Men in Burlesque: THE COMICS

There was one folder in Rose La Rose's theatre photo archives entitled simply COMICS.

The pix weren't even all named, and there wasn't any extra ads or info. Apparently most of the comics didn't even bother with professional photos with their stage names printed on, at least the ones playing Toledo in the 1960s.

That could be because they just didn't feel good about doing Burlesque... maybe they didn't even have enough money. Here's a Joey Bishop quote I found in this great book:

• Broadway: Its History, People, and Places : an Encyclopedia - Google Books Result
• by Ken Bloom - 2004 - Performing Arts - 679 pages
• Joey Bishop recalls the attitude of the burlesque comics:

"Every burlesque comic felt like burlesque was the end of the road for him. If he flopped he had no where else to go... "

Finding info on Burlesque comics is even more difficult than researching the girls. There's a little here and there online, but hopefully more will be added. With google scanning millions of books and magazine's, every day there's more info available on zillions of subjects.

I hope they'll scan all the wonderful old CAVALCADE OF BURLESQUE magazines. They are 95% pix of girls, but the rest features comics -- the Top Bananas of the day. You can even read the scripts of some funny comic bits -- "Gags" as they called them.

You should be able to click the pix to see larger views.




Above is the cover of the 1st issue, Fall 1951. So that means these guys and gals were working in the 1940s. Below are a few comics. My pix are difficult to read. Someday I'll do quality scans of all my Cavalcades, but for now:

• Billy 'Scratch' Wallace / Mike Sachs
  

• No names...

• Click the pic above -- you might be able to make out the names.
  
  Starting below are the pix that were in my archives, so most of these guys were performing circa 1950s & 1960s :

• Mickey Jay with Rosemary

• Billy Reed with Jean Carroll

• Oaky Miller

• Ken Duric

• Big Ferguson (spelling?)

• Willie Dew

• Silky Silvers

• Bert Gehan

• Erby Wilson

• Pat Burns

• Dick Martin

• Lee Clifford

• Jimmy Calvo

• Phil Lane
  
  

• Billy "Cheese'n'Crackers" Hagan (this pic is from the 1951 Cavalcade of Burlesque mag.)

• Jack Hayes (another pic from the 1951 Cavalcade of Burlesque mag.)

The guys below were in my comics folder, but without names:

I know there were many more comics, and I have just shown the pix that I had from Rose's stash. I have other issues of Cavalcade of Burlesque, and will dig them out someday to share.

The VEGAS RETRO site has a few comics pix in their Top Bananas"Best of Burlesque Comics" section.

If anyone has info on a great Burlesque Comics history resource, please let me know-- thanks!

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

Melba, the Toast of the Town

Melba, the Toast of the Town - Vintage Burlesque Dancer Stripper Photos

Just "Click the Pix" to see a larger view.

• Melba #1 -- big 11x17 print

• Melba #2 -- big 11x17 print

• From my archives.

Today Burlesque Babes presents the lovely Melba, the Toast of the Town.

I could not find any bio/info about Melba, other than her name coming up often in lists of performers who worked in the 1950s. So if you have any info, memories, or stories to share, please email me. Thanks!

See more great prints today in our online shop-- BURLESQUE BABES, where we bring you 100's of Sexy Burlesque Stripper photos printed from our huge vintage promo photograph collection.



The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

Maxine Martin - The Skyscraper Girl

Maxine Martin, The Skyscraper Girl - Vintage Burlesque Dancer Stripper Photos

Just "Click the Pix" to see a larger view.

• Maxine Martin #1 -- big 11x17 print
  
  
• Maxine Martin #2 -- big 11x17 print

• From my promo photo archives.
• She was known as:
• "The 6'4" Skyscraper" and "The Skyscraper Girl"
• Click on pic for larger view.

Maxine's name is mentioned in several interviews with Tura Satana, but I could not find any other online references to any vintage Burlesque stripper named Maxine Martin, so if you have any info, memories, or stories to share, please email me. Thanks!

Get your "Maxine Martin" prints today in our online shop-- BURLESQUE BABES, where we bring you 100's of Sexy Burlesque Stripper photos printed from our huge vintage photograph collection.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

Mary Mack

Mary Mack - Vintage Burlesque Dancer Stripper Photos

Just "Click the Pix" to see a larger view.

• Mary Mack #3 -- big 11x17 print
  
  
  

• Mary Mack #1 -- big 11x17 print

• Mary Mack #4 -- big 11x17 print

• Mary Mack #6 Coffee Mug

• Mary was pictured in the Fall 1951 magazine "Cavalcade of Burlesque".

• From my archives, with newspaper ad.

