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Creator
Fields, Fanny
Call number
*T-Mss 2012-033
Physical description
3.7 linear feet (11 boxes, 1 volume)
Preferred Citation

Fanny Fields papers, *T-Mss 2012-033. Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library.

Repository
Billy Rose Theatre Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

Happy Fanny Fields (born Fanny Furman, circa 1881-1961) was an American actress, dancer, and comedian who found great success in British pantomime theater in the first decade of the twentieth century. The collection documents Fields's professional life in New York and Europe, with an emphasis on her career in Britain. The bulk of the materials are scrapbooks, writings, and photographs, with contracts, letters, programs, and posters also included.

Biographical/historical information

Happy Fanny Fields (circa 1881-1961, born Fanny Furman) was an American variety-show actress, dancer, and comedian who found great success in the British pantomime theaters of the early 1900s. Fields's specialty was an impression of a naïve, working-class American-Dutch woman. This character, sometimes called Gretchen, spent much time contemplating the actions of a sweetheart named Schultz who Fields described as "the type of Dutchman who thought slowly, spoke badly, and drank lager perfectly." Clog dancing was another significant component of the act. The Dutch character was sometimes inserted into larger shows, as was the case in the Theatre Royal Glasgow's 1909-1910 production of the pantomime Aladdin.

In 1913, Fields starred in a silent film titled Happy Fanny Fields and the Four Little Dutchmen. That same year, Fields abruptly retired from the stage and returned to New York to marry Dr. Abraham J. Rongy. Fields died in New York City in 1961.

Scope and arrangement

The Fanny Fields papers date from 1891 to 1961 (bulk dates: 1900-1913) and document Fields's performance career in the United States and Britain as well as her continuing popularity after her retirement. The bulk of the collection consists of scrapbooks, photographs, and writings. Letters from Fields's fans; journals and datebooks listing her work schedules; and contracts for her performances are also included.

Four scrapbooks contain clippings, photographs, programs, promotional materials, and a small number of letters and telegrams from family and well-wishers. These volumes are primarily comprised of clippings documenting Fields's career in Britain in the first decade of the 20th century. The clippings include reviews of performances, promotional pieces, interviews, and celebrity news items. Her retirement from the stage in 1913 is also well-documented. The scrapbooks feature publicity photos and illustrations of Fields, mostly in her Dutch costume.

Loose photographs complement those found in the scrapbooks, with professional portraits and production shots as well as autographed portraits of Fields's contemporaries.

Writings include jokes, monologues, songs, toasts, and bits composed by Fields and others that were used in her stage acts.

Additionally, the collection contains loose programs from performances featuring Fields and posters advertising specific performances, such as Aladdin, and the Dutch character generally.

Arrangement

Materials are arranged alphabetically by document type.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Unknown.

Processing information

Compiled by David A. Olson, New York University/Palmer School of Library and Information Science, 2014, 2013

As there was no discernible original order, materials were arranged by document type. Posters were originally placed at the back of the scrapbook labeled "Invoices," but were moved to more appropriately-sized housing. Additional material from the collection processed in 2015 by Weatherly Stephan. Portions of the papers were previously cataloged individually. Classmarks for these materials are noted in the container list.

Using the collection

Location

Billy Rose Theatre Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Conditions Governing Use

The author/creator retains copyright of materials. For information on obtaining permission to publish, contact the Theatre Division at theatre@nypl.org.