Jada’s Testimony Re: Jack Ruby’s Assassination of Lee Harvey Oswald
Here’s an interesting piece from our archives, in recognition of the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President Kennedy on November 22, 1963, and the ensuing assasination of Kennedy’s killer, Lee Harvey Oswald, by Jack Ruby on November 24, 1963: a copy of burlesque dancer Jada’s testimony about her employer,
Longing, Envy, Lust, and Glamour: Lili St. Cyr at Ciro’s
The piece below is an excerpt from Kelly DiNardo’s Gilded Lili: Lili St. Cyr and the Striptease Mystique, released this week as an ebook for Kindle and other readers. Want to win a copy of the book? Read about our Gilded Lili giveaway below! On October 18, 1951, Lili stood
Who’s Who in Burly-Q: Tempest Storm
For this “Who’s Who in BurlyQ”, we turn to Kaitlyn Regehr, burlesque expert and co-host on the Canadian and UK program “Re-Vamped”, PhD candidate in performance and women’s sexuality at King’s College London, and producer of Tempest Storm: Burlesque Queen, a feature documentary exploring Tempest’s life and her huge impact
Dixie Evans (1926 – 2013)
The burlesque world mourned the passing on August 3, 2013, of Dixie Evans, “The Marilyn Monroe of Burlesque”, the godmother of the burlesque revival, founder of the Miss Exotic World pageant in 1991, and Exotic World’s curator, director, and champion. This page is in her memory. We’ve asked Dr. Lucky,
Vivienne Vavoom: Spreading the Gospel of Glitter
The crowd began clapping, hooting, and hollering as the rev of motorcycles and Metallica filled the air. It was time. I was at Denver’s Erico Motorsports, there because I was dating one of the mechanics. And on this night, there would be a grand reveal of Ducati’s new all-road model,
From Bloomers to G-Strings: A History of Burlesque Underwear
As a burlesque performer or even an enthusiast you may have seen the old photos of Bettie Page in the “Guide for Strip-Teasers.” It was published in 1953 as a guide to show how much a stripper could reveal depending on what US. State she was in. Burlesque has changed
Bambi Jones
Rita Hayworth, Betty Grable and other screen sirens from the 1940s gave Doris Kotzan a glimpse into a life more glamorous than her hometown of Holyoke, Massachusetts could offer. She was only 17 when she decided to leave Holyoke and her given name behind to follow her dream- to be
Shoes worn by Patti Starr
We recently added to our collection a selection of stage jewelry, shoes, and a dress, all from the career of Patti Starr. Now in her 90s, Patti Starr performed in the mid-20th century before marrying an oil man and retiring… for a while. She was a close friend of Jennie
Dorothy Dorne: A Life in Pictures by Jo Weldon
Last winter I spent some time going through paper archives in the Burlesque Hall of Fame collection in Las Vegas, with the help of Laura Herbert and Brian Newman. I was particularly interested in the sheet music and the notations on it. I intend to share more about the sheet music project