1 00:00:00,920 --> 00:00:03,880 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:03,960 --> 00:00:12,760 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:12,800 --> 00:00:16,440 Speaker 1: I'm Holly cry and I'm Tracy B. Wilson. Uh. It 4 00:00:16,480 --> 00:00:20,040 Speaker 1: is another opera podcast, but this one is really about 5 00:00:20,079 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: the biography of a famous singer. Specifically, we won't get 6 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:25,960 Speaker 1: too deep into opera terminology or anything on this one. Uh. 7 00:00:25,960 --> 00:00:28,760 Speaker 1: And this was suggested on Twitter and I, as often 8 00:00:28,840 --> 00:00:31,600 Speaker 1: happens to us when someone suggests something on social if 9 00:00:31,640 --> 00:00:33,920 Speaker 1: we don't write down right then who suggested it, it 10 00:00:34,000 --> 00:00:36,479 Speaker 1: gets lost to the ages because it becomes very impossible 11 00:00:36,520 --> 00:00:39,040 Speaker 1: to search. So I apologize to the person that suggested her. 12 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:41,400 Speaker 1: I do not remember your name. But it made me 13 00:00:41,440 --> 00:00:44,199 Speaker 1: excited because not only did it involve research of a 14 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:46,559 Speaker 1: diva in the traditional sense of the word diva, like 15 00:00:46,560 --> 00:00:49,920 Speaker 1: a premier opera talent, I also get to research a 16 00:00:49,960 --> 00:00:52,480 Speaker 1: French chef, though his part of the story is fairly brief, 17 00:00:52,520 --> 00:00:55,720 Speaker 1: but that made it exciting to me. So we're talking 18 00:00:55,760 --> 00:00:58,200 Speaker 1: today about Dame Nellie Melba and this is actually gonna 19 00:00:58,200 --> 00:00:59,880 Speaker 1: be a two parter because she's one of those people 20 00:00:59,880 --> 00:01:02,920 Speaker 1: of it like, once you really dig into her biography, 21 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:05,679 Speaker 1: she did so many things and her career was so 22 00:01:05,760 --> 00:01:09,399 Speaker 1: long and she's just really fascinating. She was basically the 23 00:01:09,400 --> 00:01:12,800 Speaker 1: equivalent of a modern day megastar in her time. She 24 00:01:12,920 --> 00:01:15,679 Speaker 1: was confident, she was smart, she was talented. She was 25 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:19,000 Speaker 1: beloved by the people of her home country Australia, but 26 00:01:19,080 --> 00:01:21,399 Speaker 1: she was also an international star. She was a featured 27 00:01:21,440 --> 00:01:24,240 Speaker 1: performer on stages throughout the world. She was basically a 28 00:01:24,280 --> 00:01:28,280 Speaker 1: worldwide phenomenon in terms of singing, and she was sometimes 29 00:01:28,280 --> 00:01:31,800 Speaker 1: criticized during her career as coming across as cold as 30 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:35,840 Speaker 1: a singer rather than being passionate, but many others considered 31 00:01:35,840 --> 00:01:38,640 Speaker 1: her voice to be one of ultimate purity and clarity. 32 00:01:38,760 --> 00:01:41,800 Speaker 1: She really focused a lot on technique, but regardless of 33 00:01:41,800 --> 00:01:45,080 Speaker 1: where anybody stood on it. For four decades, she really 34 00:01:45,160 --> 00:01:48,360 Speaker 1: commanded the opera scene and she drew crowds in a 35 00:01:48,360 --> 00:01:51,000 Speaker 1: career that was nothing short of globe trotting. So that's 36 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:54,960 Speaker 1: who we're talking about today. Nellie was born Helen Porter 37 00:01:55,040 --> 00:02:00,639 Speaker 1: Mitchell on sixty one near Melbourne, Australia. Her father, David Mitchell, 38 00:02:00,720 --> 00:02:03,880 Speaker 1: was a building contractor and an entrepreneur of some renown, 39 00:02:04,240 --> 00:02:07,040 Speaker 1: and he supported Australia's eight hour workday movement in the 40 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:11,079 Speaker 1: mid eighteen fifties, David and his wife Isabella and doubt 41 00:02:11,160 --> 00:02:15,839 Speaker 1: Mitchell had ten children all told, that's a lot of kids, uh, 42 00:02:15,880 --> 00:02:18,560 Speaker 1: and their household was full of music. The Mitchell's loved it. 43 00:02:19,560 --> 00:02:22,080 Speaker 1: David sang in the choir at the Scotts Church. He 44 00:02:22,160 --> 00:02:25,520 Speaker 1: also played violin, though just casually at home. He wasn't 45 00:02:25,560 --> 00:02:29,800 Speaker 1: like a concert violinist, and Isabella played several instruments, and 46 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:32,480 Speaker 1: she made it a priority to teach all of their 47 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:36,960 Speaker 1: children music. That means that Nellie did start singing at 48 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:39,959 Speaker 