Found 27 collections related to Vaudeville -- United States

Joe Smith and Charlie Dale were a well-known vaudeville duo known as Smith and Dale who performed around the United States for over seventy years. The collection contains an extensive run of scripts for Smith and Dale sketches, material reflecting the later life and career of Joe Smith following Charlie Dale's death, and early material relating to their other comedy team The Avon Comedy Four. less

Actor, writer, director, vaudevillian, and broadcaster, Bert Bertram began acting as a teenager in his native Australia. He emigrated to the United States in 1923 with his first wife, the actress and dancer, Rubee Raymond, and enjoyed a long career on stage, film, radio and television. The scrapbooks contain photographs and clippings documenting the acting careers of Bertram and Raymond. less

Ewing Cherry was an American stage actor with years of touring experience. Born in Des Moines, Iowa, Ewing Cherry (sometimes billed as V. E. Cherry) made his stage debut in WITHIN THE LAW in Chicago in 1916. Soon afterwards Cherry was working in vaudeville in a skit called OUT OF LUCK. He went on to play juvenile leads for various stock companies in such shows as MRS. WIGGS OF THE CABBAGE PATCH and THE LITTLE SPITFIRE through the 1910s and 1920s. His Broadway credits include WHAT PRICE GLORY?, SKIDDING with Glenda Farrell, THE NIGHT BEFORE with Franchot Tone, and MARCHING MEN (1930) with Leon Ames. Cherry also acted in radio drama. After a period of retirement, he returned to the stage for a role in the Off-Broadway production of Sean O'Casey's RED ROSES FOR ME (1961), then appeared in O'Casey's MOON SHINES ON KYLENAMOE and in Nikolai Evreinov's THE CHIEF THING (1963), his last professional credit. Ewing Cherry died in New York City on March 30, 1969. The Ewing Cherry papers span 1916 to 1962, and consist of letters to Ewing Cherry from employers and friends, a number of contracts securing Mr. Cherry's services as an actor for various stock companies between 1917 and 1927, three booklets (1920-23) introducing the members of the Gene Lewis-Olga Worth stock company, photographs of Ewing Cherry in a variety of characterizations, playbills for a dozen plays in which Ewing Cherry appeared, press releases, fliers, telegrams to and from Ewing Cherry, and clippings of reviews which mention his performances. less

Elsie Janis (1889-1956) was a performer in musical comedy, vaudeville, and motion pictures, and also a composer and screenwriter. Born Elsie Bierbower in Columbus, Ohio, March 16, 1889, Elsie Janis made her stage debut at the age of eight in THE CHARITY BALL, and quickly rose to popularity in vaudeville as "Little Elsie." She made her Broadway debut in THE VANDERBILT CUP in 1906, and also appeared in THE HOYDEN (1907), THE FAIR CO-ED (1909), THE SLIM PRINCESS (1910) and THE LADY OF THE SLIPPER (1912). Silent film appearances by Elsie Janis included THE CAPRICES OF KITTY (1915), 'TWAS EVER THUS (1915) and THE IMP (1919). Known as the "Sweetheart of the A.E.F" for entertaining Allied troops during World War I, Elsie Janis continued performing in vaudeville through the 1920's. After talking pictures were introduced she contributed songs and dialogue to several films, including MADAME SATAN (1930) and THE SQUAW MAN (1931) for Cecil B. DeMille, and REACHING FOR THE MOON (1931) for Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. Aside from a brief return to the screen in WOMEN IN WAR (1940), Elsie Janis retired from show business after the death of her mother in 1932. She died in Los Angeles on February 26, 1956. The Elsie Janis diaries consist of five yearbook volumes covering the years 1920, 1921, 1923, 1924, and 1928, with one page devoted to each day. Most entries are written in ink, a few in pencil. The latter portion of the volume for 1920 is water-damaged. Elsie Janis was intimate with many of the stage and screen notables of her day, but references to them are sketchy. Her journal entries are brief and superficial, and read more like those found in datebooks than in diaries. less

The Hillman family papers provide documentation on the performance careers of four members of this family. Included are a notebook containing George A. Hillman's monologues and news clippings discussing the vaudeville performances of George and his wife, Ethel Riddick Hillman, and scrapbooks of news clippings and programs illustrating the tap dancing careers of their sons, George I. and Christopher Hillman, known as the Hillman Brothers, (1930s-1940s). Another scrapbook provides information about George I. Hillman's performance in Curley McDimple (1968). less

William H. Glenn and Walter Jenkins (Glenn & Jenkins) were a popular comedy team who performed on the vaudeville circuit and toured the United States, Canada, and London during the 1920s and 1930s. They became renowned for their black face routines, "Working for the Railway" and "The Broom Dance.". The contents of the scrapbook includes reviews and advertisments of their comedy routines dating from 1922 to 1949 and 1962. The scrapbook also contains notes, flyers, photographs, telegrams, greeting cards, and copies of their pay stubs. less

