Dance of the Zodiac! Pannette Piper True Burlesque

Pannette Piper and her Painted Umbrella!  In 1942, Billboard Magazine announced Pannette Piper was introducing a new dance around town.  The Zodiac!  Sure enough, here is a picture of Pannette with her jerry-rigged Sign of the Zodiac twirler!  Unfortunately the photo is not in color, but I am SURE it is glitter and poster paint.  Note how Pannette had a problem with Sagittarius…not enough room between the umbrella ribs!

I have a picture of Pannette with the umbrella before it was doctored up too!

During her act. Pannette would traipse from table to table, leaning over and telling the horoscope of folks at bistro tables while shaking her stuff and stretching her gams. 

"Hey Mista?  Read chure FUTCHA?"

Actually, the pitch was probably more southern drawl than a jersey jingo, as Pannette was from Tennessee.  Her mother was named Ada Keith, so maybe Pannette had the same last name…but who knows.    Mother Ada was a vaudeville hoofer on the county fair route from way back.  

Pannette and her sister Hallie Piper both aspired to stardom and both headed up to New York City.  It appears they could afford (to share with two others) an apartment on West 51st Street.  It looks like Pannette came around age 19 and Hallie was 22.

Needless to say, it didn't take long for Pannette to be posing in her undies.  5 foot 6 inches and 36-25-36.  Red hair with brown eyes.

I see a trip to Troy to entertain at the annual frolic of the Troy County Board of Supervisors.  Hmm.  When I read "frolic" and see a bunch of politicians, I suspect more than a Zodiac dance, but it could be innocent.

The novelty dance bombed.  Despite the publicity here, she soon replaced it with "The Butterfly Dance"  but unfortunately I have no pictures of that one…maybe she came out of a cocoon.


Hallie became the beautician at the Hotel President, where she made her sister's costumes.

I wish I could tell you how Pannette turned out, but I don't know her sign.  

This will be posted on TRUE BURLESQUE SOON.

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The World's Fastest Stripper (!) True Burlesque of Georgia Sothern Ecydysiast and Suspected Falsie Wearer?

Georgia Sothern.  If you look her up, Google will force Georgia SOUTHERN on you, so click through.  Thanks Google, but I know what I'm looking for. 

Georgia Sothern was really Hazel Anderson.  Plucking information from relatives who have contributed to information on the web, it appears she was once married to a fellow who ran a nightclub across from Madison Square Garden, and later to a "wealthy NY lawyer" with whom she lived happily ever after.   I am going to guess husband number one is Harry Finkelstein, who Georgia caught in a hotel room with fellow stripper Sally Rand once.  Harry claimed he was there to give the bubble dancer "medicine" but it was inappropriate enough for Georgia to have them both arrested.  Of course the press ate it up.  I believe Harry eventually married Sally!

Here is a clip by the fastest stripper in show business!  Some even say the novelty song "Hold That Tiger" was written for her.  She was also called "The Fastest Thing in Heels" at one time.  You can see why.  

There was a rumor Errol Flynn seduced her,  but she denied it.  If so, Georgia is virtually the only woman (or man) in the business not to sleep with Errol Flynn.

According to the Associated Press, Georgia once clocked Joann Collier after she accused her of wearing falsies.  Georgia said "in my trade, the wearing of falsies is impossible" but Joann later claimed she meant "in her evening dress."

Like many strippers, she started in the business before she was legal.  At age 12.  I'm not sure when she actually started peeling, but I'll guess not too soon after…and since the young woman's hips were nice, show biz pimp Minsky gave her a fake ID.  A tough life, that show business. 

Later she joined the carnival.  THAT'S a glamorous life too!

Before long, Hazel had learned the business as hired her OWN strippers which toured under the name "Sothern's Red-Headed Revue".  Other than her crazy, "chicken on amphetamine feed" dance shown here, her biggest claim to fame is providing the term "Ecdysiast" to refer to exotic dancers.  It used to mean "animals which molt" but now it means dames who strip.  Georgia was also called "dervish" and "cyclonic" among other things.  Oh…and the "bing bang bong girl."  Oh…also the "sizzling tornado."

Georgia had one of the longest careers in Burlesque.  Her first mention in the trades, apparently, was in 1935.  In 1948 she was busted for stripping too much at the Samoa Club, not her only scrap with the law.  As shown here, she posed of the cover of Calvacade of Burlesque with the great comedian and compulsive gambler Phil Silvers.

She later wrote an autobiography full of lurid details of her life in burlesque.

Books and affordable $5.99 ebooks by Jim Linderman are available HERE

Tempest Storm True Burlesque

 Tempest Storm doing Tempest Storm

Keep practicing, Neo-burlesquers!

Vintage Black Burlesque in a Rare Photograph True Burlesque

Today Black Burlesque is having a revival, thankfully…as women of color are virtually excluded from standard histories of the peeling industry.  There were pioneers, of course (See my tribute to forgotten photographer Lonnie Simmons HERE) but original photographs taken during actual shows are scarce indeed.  The snapshot here turned up on the West coast, but there is no way to tell where it came from.  I am just glad it exists.  Juke Joint Jive!


Jim Linderman also wrote Secret History of the Black Pinup: Women of Color from Pinup to Porn.

Original Amateur Snapshot, circa 1950 Collection Jim Linderman

Sande Marlowe Sizzles Leonard Burtman Burlesque True Burlesque

 

Leonard Burtman cobbles together yet another quickie cash-in using somewhat tired photos of  hardworking burleskers in 1959.  Published under the Burtman umbrella through his little known “Phoebe” offshoot.  Like all in the series (this is number 23!) some thirty pages of  hard workers posing on his dirty couch.  In this case, the lovely Sande Marlowe.  She's the covergirl, but other burlesque stalwarts are included...likely because Lenny only had 5 shots of Sande to work with so he padded it out with more tired photos of other unfortunates who dropped in on a rare day off, including Baby Lake and Princess Domay. 

Sande Marlowe was also a Minx centerfold.  She appeared on the cover of the second SIZZLE, a primitive and haphazard smut rag known only for their high quality color covers but cheap black and white images inside.  Sande also called herself “The Venus of Stageland” and spent much time doing her dances in Mexico City for some reason.  A beautiful woman in the wrong place.

Jim Linderman Ebooks ($5.99 each) and Books HERE

Longer article originally published on VINTAGE SLEAZE THE DAILY ART BLOG BY JIM LINDERMAN   

Lynne O'Neill Treasure Chest Record True Burlesque History

Treasure Chest!  Struggling, Long Limb Lynne O'Neill takes work on the cover of Captain Kidd's sleazy "risque jokes" album put out by Joe Davis in Manhattan.

More relics and dozens of never before seen photographs of the Burlesque Queen and "Original Garter Girl" Lynne O'Neill are in the new book (and $5.99 ebook) Available NOW.
PRIVATE PHOTOGRAPHS OF A BURLESQUE QUEEN : LYNNE O'NEILL the ORIGINAL GARTER GIRL  by Jim Linderman.

NOW AVAILABLE!  Ebook $5.99  Paperback and Hardcover as listed. 

ORDER AND PREVIEW BOOK HERE    ORDER EBOOK HERE

True Burlesque Returns to Youngstown! Amateur Night

True Burlesque Youngstown Style!  Meet "The New Park" theater, same as the old park.  Amateur = No union dues. 

Harlem Shake? Please. Harlem UPROAR True Burlesque Black Burlesque

 

We can do better than Harlem Shake. Harlem has been shaking for FAR longer than that...though this Harlem Shake was Midtown.