1: a very young age. She appeared at the Richmond Public 49 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:42,639 Speaker 1: Hall when she was just six, and she eventually learned 50 00:02:42,639 --> 00:02:45,560 Speaker 1: to play the piano with great skill. But she was 51 00:02:45,560 --> 00:02:47,840 Speaker 1: a little bit of its comboy, and she wasn't considered 52 00:02:47,880 --> 00:02:52,000 Speaker 1: a musical wunderkin by any means. Her humming, of all things, 53 00:02:52,120 --> 00:02:55,200 Speaker 1: was recognized as being quite lovely, and she would hum 54 00:02:55,280 --> 00:02:58,360 Speaker 1: throughout her life, eventually as a vocal exercise rather than 55 00:02:58,400 --> 00:03:02,000 Speaker 1: a way to make her own music. And in addition 56 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:04,560 Speaker 1: to the music that her mother taught her, Nellie also 57 00:03:04,639 --> 00:03:08,560 Speaker 1: got a more general academic education. She was taught additional 58 00:03:08,600 --> 00:03:11,560 Speaker 1: subjects by her aunt's and then she also attended Boarding 59 00:03:11,600 --> 00:03:15,240 Speaker 1: School and later Presbyterian Ladies College, and it was in 60 00:03:15,280 --> 00:03:19,560 Speaker 1: college that Nellie truly blossomed and began more seriously studying 61 00:03:19,720 --> 00:03:24,280 Speaker 1: and excelling in music, elocution, and painting. Nellie finished school 62 00:03:24,280 --> 00:03:26,960 Speaker 1: in eighteen eighty, although sadly it was not a time 63 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:30,040 Speaker 1: of celebration. Her mother and one of her sisters had 64 00:03:30,080 --> 00:03:34,640 Speaker 1: both died. Charles moved the family to Mackay in Queensland, 65 00:03:34,760 --> 00:03:37,680 Speaker 1: where he had purchased a sugar mill, thinking that a 66 00:03:37,720 --> 00:03:40,760 Speaker 1: new environment might really help everybody deal with their grief. 67 00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:45,640 Speaker 1: On December twenty two of eighteen eighty two, so at 68 00:03:45,640 --> 00:03:49,400 Speaker 1: the age of twenty one, Nellie married Charles Nesbit Armstrong, 69 00:03:49,760 --> 00:03:51,760 Speaker 1: and she had met him the previous year after the 70 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:55,360 Speaker 1: family had moved. He was both rugged and a gentleman, 71 00:03:55,560 --> 00:03:58,840 Speaker 1: and he was three years older than Nellie. But married 72 00:03:58,840 --> 00:04:02,000 Speaker 1: life and McKay was really difficult for Nelly to settle into. 73 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:05,240 Speaker 1: The couple had a son, George, in October of eighteen 74 00:04:05,240 --> 00:04:08,160 Speaker 1: eighty three, but this didn't fix anything. She didn't feel 75 00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:11,880 Speaker 1: any real happiness. She certainly cared for her son, but 76 00:04:11,920 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 1: she didn't feel fulfilled and it didn't make their marriage 77 00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:18,440 Speaker 1: very happy. Charles is also alleged to have been violent 78 00:04:18,480 --> 00:04:21,400 Speaker 1: with Nellie, and just a few months after George was born, 79 00:04:21,839 --> 00:04:26,280 Speaker 1: Nellie left. On January nineteenth of eighteen eighty four, after 80 00:04:26,360 --> 00:04:29,400 Speaker 1: separating from Charles, Nelly moved to Melbourne to make a 81 00:04:29,480 --> 00:04:32,840 Speaker 1: fresh start and pursue a career in singing. The marriage 82 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:35,760 Speaker 1: didn't end there, though, Charles Is and Nellie's lives would 83 00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:39,000 Speaker 1: stay connected for some time and we'll just be coming 84 00:04:39,000 --> 00:04:42,440 Speaker 1: back to that in a little bit. So in Melbourne, 85 00:04:42,480 --> 00:04:46,239 Speaker 1: she took vocal lessons from Pietro Chicky and accomplished opera 86 00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:48,680 Speaker 1: singer in his own right, and Checkie also had a 87 00:04:48,720 --> 00:04:51,279 Speaker 1: fascinating life in his own right. He was born in 88 00:04:51,400 --> 00:04:54,320 Speaker 1: Rome and he first worked as an architect under Pope 89 00:04:54,320 --> 00:04:57,279 Speaker 1: Pious the ninth, and then he left his architecture career 90 00:04:57,360 --> 00:05:01,040 Speaker 1: during the nineteen forty Italian revolutionary un rest, and that's 91 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:04,200 Speaker 1: when he turned to opera. He would appear on stages 92 00:05:04,240 --> 00:05:07,039 Speaker 1: all over the world during his career, including on the 93 00:05:07,080 --> 00:05:11,520 Speaker 1: stage of the previous podcast topic, Lascala. The relationship between 94 00:05:11,520 --> 00:05:14,440 Speaker 1: Nellie and Checkie would grow contentious over the years, but 95 00:05:14,480 --> 00:05:16,720 Speaker 1: at the beginning he really thought she was destined to 96 00:05:16,720 --> 00:05:20,000 Speaker 1: be a star and that her voice would captivate audiences everywhere. 