Collection of autographs of prominent stage figures from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as a few famous individuals from other walks of life. Some of the autographs are appended to brief notes, others are written on the backs of calling cards, while a few have been snipped from larger documents. They have been arranged in folders in alphabetical order. Autographs include: Ethel Barrymore (1904), Billie Burke, Andrew Carnegie, John Drew, Maxine Elliott, Charles Frohman, Clyde Fitch, James Montgomery Flagg, Lew Fields, William Gillette, Raymond Hitchcock, Anna Held, May Irwin, Elsie Janis (1907), Joseph Jefferson, Maxfield Parrish, Blanche Ring, Lillian Russell, Otis Skinner (1910), and Fred Stone. less

Joe Smith and Charlie Dale were partners in one of vaudeville’s most famous and successful comedy acts, later translating many of their most popular sketches to other media, including radio, motion pictures and television. The Smith and Dale Papers include contracts, correspondence, photographs, scripts and other professional material from the team, as well as clippings documenting their joint career and Smith’s activities after Dale’s death. less

Collection consists of a few of William Spiller's personal papers, programs, and news clippings of William and Isabele Spiller's European and American tours, 1912-1942, and of the Spiller School of Music. Bulk of papers contain material pertaining to Isabelle Spiller's work as a music supervisor and orchestra conductor in New York City public schools. Of particular interest is her work as head of the Federal Music Project in New York. Also, a scrapbook containing her published articles. less

Tommy Hyde (d. 1940) was a dancer and songwriter, and also managed a troupe of performers who toured in vaudeville under the name the Honey Boys. The Tommy Hyde papers span 1922-1940, and consist primarily of correspondence to Tommy Hyde, condolence letters to his widow, Adelaide, following his death in March of 1940, three sheets of song lyrics (two of which were written by Mr. Hyde in collaboration with others, while the third is unattributed), contracts and a route sheet for the Honey Boys, receipts and membership cards related to Mr. Hyde's vaudeville career. less

The Breen family was one of the popular performing families of American show business, playing the stages of America, Australia, and elsewhere during the first three decades of the twentieth century. Patriarch Thomas D. Breen, born of Irish immigrants in Massachusetts in 1868, fled his hometown as a teenager with a travelling medicine show. After a brief spell as a blackface minstrel, Breen honed his juggling skills and began touring the vaudeville circuits of the United States and the music halls of Europe. Breen and his first wife had four children, and, after her death, he remarried and had five more, one of whom died in infancy. Seven of the surviving Breen children joined their father in his stage act, either juggling, dancing, doing acrobatics, playing a musical instrument, or some combination of these skills. After the family act broke up around 1921, the younger Breens formed a number of specialty acts, either solo or with partners from outside the family, and continued performing in vaudeville, musical comedy, nightclubs, movies, and in the circus. Consists of a bound typescript written by Charles Breen (b. 1908), the youngest and only non-performing member of the Breen Family, accompanied by a portfolio of photographs of the various Breens. The typescript was apparently written during the late 1980s/early 1990s, completed in 1993, then privately bound under the title MEMOIRS AND STUFF. The text is divided into two sections, the first of which, entitled "The Show Business Breens," gives a general history of the Breens' professional careers, as a group and as solo performers. The first section is 75 pages and ends with a Breen family career chronology. In Book 2, "The Maverick," Charles Breen explains why he chose not to join the family act, and details his own career, first as a jazz musician, later as an electrical engineer. This section consists of 164 pages plus one errata slip. The portfolio of photographs includes pictures of all the performing Breens, and also includes a photo inscribed to the Breens by silent film star Ramon Novarro. less

The George DeMott papers consist of correspondence, some diaries/appointment books, contracts, photographs, and scrapbooks. This material is almost all business related, and there are no significant personal papers. The papers are divided into two distinct parts, with some overlap: items such as contracts and correspondence that relate to the career of Mr. DeMott, and items such as posters, brochures, etc., that he collected, and placed into scrapbooks. The section of the DeMott papers devoted to Booking Agencies and Agents (Series IV) is divided into 18 sub-series, and contains a great deal of correspondence detailing the difficulties George DeMott and his wife Fanny faced booking their act into schools. The scrapbooks comprise the bulk of the collection and contain a variety of items, including clippings, posters, brochures, correspondence, handbills, fliers, photographs, and programs. The oversized material includes a poster and a road map. less