I could not find any online history or biography for Mary Mack, so if you have any info, memories, or stories to share, please email me. Thanks!

Get your "Mary Mack" prints today in our online shop-- BURLESQUE BABES, where we bring you 100's of Sexy Burlesque Stripper photos printed from our huge vintage photograph collection.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

Marilyn Marzette

Marilyn Marzette - Vintage Burlesque Dancer Stripper Photos

Just "Click the Pix" to see a larger view.

• Marilyn Marzette #1 -- big 11x17 print

• Marilyn Marzette #2 -- big 11x17 print

• Marilyn Marzette on 2-28-06
• JAN HOGAN interviewed MARILYN in the VIEW NEWS, a Las Vegas/Summerlin newspaper: "Hairdresser happy to tell the tale of her colorful history."

Here's a little taste - be sure to read the interview. She drops a few names.

• "... They called her Marilyn, the Calendar Girl, and her performance was for the appeal, not so much to reveal.
  Georgia "Marilyn" Marzette grew up between here and Southern California. She was 18 when she decided to follow in the footsteps of her predecessors, like Gypsy Rose Lee, Little Egypt and Sally Rand. ..."

Get your "Marilyn Marzette" prints today in our online shop-- BURLESQUE BABES, where we bring you 100's of Sexy Burlesque Stripper photos printed from our huge vintage photograph collection.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

Ministry of Burlesque Adds Online TV Video Channel

Burlesque Babes just joined the Ministry of Burlesque (MOB) Forum. I saw that they announced a brand new feature - it's MOB's own TV channel (online).



I also noticed a couple interesting Burlesque books featured on the home page. See their long list of Burlesque books here.



Ministry Of Burlesque TV Has Arrived!

Ministry Of Burlesque is proud to announce the launch of MoB TV, our own online TV channel. We're in the process of adding literally hundreds of hours of the best burlesque, cabaret and variety entertainment videos from the best events and performers.



Burlesque: Legendary Stars Of The Stage

The ladies in this book were the real queens of burlesque back when it was still in theatres and was the rage of America. It has touching stories and insights from those...

New Burlesque

The photographs are really excellent, lots of very unusual girls looking spectacular. Includes Kitten DeVille.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

Maria Fredericks

Maria Fredericks - Vintage Burlesque Dancer Stripper Photos

Just "Click the Pix" to see a larger view.

• Maria Fredericks #1 -- big 11x17 print

• From my archives, with newspaper ad.
  

I could not find any online references to any vintage Burlesque stripper named Maria Fredericks, so if you have any info, memories, or stories to share, please email me. Thanks!

Get your "Maria Fredericks" prints today in our online shop-- BURLESQUE BABES, where we bring you 100's of Sexy Burlesque Stripper photos printed from our huge vintage photograph collection.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

Top 10 Best Burlesque Blogs named by It's Simply Burlesque Blog

If you haven't been reading Amber Turner's wonderful new blog, It's Simply Burlesque -- well, you just need to get over there and check it out. She's covering so many aspects of Burlesque, from history to current events. Lots of pix, video clips, links - good stuff!

I want to thank her for placing the Burlesque Babes Blog as #1 on her list, Top 10 Best Burlesque Blogs.

It's nice to have my labor of love be appreciated, and to be in such worthy company.

PS -- I think you'll really like her post "Top 15 Classic Burlesque Queens" with video clips.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

First Vargas Girl: October 1940 Original Art - Heritage Auctions

The Very First Vargas Girl: October 1940 drawing highlights Illustration Art event in Dallas

A preliminary drawing from the hand of Alberto Vargas, for what would become the very first Vargas Girl in the December 1940 issue of Esquire Magazine, will be one of the highlights of the July 15 Signature® Illustration Art Auction at Heritage Auction Galleries. This is the first auction to feature major Illustration Art highlights from The Estate of Charles Martignette, the most important collection of illustration art to ever come to public auction. The drawing is estimated to bring between $20,000-$30,000.

"This particular image is not the one that ultimately appeared in the December 1940 issue of Esquire, but it is her very first incarnation," said Ed Jaster, Director of Illustration Art at Heritage. "From this single drawing Alberto Vargas would become one of the greatest and most famous illustrators of the 20th century. It is extremely finished and exactly rendered, and is as detailed as many of his final artworks, indicating the importance he placed on it."

In the late 1930s, it was George Petty — his Petty Girls — that dominated the Esquire gatefolds. These popular drawings were the main graphic draw for readers of the time, but that readership - much to the frustration of Esquire's publisher — was mostly static. The magazine soon devised a double gatefold to showcase Petty's buxom babes, and to boost Esquire's lethargic circulation numbers.