97 00:05:20,560 --> 00:05:23,080 Speaker 1: With guidance from a teacher with that kind of faith 98 00:05:23,080 --> 00:05:27,000 Speaker 1: in her talent, Nellie focused exclusively on developing her skills, 99 00:05:28,000 --> 00:05:31,600 Speaker 1: and that dedication really paid off when she made her 100 00:05:31,600 --> 00:05:35,200 Speaker 1: Australian singing debut at the Melbourne Town Hall on May seventeenth, 101 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:39,320 Speaker 1: eight four. Audiences fell in love with her and critics 102 00:05:39,400 --> 00:05:43,479 Speaker 1: raved over her, just as Checkie had expected. This really 103 00:05:43,560 --> 00:05:46,600 Speaker 1: launched Nellie's career as a performer, and she did extremely 104 00:05:46,640 --> 00:05:49,840 Speaker 1: well for herself financially right out of the gate. We're 105 00:05:49,880 --> 00:05:52,760 Speaker 1: going to talk more about the trajectory of Nellie's early 106 00:05:52,800 --> 00:05:55,039 Speaker 1: career in just a moment, but first we're going to 107 00:05:55,120 --> 00:05:58,240 Speaker 1: pause for a word from one of our sponsors. So 108 00:05:58,320 --> 00:06:02,360 Speaker 1: just shy of two years after Nellie made her Melbourne debut, 109 00:06:02,960 --> 00:06:06,000 Speaker 1: she felt ready to expand her audience, and so in 110 00:06:06,279 --> 00:06:09,479 Speaker 1: early six her father, David Mitchell, was sent as a 111 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:13,359 Speaker 1: commissioner to the Indian and Colonial Exhibition in London, and 112 00:06:13,400 --> 00:06:16,560 Speaker 1: Nelly took advantage of this trip's timing to accompany him 113 00:06:16,839 --> 00:06:22,400 Speaker 1: and feel out her European performing options. She loved London instantly, 114 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:25,240 Speaker 1: but it didn't exactly love her back she gave one 115 00:06:25,320 --> 00:06:29,719 Speaker 1: small performance and it wasn't a terrible outing, but nobody 116 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:33,000 Speaker 1: was writing ray reviews about it. There was no standing 117 00:06:33,040 --> 00:06:35,960 Speaker 1: up and cheering by any means. She met with composers 118 00:06:35,960 --> 00:06:39,280 Speaker 1: their Arthur Sullivan of Gilbert and Sullivan fame, but he 119 00:06:39,360 --> 00:06:42,159 Speaker 1: wasn't really woud with her either. He told her to 120 00:06:42,200 --> 00:06:44,200 Speaker 1: just keep practicing and that if she did so and 121 00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:46,680 Speaker 1: improved enough, he might give her a small role in 122 00:06:46,760 --> 00:06:50,720 Speaker 1: an upcoming production. So you might think that that would 123 00:06:50,720 --> 00:06:52,960 Speaker 1: be a terrible downer to kind of get told after 124 00:06:53,040 --> 00:06:56,440 Speaker 1: you have been told your great so many times, you're okay. 125 00:06:57,080 --> 00:06:59,599 Speaker 1: But this lukewarm experience in London, in fact, did not 126 00:06:59,680 --> 00:07:03,240 Speaker 1: deter Nellie at all. She had additional plans. Through the 127 00:07:03,320 --> 00:07:06,640 Speaker 1: wife of the Austro Hungarian consul to Melbourne, Nellie had 128 00:07:06,720 --> 00:07:09,520 Speaker 1: arranged a meeting in Paris with German singer and teacher 129 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:14,760 Speaker 1: Matilda Marksey and Nellie sang from mar case This audience 130 00:07:14,800 --> 00:07:17,200 Speaker 1: of one was far more impressed than the people of 131 00:07:17,280 --> 00:07:21,080 Speaker 1: London had been. Mar Casey felt that Checky had managed 132 00:07:21,120 --> 00:07:24,840 Speaker 1: to give Nellie's voice strength and endurance, but he hadn't 133 00:07:24,880 --> 00:07:27,520 Speaker 1: really given her the tools to develop it. Beyond that, 134 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:31,239 Speaker 1: so part of the education that Nellie received under Marks 135 00:07:31,400 --> 00:07:33,760 Speaker 1: had nothing to do with music and everything to do 136 00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:37,640 Speaker 1: with cultivating a persona and her social connections. The younger 137 00:07:37,640 --> 00:07:40,840 Speaker 1: woman was booked to sing in salons and private events 138 00:07:40,840 --> 00:07:42,960 Speaker 1: so that she could work on her social graces and 139 00:07:43,000 --> 00:07:46,240 Speaker 1: meet composers and other people who were connected to Europe's 140 00:07:46,320 --> 00:07:50,760 Speaker 1: music scene, and Marks eventually took on a very motherly 141 00:07:50,880 --> 00:07:53,800 Speaker 1: role in Nellie's life, and in fact, Nellie often referred 142 00:07:53,840 --> 00:07:57,280 Speaker 1: to her as mother in their correspondence, and the mentor 143 00:07:57,440 --> 00:08:00,400 Speaker 1: also encouraged her student to take a stage name, because 144 00:08:00,440 --> 00:08:03,680 Speaker 1: all of this time Nellie had been appearing as Nellie Armstrong. 