Beatrice Burton, also known as Beatrice Morgan, was an actress, novelist, and silent film screenwriter. The Beatrice Burton papers consist mostly of contracts with the B. F. Keith vaudeville circuit from 1919-1921, engaging Beatrice Morgan & Company to tour in a one-act sketch. An earlier contract with the David Belasco Company, dated 1909, is with Beatrice Morgan alone. There is also an undated, eight-page scenario, written by Beatrice Morgan, for a short film to be called EAST IS EAST AND WEST IS WEST, although whether or not the film was made is unclear. Also included is a letter to Beatrice from a childhood friend of her husband's. less

Volume containing lyrics to twenty songs, two of which, "Nevermo'" and "The Lee Family" were recorded by Williams on Columbia Records in 1915 and 1916 respectively. Second volume, entilted "Anecdotes, Jokes, Axioms, Proverbs, Funs and Puns..." contains over two hundred jokes or "lies" told by Williams and written down by Alex Rogers, a member of Williams' company. These dialectic stories, all of which contain a flavor of fable and black folklore, are primarily about rural or unsophisticated characters. They were first used by Williams in 1909 when he experimented in vaudeville as a solo performer, and later while Williams was a member of the Ziegfeld Follies. less

Tony Pastor was a central figure in the establishment and development of vaudeville in America. Nicknamed "The Dean of Vaudeville," Tony Pastor was a former actor who opened his first variety theater in New York in 1865, and his second in 1881. He was known for influencing vaudeville performers towards using more family-friendly material, thus broadening the popularity of the form. Hardbound autograph album, measuring 18 x 17 cm., with the word AUTOGRAPHS embossed on its cover. Flyleaf inscription reads "Tony Pastor, New York, Nov 21st 1886." Contains several autographs of American and European vaudeville performers, most of whom write inscriptions to Pastor. Autographs include Helena Modjeska, Lionel Brough, and Gus Williams. less

The Bob Howard papers consist of numerous programs for dinner engagements, benefits, and other performances; three scrapbooks of news clippings; and lyrics, musical scores, and arrangements by Howard and his wife, Ruth (Joyner) Howard. Other material includes biographical information, correspondence, contracts and correspondence with his agent, broadsides, handouts and announcements, notices in guidebooks and magazines, feature stories in magazines, and miscellaneous radio, television, and performance material. less

Bill Gunn (1934-1989) was a Black writer, actor, and director. The Bill Gunn photographs collection primarily contains pictures of his family, from the 1880s through 1989, as well as some photos related to his career. Bill Gunn's mother, Louise Gunn, compiled most of the photographs in the collection, which depict her career, friends, family, and community engagement. less

Sidney Easton (1886-1971) was an actor, playwright, and songwriter. This collection contains personal and professional papers including letters, writings by Easton, legal documents regarding his suit against 20th Century-Fox Corporation, and research notes. less

Violet Holmes (1927-2019) was a dancer and choreographer, who spent the majority of her professional life with the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall. The collection contains materials related to her nearly five-decade-long career, including extensive notes on choreographic routines; music, staging, and costume notation; theatrical programs; photographs; recorded performances; costumes; papers; correspondence; and certificates and awards. less

Interviews recorded for an article published in the ARSC Journal. Robyn discusses his early life in Latvia and arrival in America, as well as his career, recordings, and acquaintances between 1919-1931. He also discusses his birthname, (Rubin) and use of many pseudonyms, including Wolf Scarpioff, John Spear, Edward Hamilton, and Mario Rubinoff, among others while he was performing in vaudeville and recording. He recorded first for Emerson, but then for Columbia, Pathe, Okeh, Brunswick, and Victor. Topics discussed include Cameo Records, Eugene Ormandy, "Roxy" (Samuel Rothafel) and the Roxy Theater, and various other music halls. Also discusses recording processes and studios, radio, his records, and "Roxy's Gang" of which he was a member. less

Mrs. Harry Lee (née Fay Elma Waterman, 1862-1916) was a theatre enthusiast. These scrapbooks contain theatre ephemera from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Lee assembled these scrapbooks while traveling with her husband Harry A. Lee (1845-1919) a stage actor and manager. The scrapbooks hold broadsides, newspaper clippings, playbills, photographs, some letters, and ticket stubs. less

Pryor Dodge (1949-) is an author and collector and the son of Lyena Barjansky and Roger Pryor Dodge. Roger Pryor Dodge (1898-1974) was an American dancer. Roger Pryor Dodge's work was focused on the intersection of ballet, vaudeville, jazz, and film. The collection illustrates Roger Pryor Dodge's collaborations with other dancers and jazz musicians through photographs, film footage, scrapbooks, manuscripts, and correspondence. The majority of the collection consists of an eclectic range of film footage of Roger Pryor Dodge's dance routines, many of which were created in collaboration with his partner Mura Dehn. less