Petty wanted more money, sat out the whole of 1940, and the magazine began the thorny task of finding a replacement for its most popular illustrator. The search proved fruitless for the first half of the year, but on a warm June day their prayers were answered: 44-year-old Alberto Vargas, looking for work, walked into Esquire's Manhattan headquarters and asked if they might be interested in his services. The rest is history.

"Amid much hoopla," wrote Reid Stewart Austin on page 12 of Varga The Esquire Years A Catalog Raisonne (published in 1987 by St. James Press), "the first Varga Girl appeared in the October 1940 issue: the gatefold had been introduced to the image that would make it famous." Reclining Nude, Preliminary Drawing for the Very First Vargas Girl, a mixed media and parchment on board drawing, was flopped and turned upright before it was published as the October gatefold, at a time when the magazine's circulation was rising towards 650,000. A year later, with Vargas anchoring the prime slots with his titillating Vargas Girls, that number was 775,000, certainly bolstered by Vargas' considerable talent.

"This drawing is pure vintage Vargas," said Jaster, "and vintage illustration art. It's the beginning of the very peak of his career, and a world class study of the female form equal to that of any genre, not just Illustration."

The rest of The Estate of Charles Martignette includes names like: Gil Elvgren, Mel Ramos, Normal Rockwell, Howard Pyle, Jessie Willcox Smith, Frank Schoonover, Frank Stick, Haddon Sundblom, James Montgomery Flagg, Mead Schaeffer, Saul Tepper, Tom Lovell, Coles Phillips, Amos Sewell, W.H.D. Koerner, Rolf Armstrong, Earl Moran, Enoch Bolles, Norman Saunders, H.J. Ward, George Rozen, Walter Baumhofer, Earl Bergey, Rudolph Belarski and James Avati, among so many others. Click here for more information about Illustration Art
Auctions.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

NYC’s Museum of Sex Sponsors Safer Sex in the City 2009

Safer Sex in the City 2009,
the sizzling annual benefit for
AIDS Service Center NYC

Join celebrity host NYC drag legend Flotilla DeBarge, Vivid Girl Savanna Samson, dance-pop singer Reina, superstar DJ, Vic Latino, and many more special guests for the summer’s sexiest fundraiser, promoting safer sex in the age of AIDS.

Pamela Anderson, Joy Behar, Margaret Cho, Linda Eder, Ellie Krieger, Robert LaFosse, & Gloria Ruben have joined forces with ASC as part of this year’s benefit committee.

NYC’s Museum of Sex will showcase a curated sampler of the museum’s renowned collection on human sexuality. Fun-filled, uninhibited presentations will spotlight ASC’s innovative safer-sex education and HIV risk reduction programs. Guests can bid on fabulous silent auction items.

For sponsorship, silent-auction donations, or tickets, contact Brooke Brailey at 212-645-0875, x303 or brooke@ascnyc.org.

AIDS Service Center NYC (ASC) is a community based non-profit at the forefront of the fight against HIV/AIDS and the effort to ensure that all New Yorkers have access to HIV prevention, services, and treatment. For more information about AIDS Service Center NYC visit www.ascnyc.org.





The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

Linda Lucerne

Linda Lucerne - Vintage Burlesque Dancer Stripper Photos

Just "Click the Pix" to see a larger view.

• Linda Lucerne -- big 11x17 photo print for sale
  

I could not find any bio/history or other online references to any vintage Burlesque stripper named Linda Lucerne, so if you have any info, memories, or stories to share, please email me. Thanks!

See more of my great prints today in my online shop-- BURLESQUE BABES, with 100's of Sexy Burlesque Stripper photos printed from my huge vintage photograph collection.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com

3 Lovelies: LOLITA, Lynda Cotton, Linda Cotton

3 lovelies: LOLITA, and Lynda Cotton, and Linda Cotton - Vintage Burlesque Dancer Stripper Photos

Just "Click the Pix" to see a larger view.

• From my archives. (click to enlarge pic)
• I don't think this Lynda Cotton is the same person as the Linda Cotton below...

• Linda Cotton 8x10 Photo on 11x17 Poster Print
• Her promo photo spelled her name LINDA Cotton

• LOLITA Burlesque Stripper 8x10 Photo Print

I could not find any bio/history or other online references to any vintage Burlesque stripper named LOLITA, or Lynda / Linda Cotton, so if you have any info, memories, or stories to share, please email me. Thanks!

See more of my great prints today in my online shop-- BURLESQUE BABES, with 100's of Sexy Burlesque Stripper photos printed from my huge vintage photograph collection.

The Burlesque Babes Blog is published by burlesquebabesshop.com