145 00:08:04,360 --> 00:08:08,000 Speaker 1: Nellie's husband, Charles Armstrong, had actually traveled with her to Europe, 146 00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:12,440 Speaker 1: but their marriage was never really stable. Just the same 147 00:08:12,520 --> 00:08:15,640 Speaker 1: Charles resisted the idea of getting a divorce, he joined 148 00:08:15,640 --> 00:08:18,440 Speaker 1: the military, George stayed with Nellie, and Charles would visit 149 00:08:18,480 --> 00:08:21,960 Speaker 1: his wife and his son from time to time. It 150 00:08:22,040 --> 00:08:23,960 Speaker 1: kind of reminds me of have you ever known a 151 00:08:24,000 --> 00:08:26,440 Speaker 1: couple where someone takes a job far away to try 152 00:08:26,440 --> 00:08:28,240 Speaker 1: to keep the marriage together, because that way they're not 153 00:08:28,280 --> 00:08:31,760 Speaker 1: greeting against each other all the time. It's it seems 154 00:08:31,800 --> 00:08:34,320 Speaker 1: like that's what was in play here. I actually know 155 00:08:34,400 --> 00:08:37,760 Speaker 1: some people who have taken jobs far away purporting that 156 00:08:37,760 --> 00:08:40,120 Speaker 1: that was just how it worked out, and I've always 157 00:08:40,120 --> 00:08:41,920 Speaker 1: had the seed of wondering if that was what was 158 00:08:41,960 --> 00:08:44,880 Speaker 1: really going on. I have known people that work in 159 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:47,520 Speaker 1: live in separate places just because of logistics, but I 160 00:08:47,559 --> 00:08:50,080 Speaker 1: definitely have known a few where they're like, we love 161 00:08:50,120 --> 00:08:52,520 Speaker 1: each other, but when we're together, we make each other crazy. 162 00:08:52,600 --> 00:08:54,440 Speaker 1: So if we can limit that and to only have 163 00:08:54,520 --> 00:08:57,160 Speaker 1: good times together, it works out. So I think that 164 00:08:57,200 --> 00:09:00,600 Speaker 1: may have been part of the the impetus for George 165 00:09:00,640 --> 00:09:05,840 Speaker 1: for Charles to join the military. On October seven, Nellie 166 00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:08,439 Speaker 1: made her debut as an opera singer in Brussels. Now 167 00:09:08,440 --> 00:09:10,720 Speaker 1: we've mentioned before that she had made singing debuts, but 168 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:12,960 Speaker 1: this is really the first time that she was focusing 169 00:09:12,960 --> 00:09:16,520 Speaker 1: on opera uh and in this she started Verdi's Rigoletto 170 00:09:16,640 --> 00:09:19,560 Speaker 1: as Guilda, the daughter of the title character, And this 171 00:09:19,640 --> 00:09:24,000 Speaker 1: appearance at the Royal Money marked the first time she 172 00:09:24,080 --> 00:09:27,440 Speaker 1: appeared under what would become her known stage name of 173 00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:30,640 Speaker 1: Nellie Melba. And if you're wondering where Melba came from 174 00:09:30,720 --> 00:09:32,440 Speaker 1: as a name, it was in honor of her home 175 00:09:32,480 --> 00:09:36,880 Speaker 1: city Melbourne. The night of that debut, Charles and Nellie 176 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:40,839 Speaker 1: had a huge fight and finally after just dragging things out, 177 00:09:40,880 --> 00:09:43,640 Speaker 1: this ended their tumultuous five year marriage in terms of 178 00:09:43,679 --> 00:09:46,960 Speaker 1: their relationship with each other, but they were still legally 179 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:51,800 Speaker 1: married for several more years after that. Rigoletto, and specifically 180 00:09:51,880 --> 00:09:55,240 Speaker 1: Nellie in it, was such a success that she soon 181 00:09:55,280 --> 00:09:58,760 Speaker 1: had other high profile roles, including parts in La Traviata 182 00:09:59,000 --> 00:10:02,680 Speaker 1: and Luca de lama more, although Gustav Muller remarked after 183 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:05,760 Speaker 1: her Traviata performance that he would rather listen to a clarinet. 