Frances Edna "Elsa" Davis (1907–1989) was an Australian entertainer and performer, and notorious vexatious litigant.

Early life

Davis was born in 1907 in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, where she resided for all her life. She began performing in 1916 as a nine year old, playing the piano and

xylophone The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Each bar is an idiophone tuned to a pitch of a musical scale, whether pentatonic or heptatonic in the case of many African ...

at various venues around Melbourne. In 1921 her five year old sister Olga joined her for "Baby Olga and Edna Davis" which featured at The Tivoli, and other venues in Melbourne,

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, and

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

. In 1929 their mother took them to London and Cairo to perform the show, perhaps as a result of their parents separation and subsequent divorce.

Career

Davis was trained in pianoforte and opera singing, and a self-taught xylophone player. She was a natural performer, and earned much success as a teenager doing elaborate stage presentations before film showings in silent movie theatres. Her remarkable skill earned her billings at theatres all over Melbourne, including the

Victory The term victory (from ) originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal duel, combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes a strategic vi ...

in St Kilda, the Renown in

Elsternwick Elsternwick is an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 9 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne city centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Glen Eira local government areas of Victoria ...

, and the Regent in Thornbury. Known as "Little Edna Davis: the Celebrated Child Xylophonist", her popularity led to her touring interstate in 1922, at just fifteen years old. As she got older and her popularity as a child performer waned, Davis enjoyed further success as a composer. She wrote a number of marches for public performances, including the "Centenary March" in 1934 for the

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's visit to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, played while he sailed up

Port Phillip Bay Port Phillip ( Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, narrow channel known as The Rip, and is comple ...

. In later life she composed a march for the

West Gate Bridge The West Gate Bridge is a steel, box girder, cable-stayed bridge in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, spanning the Yarra River just north of its mouth into Port Phillip. It carries the West Gate Freeway and is a vital link between the Melbourn ...

opening in 1978 entitled ''"Mighty West Gate Bridge March"''. Dressed in sequins and heavy makeup and accompanied by the

RAAF The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the governor-general of Aus ...

band, she sang and danced her way through the opening and was described as being "totally nuts".

Legal affairs

In 1938 Davis married her first husband

John Isaacs John William Isaacs (September 15, 1915 – January 26, 2009) was a Panamanian-American professional basketball player. Born in Panama but raised in New York City,Claude Johnson.Harlem When. '' SLAM Magazine Online''. January 26, 2009. Retrieved ...

, brother of Sir Isaac Isaacs, the former

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

and

Chief Justice of Australia The chief justice of Australia is the presiding justice of the High Court of Australia and the highest-ranking judicial officer in the Commonwealth of Australia. The incumbent is Stephen Gageler, since 6 November 2023. Constitutional basis Th ...

. John was a solicitor and forty-four years her senior; undoubtedly captivated by her vivacity. However their marriage was a tumultuous one, with Davis' hectic social calendar and frequent outbursts interfering with the quieter life appreciated by the older Isaacs. Their final dispute was over John secretly changing the sole ownership of his house to a joint tenancy with his brother, which meant she wouldn't inherit the house upon his death. She left the house the next day. The breakdown of his brother's marriage with Davis led Sir Isaac to use his connections to legally pursue and diminish her up until his death. Davis tried to return to their home but was advised by her husband's solicitors that upon her doing so her maintenance payments from him would be reduced. Due to a lack of funds, she pawned the wedding ring John had given her, which had belonged to his mother Rebecca. This spurred on Sir Isaac to cut all amenities to the home and have the furniture removed. She responded by taking legal action over the loss of the ring, and suing the removalists who took the furniture. Davis' inability to let matters lie and Isaacs' determination to fight for his brother led to a battle of litigation which favoured Sir Isaac and his vast influence and left Davis penniless. After having many days in court he used his influence to have her declared a "vexatious litigant" preventing her from pursuing any further legal action without leave of the Court.

Russian interest

Davis married her second husband Geza "Fred" Laszloffy, twenty three years her junior, in February 1954 at the Catholic Sacred Heart Church in St. Kilda. Her new husband's income from factory work allowed Davis to further her career of musical composition and receive significant publicity. Davis enjoyed linking her music to events in contemporary life, composing with Laszloffy ''Under the Sputnik With You'' in tribute to the Russians' successful launch of two satellites into space in 1957. The song was a smash hit in Russia, leading to several other musical pieces for the Russian market and winning them a Lenin medal. This Russian interest also earned the couple special attention from

ASIO ''Asio'' is a genus of typical owls, or true owls, in the family Strigidae. This group has representatives over most of the planet, and the short-eared owl is one of the most widespread of all bird species, breeding in Europe, Asia, North Ameri ...

, with security files monitoring them for a decade.

Early life

Career

Legal affairs

Russian interest

References

Further reading