BEAUTY’S DAUGHTER BACKSTAGE GUIDE 23 Gypsy Rose Lee Gypsy Rose Lee was born in Seattle, Washington on January 8, 1911, however, she always gave January 9 as her date of birth. She was known as Louise to her family. Her sister, actress June Havoc, was born in 1912. Their mother, Rose Thompson Hovick, forged various birth certificates for each of her daughters—older when needed to evade varying state child labor laws, and younger for reduced or free train fares. The girls were unsure until later in life what their years of birth were. After their mother’s second divorce, June supported the family by appearing in vaudeville, being billed "Tiniest Toe Dancer in the World" when she was only 2½. Much to her mother's displeasure, June eloped in December 1928, and went on to pursue a brief career in marathon dancing, a more profitable vocation than tap dancing. Louise's singing and dancing talents were insufficient to sustain the act without June. Eventually, it became apparent that Louise could make money in burlesque, which earned her legendary status as an elegant and witty striptease artist. Her innovations were an almost casual stripping style compared to the herky-jerky styles of most burlesque strippers (she emphasized the "tease" in "striptease"), and she brought a sharp sense of humor into her act as well. She became as famous for her onstage wit as for her stripping style, and – changing her stage name to Gypsy Rose Lee – she became one of the biggest stars of Minsky's Burlesque, where she performed for four years. She was frequently arrested in raids on the Minsky brothers' shows. During the Great Depression, Lee spoke at various union meetings in support of New York laborers. After the death of their mother, the sisters now felt free to write about her without risking a lawsuit. Gypsy's memoirs were published in 1957 and were taken as inspirational material for the Jule Styne, Stephen Sondheim, and Arthur Laurents musical Gypsy: A Musical Fable. June Havoc did not like the way she was portrayed in the piece, but she was eventually persuaded (and paid) not to oppose it for her sister's sake. The play and the subsequent movie deal assured Gypsy a steady income. Lee died of lung cancer in Los Angeles in 1970, aged 59. Ann Corio Ann Corio was born in Hartford, Connecticut on November 29, 1909. While still in her teens, Corio's good looks and shapely physique landed her showgirl roles that led to her becoming a hugely popular striptease artist. Her rise to stardom as a featured performer on the burlesque circuit began in 1925, working in theatres such as the famous Minsky's Burlesque in New York City and Boston's old Howard Theatre. After Mayor Fiorello La Guardia closed down New York City's burlesque houses in 1939, Corio made her way to Los Angeles. Between 1941 and 1944 she appeared in several Hollywood "B" motion pictures which featured her in scanty costumes. Corio had a long successful career dancing on stage. In 1962 she put together the nostalgic off-Broadway show This Was Burlesque which she directed and in which also performed. In 1968, she wrote a book with the same title. Her fame was enduring enough that in the 1970s—when Corio was retired and in her sixties—she twice was a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. In 1981, This Was Burlesque played Broadway at what was then known as the Princess Theatre. Corio died at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center in Englewood, New Jersey on March 1, 1999, aged 89. Gypsy Rose Lee Ann Corio (edited from Wikipedia.org)