184 00:10:06,480 --> 00:10:09,680 Speaker 1: Seven months after her operatic debut, she returned to London 185 00:10:09,720 --> 00:10:13,080 Speaker 1: to perform Lucia at Covent Garden, but though she was 186 00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:17,080 Speaker 1: celebrated elsewhere, London still had not warm to Nellie, even 187 00:10:17,120 --> 00:10:20,200 Speaker 1: under a new name. She made a respectable showing, but 188 00:10:20,280 --> 00:10:22,880 Speaker 1: she just couldn't seem to break into the London opera 189 00:10:22,960 --> 00:10:25,560 Speaker 1: scene as a star, and she was only offered smaller 190 00:10:25,600 --> 00:10:29,440 Speaker 1: parts than she had been playing elsewhere. Melbae had no 191 00:10:29,679 --> 00:10:32,920 Speaker 1: interest in stepping down to supporting roles after having been 192 00:10:32,920 --> 00:10:35,920 Speaker 1: the featured performer, so she said goodbye to London and 193 00:10:36,000 --> 00:10:40,120 Speaker 1: headed back to Brussels. She soon appeared as Ophelia in Hamlet, 194 00:10:40,160 --> 00:10:43,040 Speaker 1: which opened in Paris on May eighteen eighty nine. She 195 00:10:43,200 --> 00:10:47,360 Speaker 1: once again got rave reviews, but during this time things 196 00:10:47,360 --> 00:10:49,120 Speaker 1: were in motion to try to bring her back to 197 00:10:49,200 --> 00:10:53,520 Speaker 1: London once more. Yeah, So, while London audiences had not 198 00:10:53,600 --> 00:10:56,200 Speaker 1: really raved over Nelly Melba as a whole, she did 199 00:10:56,280 --> 00:11:00,280 Speaker 1: gain some admirers in her appearances there, and one of 200 00:11:00,280 --> 00:11:02,600 Speaker 1: these was Gladys de Gray, wife of Earl de Gray 201 00:11:02,640 --> 00:11:05,920 Speaker 1: Frederick Robinson, and Lady de Gray was a patron of 202 00:11:05,960 --> 00:11:09,000 Speaker 1: the arts. She was also close friends with Oscar Wilde, 203 00:11:09,559 --> 00:11:12,800 Speaker 1: and after Nellie left London for the second time, Lady 204 00:11:12,800 --> 00:11:15,720 Speaker 1: de Gray wrote to the singer and she really asked 205 00:11:15,720 --> 00:11:18,040 Speaker 1: her and pled with her to please return to England 206 00:11:18,040 --> 00:11:21,760 Speaker 1: to sing once again. Nellie was moved by the Gray's 207 00:11:21,880 --> 00:11:24,120 Speaker 1: letter and she did agree to appear again in the 208 00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:27,640 Speaker 1: London stage, but she was also committed to her Ophelia 209 00:11:27,760 --> 00:11:31,000 Speaker 1: role already at this point, so her return to Covent 210 00:11:31,040 --> 00:11:33,559 Speaker 1: Garden had to wait until she had wrapped up her 211 00:11:33,559 --> 00:11:37,600 Speaker 1: Paris production. So when she did wrap that up and 212 00:11:37,640 --> 00:11:41,160 Speaker 1: finally sing again at Comment Garden, it was on June fifteenth, 213 00:11:41,320 --> 00:11:44,480 Speaker 1: eighteen eighty nine and Nelly appeared in Romeo and Juliet 214 00:11:44,559 --> 00:11:48,440 Speaker 1: in the starring role. So following the idiom of the 215 00:11:48,520 --> 00:11:51,760 Speaker 1: Third Times the Charm, this appearance in London was what 216 00:11:51,880 --> 00:11:55,000 Speaker 1: Nellie Melba would later refer to as quote the great 217 00:11:55,200 --> 00:11:58,720 Speaker 1: night that marked the start of her success with English audiences. 218 00:11:59,360 --> 00:12:01,680 Speaker 1: It was also the beginning of a long relationship with 219 00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:04,760 Speaker 1: Covent Garden. While there had been reluctance to book her 220 00:12:04,800 --> 00:12:08,040 Speaker 1: there initially, she eventually was one of the very few 221 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:11,120 Speaker 1: performers to have a permanent private dressing room at the 222 00:12:11,120 --> 00:12:16,760 Speaker 1: theater for decades. Nellie was so happy in London from 223 00:12:16,800 --> 00:12:19,640 Speaker 1: that point on that she purchased a home in Great 224 00:12:19,640 --> 00:12:22,440 Speaker 1: Cumberland Place and then had it remodeled to look like Versailles. 225 00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:26,440 Speaker 1: She lived there for more than two decades. Uh So, 226 00:12:26,480 --> 00:12:28,040 Speaker 1: we are about to get to the food part and 227 00:12:28,080 --> 00:12:30,360 Speaker 1: talk about the chef that I referenced at the top 228 00:12:30,360 --> 00:12:32,920 Speaker 1: of the episode. But before we do, let's have a 229 00:12:32,920 --> 00:12:35,920 Speaker 1: brief word from one of our sponsors. Now, on to 230 00:12:36,000 --> 00:12:37,839 Speaker 1: the part I wondered about as soon as Holly gave 231 00:12:37,880 --> 00:12:40,640 Speaker 1: me this outline, which is the food part. Early on 232 00:12:40,720 --> 00:12:43,600 Speaker 1: in her time in London, Nellie Melda made the acquaintance 233 00:12:43,679 --> 00:12:46,839 Speaker 1: of August Escoffier, who would come to be known as 234 00:12:46,880 --> 00:12:50,200 Speaker 1: the King of chefs. When you think of franchio cuisine, 235 00:12:50,240 --> 00:12:52,800 Speaker 1: you've probably got a good sense of the food aesthetic 236 00:12:52,840 --> 00:12:55,880 Speaker 1: that he really made famous. He would concoct these these 237 00:12:55,920 --> 00:12:58,959 Speaker 1: really lavish eleven course meals, and his kitchen always had 238 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:03,800 Speaker 1: to have a skilled saucier in residence. He favored