Your irregularly scheduled column of commentary, clippings, curiosities, and cuttings from burlesque history. From forgotten figures to fabulous footnotes, we’re digging into what the headlines left behind.
Before Aunt Esther ever wagged a finger on Sanford & Son, LaWanda Page was Alberta Richmond, a burlesque fire-eater known as the Bronze Goddess of Fire. From swallowing flames on the Chitlin Circuit to burning with wit on TV, her story blazes across church pews, nightclubs, and living rooms.
Burlesque Comics & 1937 Delicatessens: Midtown’s Night Shift Lindy’s on Broadway. A second stage after the curtain. In a city under watch, the laugh
Home Stripped to the Core — Walt Kuhn’s Showgirls, Clowns, and the American Taste for Vulgarity Stripped to the Core Burly Gazette Walt Kuhn’s Showgirls,
Siska at the Five O’Clock Club (1965) – Burlesque Bits Backstage at the Five O’Clock Club (1965) A newcomer meets Siska — and Al —
Obscene in the Subconscious – Burlesque Bits Obscene in the Subconscious When a Burlesque Film Went on Trial in Delaware, and Psychiatry Took the Stand
Behind the Curtain: How Burlesque Managers Mastered the Art of the Gimmick Imagine it’s 1905. The Wright brothers have only just proven heavier-than-air flight is