#florenz ziegfeld

[redhairclara]

Ziegfeld girl Hilda Ferguson, c. 1920s

[newyorkthegoldenage]

Actors Jack Donahue and Marilyn Miller, composers George Gershwin (at piano) and Sigmund Romberg, and producer Florenz Ziegfeld gather for a rehearsal of the musical Rosalie, November 7, 1927.

Photo: Bettmann Archives/Getty Images/Fine Art America

[thepopculturearchivist]

LIFE, May 3, 1928

[onefootin1941]

Billie Burke as

Glinda the Good Witch in

The Wizard of Oz, 1939

[citizenscreen]

Portrait of Broadway impresario Florenz Ziegfeld and his wife, actress Billie Burke, 1927 by Edward Steichen

[mahgnib]

[peggy-elise]

Hedy Lamarr as Sandra Kolter in Ziegfeld Girl 1941 ✨ this iconic outfit!

[radianttruthsii]

Anna Held, 1901

"I embrace you and I love you. You are so beautiful. You are so good."

[cladriteradio]

Here are 10 things you should know about Billie Burke, born 139 years ago today. It’s rare that an actress with a career as lengthy as Burke's ends up so closely associated with a single role.

[datewithgianni]

Ziegfeld Follies - New York (1907-1931)

[redhairclara]

Avonne Taylor photographed by Clarence Sinclair Bull, 1927

[newyorkthegoldenage]

Above: the sheet music for Shakin' the Blues Away. Photo: ebay

The Ziegfeld Follies of 1927 was the first Follies to feature a star performer--Eddie Cantor--and the first to have all its songs written by a single composer--Irving Berlin. Although it received tepid reviews ("His formula has never failed," wrote Time magazine. "But as nothing subscribes more unreservedly to the law of diminishing returns than [a] succession of splendors, this last superbly heralded Follies achieves only another anticlimax."), it was a hit, running for 167 performances from 1927-28.

In addition to Cantor (who appeared in nearly half the numbers), the show featured Claire Luce, Cliff Edwards (aka Ukelele Ike; 13 years later he was the voice of Jiminy Cricket in Disney's Pinocchio), Ruth Etting, and the Brox Sisters.

"Shakin' the Blues Away" was the show's big number, and Etting made her breakout appearance leading it.

Above: Shakin' the Blues Away, led by Ruth Etting. Photo: Songbook

There was also a jungle scene with live animals, in which Luce entered riding an ostrich. One night the bird left the stage in a flurry and, instead of depositing Luce in the wings, kept on walking, out the stage door and onto West 43rd St.

Below is the first page of the program for the October 17, 1927 performance. Note the sententious legend, "He who glorifies beauty glorifies truth." Would Keats have approved?

Above: the first page of the program for Oct. 17, 1927. Photo: Playbill

The 1927 Follies was the last of 21 annual shows. It was revived briefly in 1931, but didn't continue. The Follies were essentially vaudeville, only much more sumptuous. Later in 1927, Ziegfeld produced Show Boat at his own theater, and it heralded a change in Broadway musicals.

[sarahw81]

Watch "The Garland Gab Presents: Judy Garland in Ziegfeld Girl" on YouTube

A new podcast is now up and running. Please join us as we discuss the all-star extravaganza Ziegfeld Girl!

[travsd]

Ziegfeld and His Follies: A Guest Book Review By Cheryl Rice

So much for labor saving! One of the happy benefits of having written a popular book (and now a popular blog) is that I have accrued pen pals all over this great land of ours. Hudson Valley Poet Cheryl Rice has been among the most valued for many a long year now. She suggested a review of this book and I lobbed the task back to her….and of course what do I want to do after reading the review?…

[2t2r]

Anna Held, actrice et chanteuse des années 1900

Nouvel article publié sur https://www.2tout2rien.fr/anna-held-actrice-et-chanteuse-des-annees-1900/

Anna Held, actrice et chanteuse des années 1900

[citizenscreen]

Broadway impresario Florenz Ziegfeld (March 21, 1867 – July 22, 1932)