really 239 00:13:03,840 --> 00:13:07,800 Speaker 1: seasonal ingredients, and his work in streamlining professional kitchens became 240 00:13:07,840 --> 00:13:11,680 Speaker 1: the industry standard of organization. He ran several restaurants in 241 00:13:11,720 --> 00:13:15,960 Speaker 1: London during the eight nineties and nineteen hundreds, and Nellie 242 00:13:16,360 --> 00:13:21,599 Speaker 1: loved those restaurants. She dined in Escoffier's establishments with regularity, and, 243 00:13:21,640 --> 00:13:24,160 Speaker 1: according to legend, at one point she sent the chef 244 00:13:24,200 --> 00:13:27,040 Speaker 1: tickets to one of her performances, which was a staging 245 00:13:27,240 --> 00:13:31,199 Speaker 1: of Wagner's Lohend Green, and in this particular production, one 246 00:13:31,200 --> 00:13:35,720 Speaker 1: of the set pieces was a large, beautiful swan shaped boat. 247 00:13:36,559 --> 00:13:40,000 Speaker 1: So moved was Escoffier by the performance that when Nelly 248 00:13:40,080 --> 00:13:42,880 Speaker 1: appeared in his restaurant the next day, he created a 249 00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:46,520 Speaker 1: customed dish for her. It featured fresh peaches over ice 250 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:49,200 Speaker 1: cream with an ice carving of a swan, and it 251 00:13:49,280 --> 00:13:52,400 Speaker 1: was served in a silver dish. He called his creation 252 00:13:52,520 --> 00:13:56,800 Speaker 1: pes shoe Signa, which is peaches with swats. The dish evolved, though, 253 00:13:56,840 --> 00:13:59,160 Speaker 1: and by the time Escoffier featured it on the menu 254 00:13:59,280 --> 00:14:02,959 Speaker 1: at the London Carlton, he added a raspberry puree and 255 00:14:03,040 --> 00:14:07,080 Speaker 1: changed the name to pesh melba yes, or peach melba, 256 00:14:07,120 --> 00:14:10,480 Speaker 1: as we often call it in the United States. But 257 00:14:10,559 --> 00:14:13,560 Speaker 1: that is not the only food item that a scoffier 258 00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:17,360 Speaker 1: named for the diva. The story goes that in seven 259 00:14:17,520 --> 00:14:20,680 Speaker 1: while Nellie Melba was dining in one of US Scoffee's restaurants, 260 00:14:21,120 --> 00:14:23,120 Speaker 1: she told the chef that the bread that she had 261 00:14:23,120 --> 00:14:25,880 Speaker 1: been served was much too thick, allegedly because she was 262 00:14:25,920 --> 00:14:29,760 Speaker 1: trying to maintain her figure, and there had always been 263 00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:33,120 Speaker 1: this sort of issue surrounding her in terms of the 264 00:14:33,160 --> 00:14:37,120 Speaker 1: public eye, that she was a little too heavy to 265 00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:39,200 Speaker 1: play some of the entourneing roles that she was in, 266 00:14:39,240 --> 00:14:42,040 Speaker 1: so she was probably very conscious of her figure. But 267 00:14:42,120 --> 00:14:44,760 Speaker 1: to solve this problem and appease the singer, while still 268 00:14:44,840 --> 00:14:47,960 Speaker 1: keeping bread in the meal, of Scoffier is said to 269 00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:50,480 Speaker 1: have gone to the kitchen and cut the thinnest possible 270 00:14:50,600 --> 00:14:53,440 Speaker 1: slice of bread he could before he then toasted it. 271 00:14:53,600 --> 00:14:56,240 Speaker 1: And allegedly this is how Melba Toast was born. And 272 00:14:56,400 --> 00:14:58,400 Speaker 1: that was the question I wondered when you gave me 273 00:14:58,560 --> 00:15:02,960 Speaker 1: that line. We mentioned Nellie's private dressing room at Covent 274 00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:06,200 Speaker 1: Garden a little bit ago, And while that may sound 275 00:15:06,200 --> 00:15:08,080 Speaker 1: like quite a perk, it was the least of the 276 00:15:08,120 --> 00:15:11,000 Speaker 1: benefits and power that she enjoyed during her time there. 277 00:15:11,560 --> 00:15:13,200 Speaker 1: She had the good fortune to be there at the 278 00:15:13,200 --> 00:15:16,120 Speaker 1: same time that the theater was flourishing. It had these 279 00:15:16,280 --> 00:15:21,360 Speaker 1: enormous productions and huge casts that drew enormous crowds, and 280 00:15:21,480 --> 00:15:25,440 Speaker 1: Nellie was celebrated, and she rubbed elbows with high society. 281 00:15:25,880 --> 00:15:28,840 Speaker 1: She used her social power to shut down any rivals 282 00:15:28,880 --> 00:15:31,960 Speaker 1: that dared to challenge her status. Uh. And in my head, 283 00:15:32,000 --> 00:15:34,960 Speaker 1: as I was working on this and reading about ways 284 00:15:35,040 --> 00:15:37,720 Speaker 1: she would deal with rivals, and we'll talk about another 285 00:15:37,720 --> 00:15:39,760 Speaker 1: one of them later, I couldn't help but think of 286 00:15:39,760 --> 00:15:42,320 Speaker 1: the movie show Girls, which is a wondrous and bad thing. 