers Show'', a 1950s sitcom set on a U.S. Army post in which he played Master Sergeant Ernest (Ernie) Bilko. He also starred in the films ''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' (1963) and '' A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'' (1966). He was a winner of two Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on ''The Phil Silvers Show'' and two Tony Awards for his performances in '' Top Banana'' and '' A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum''. He also wrote the original lyrics to the jazz standard Nancy (with the Laughing Face). Early life Born Philip Silver in Brooklyn, New York, in the working-class Brownsville neighbourhood, he was the eighth and youngest child of Russian Jewish immigrants, S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (; October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, stage, film, radio, singer, television star and vaudeville performer. He is generally considered to have been a master of quick wit and one of America's greatest comedians. He made 13 feature films as a team with his siblings the Marx Brothers; he was the third-born of the brothers. He also had a successful solo career primarily on radio and television, most notably as the host of the game show '' You Bet Your Life''. His distinctive appearance, carried over from his days in vaudeville, included quirks such as an exaggerated stooped posture, spectacles, cigar, and a thick greasepaint mustache and eyebrows. These exaggerated features resulted in the creation of one of the most recognizable and ubiquitous novelty disguises, known as Groucho glasses: a one-piece mask consisting of horn-rimmed glasses, a large plastic nose, bushy eyebrows and mustache. Early life Ju ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
