Dear Constant Reader,
I appear to be on a bit of an ebook kick. I guess it’s because Amazon just makes it so easy to buy them! Today you’re getting 3 reviews in one.
Queens of Burlesque: Ann Arbor, Ann Corio, Gypsy Rose Lee, Lili St. Cyr and Sally Rand.
Dames of Burlesque: Blaze Starr, Tura Satana, Ricki Covette and Other Ecdysiasts.
Dolls of Burlesque: Irma The Body, Dorian Dennis, Connie Vaughn and More Vintage Strip Tease Artists.
all by Kevin I. Slaughter (2011).
These three little ebooks contain selections of burlesque publicity photos from the collection of “an unnamed friend of Underworld Amusements”. Some of the photos, after being shown full size, are repeated, enlarged and cropped. In a couple of cases, I was a little surprised as to what the editor thought should be the focus of the cropped photo.
Queens of Burlesque is the best organized of the lot, being divided into sections by dancer. As promised, there are pictures of Ann “Boom Boom” Arbor, Ann Corio, Gypsy Rose Lee, Lili St. Cyr and Sally Rand, each under her own chapter heading. In Dames and Dolls, the pictures are unidentified, unless the dancer’s name appears on her photo. However, these collections also have vintage cartoons and advertisements scattered amongst the photographs.
Although I have yet to check against the other photograph collections in my library, I think at least a few of the photos are unique to these books, and that makes them worthwhile.