287 00:15:43,760 --> 00:15:46,080 Speaker 1: But so Nellie and Lady de Gray were great friends, 288 00:15:46,080 --> 00:15:48,520 Speaker 1: and de Gray opened a lot of society doors for 289 00:15:48,560 --> 00:15:53,040 Speaker 1: the singer. So Nellie sang in command performances before royalty 290 00:15:53,120 --> 00:15:55,520 Speaker 1: throughout the world, and she achieved the level of fame 291 00:15:55,600 --> 00:15:58,560 Speaker 1: that ensured that she was basically mobbed wherever she trampled, 292 00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:02,160 Speaker 1: like I'm not kidding when I say international superstar. On 293 00:16:02,280 --> 00:16:04,720 Speaker 1: the personal front, Nellie had met Philippe, Duke of Orlean 294 00:16:04,800 --> 00:16:07,440 Speaker 1: in eight nine. He was the heir of the Bourbon 295 00:16:07,480 --> 00:16:09,840 Speaker 1: claimant to the throne of France, and the pair became 296 00:16:09,880 --> 00:16:14,920 Speaker 1: what would become a scandalous and damaging relationship because the 297 00:16:14,960 --> 00:16:16,920 Speaker 1: two of them were not at all careful about being 298 00:16:16,920 --> 00:16:19,320 Speaker 1: seen together in public. There were reports of the two 299 00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:22,600 Speaker 1: of them being spotted as a couple from London, Paris, Brussels, St. 300 00:16:22,600 --> 00:16:26,520 Speaker 1: Petersburg and more. They were downright brazen about their their 301 00:16:26,520 --> 00:16:30,760 Speaker 1: affair and it became news. Keep in mind that Nellie 302 00:16:30,840 --> 00:16:33,560 Speaker 1: was still married to Charles at this point, although they 303 00:16:33,560 --> 00:16:36,640 Speaker 1: really didn't have any real contact with one another. But 304 00:16:36,760 --> 00:16:39,920 Speaker 1: once her romance with the Duke of Arleon became public knowledge, 305 00:16:40,000 --> 00:16:42,440 Speaker 1: in part because he was clearly following her on her 306 00:16:42,440 --> 00:16:46,680 Speaker 1: performance tours, Charles finally filed for divorce, and at this 307 00:16:46,760 --> 00:16:50,160 Speaker 1: point he used this news item to accuse Nellie of adultery. 308 00:16:50,760 --> 00:16:53,400 Speaker 1: There was also legal action against Philip in the mix. 309 00:16:54,160 --> 00:16:57,160 Speaker 1: So this legal claim, though sputtered out for reasons which 310 00:16:57,200 --> 00:16:59,600 Speaker 1: have never been made entirely clear, there has been a 311 00:16:59,640 --> 00:17:02,840 Speaker 1: lot of acculation by various historians that Charles was pressured 312 00:17:02,880 --> 00:17:05,800 Speaker 1: to drop his suit due to the high profile nature 313 00:17:05,880 --> 00:17:09,000 Speaker 1: of Nellie's paramore like he may have been getting some 314 00:17:09,240 --> 00:17:14,040 Speaker 1: pressure from people connected to the French royal lineage. And 315 00:17:14,200 --> 00:17:17,160 Speaker 1: as for Philip, he had been engaged to Princess Marguerite 316 00:17:17,160 --> 00:17:20,119 Speaker 1: of or Leon, which is his cousin, but that engagement 317 00:17:20,160 --> 00:17:22,680 Speaker 1: was called off. I made all this scandal as the 318 00:17:22,760 --> 00:17:25,880 Speaker 1: legal issues are being done away with in whatever mysterious 319 00:17:25,920 --> 00:17:28,160 Speaker 1: way that would happen. It left the Duke to travel 320 00:17:28,240 --> 00:17:31,680 Speaker 1: the world, but he and Nellie never really rekindled their romance. 321 00:17:32,480 --> 00:17:34,960 Speaker 1: And that's actually where we're gonna cliff hang this one, 322 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:39,480 Speaker 1: because it is sort of a pause moment in her life. Uh, 323 00:17:39,480 --> 00:17:41,200 Speaker 1: And the next time around we were going to talk 324 00:17:41,280 --> 00:17:44,200 Speaker 1: more about her career and kind of the latter half 325 00:17:44,200 --> 00:17:48,040 Speaker 1: of it and and how she developed and stayed very 326 00:17:48,040 --> 00:17:52,000 Speaker 1: modern and current and much beloved. But that's part one 327 00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:55,440 Speaker 1: of Dame Nellie Melba. She hasn't been made dame yet 328 00:17:55,480 --> 00:17:57,000 Speaker 1: at this point. In the story, but she will be 329 00:17:58,240 --> 00:18:00,840 Speaker 1: that's a little bit of a spoiler. But Scotman, do 330 00:18:00,920 --> 00:18:03,960 Speaker 1: you also have some listener mail for us? I do. 331 00:18:04,480 --> 00:18:06,560 Speaker 1: People may have noticed, and I've mentioned before that I 332 00:18:06,640 --> 00:18:08,760 Speaker 1: am trying to go through some of our our physical 333 00:18:08,840 --> 00:18:11,040 Speaker 1: mail because we get so much of it. Uh, and 334 00:18:11,119 --> 00:18:13,480 Speaker 1: I really appreciate that people make the effort to send 335 00:18:13,520 --> 00:18:16,800 Speaker 1: something through the mail. So I have three postcards from 336 00:18:16,880 --> 00:18:20,200 Speaker 1: various listeners. One is from our listeners Sarah. She says, 337 00:18:20,240 --> 00:18:23,080 Speaker 1: hello from St. Petersburg. I realized now that I probably 338 00:18:23,080 --> 00:18:26,080 Speaker 1: should have bought a larger card. I'm currently interning at 339 00:18:26,080 --> 00:18:28,359 Speaker 1: the U. S. Consulate here listening to YouTube during my 340 00:18:28,480 --> 00:18:30,639 Speaker 1: lunch breaks. I've been listening for the past year or so. 341 00:18:30,680 --> 00:18:32,320 Speaker 1: I just want to say that I love the podcast. 342 00:18:32,640 --> 00:18:35,160 Speaker 1: It's really no wonder listeners send you postcards from around 343 00:18:35,200 --> 00:18:38,080 Speaker 1: the world. Sorry my for my tiny handwriting. Hopefully you 344 00:18:38,119 --> 00:18:41,280 Speaker 1: can read it. Uh, yeah, we absolutely could. And it's 345 00:18:41,280 --> 00:18:44,040 Speaker 1: a lovely black and white photograph from St. Petersburg. It's 346 00:18:44,080 --> 00:18:47,760 Speaker 1: so gorgeous, So thank you so much Sarah for sending that. 347 00:18:48,440 --> 00:18:52,720 Speaker 1: And the next to are both from military connected people. 348 00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:54,800 Speaker 1: The first is from Emily, who is a wife of 349 00:18:55,160 --> 00:18:58,160 Speaker 1: a U S. Navy service member stationed in Italy. She's 350 00:18:58,160 --> 00:19:01,520 Speaker 1: a longtime listener to the show. She recently visited Bavaria 351 00:19:01,560 --> 00:19:05,960 Speaker 1: and toured Schlaus Schwanstein, which is absolutely gorgeous and was 352 00:19:05,960 --> 00:19:09,120 Speaker 1: talked about in an episode before Tracy and I came 353 00:19:09,160 --> 00:19:11,000 Speaker 1: on the show. But I'm a big fan of Mad 354 00:19:11,080 --> 00:19:14,119 Speaker 1: King Ludzig. So thank you, Emily, and thank you also 355 00:19:14,240 --> 00:19:19,520 Speaker 1: for your part in helping to keep our troops happy. 356 00:19:19,800 --> 00:19:22,479 Speaker 1: I know being stationed overseas can sometimes be really draining, 357 00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:25,119 Speaker 1: but I'm hoping you're enjoying it. The next one is 358 00:19:25,160 --> 00:19:30,520 Speaker 1: also UH from Military Gent. It is from our listener Steve, 359 00:19:30,560 --> 00:19:32,320 Speaker 1: who is on board the U S. S Harry S. 360 00:19:32,400 --> 00:19:36,640 Speaker 1: Truman UH, and he says he loves the show and 361 00:19:36,680 --> 00:19:40,800 Speaker 1: he has been touring about He just left Split and 362 00:19:40,920 --> 00:19:43,600 Speaker 1: learned so much history, especially the nearby towns of Seline. 363 00:19:43,960 --> 00:19:46,160 Speaker 1: And I think it's trur gear. I'm so sorry. I'm 364 00:19:46,160 --> 00:19:49,600 Speaker 1: probably butchering that he said he bought a cravat and 365 00:19:49,640 --> 00:19:52,679 Speaker 1: toured the Diocletian Palace. Thanks for podcasting so I can 366 00:19:52,720 --> 00:19:56,199 Speaker 1: listen underway. Thank you for your service. We super appreciate it, 367 00:19:56,240 --> 00:19:57,800 Speaker 1: and I'm so glad that you shared this with us. 368 00:19:57,800 --> 00:20:00,680 Speaker 1: It's again a gorgeous postcard. I love postcard so much, 369 00:20:01,240 --> 00:20:03,160 Speaker 1: and it's just cool to me to know that our 370 00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:05,720 Speaker 1: listeners are out there actually kind of living some fun 371 00:20:05,760 --> 00:20:07,960 Speaker 1: history adventures of their own, So thank you to the 372 00:20:07,960 --> 00:20:10,560 Speaker 1: three of them for sharing those with us. If you 373 00:20:10,600 --> 00:20:12,840 Speaker 1: would like to email us, you can do so at 374 00:20:12,920 --> 00:20:16,320 Speaker 1: History Podcast at house to Works dot com. We're also 375 00:20:16,480 --> 00:20:20,360 Speaker 1: on Facebook dot com slash missed in history, and on 376 00:20:20,400 --> 00:20:24,399 Speaker 1: Twitter at misst in history, at Pinterest at pinterest dot com, 377 00:20:24,440 --> 00:20:27,760 Speaker 1: slash mist in history at misston history dot tumbler dot com, 378 00:20:27,800 --> 00:20:31,080 Speaker 1: and on Instagram at misst in history. If you are 379 00:20:31,680 --> 00:20:33,879 Speaker 1: curious to learn a little bit more about sort of 380 00:20:33,880 --> 00:20:36,040 Speaker 1: topics related to what we talked about today, you can 381 00:20:36,040 --> 00:20:37,840 Speaker 1: go to our parents site, House to Works. Type in 382 00:20:37,840 --> 00:20:40,760 Speaker 1: the word opera. One of the articles that will come 383 00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:43,600 Speaker 1: up is how the Metropolitan Opera works, so you'll get 384 00:20:43,600 --> 00:20:46,000 Speaker 1: a good sense of that. Uh. If you would like 385 00:20:46,080 --> 00:20:48,120 Speaker 1: to visit us online, you can do so at missed 386 00:20:48,119 --> 00:20:50,160 Speaker 1: in history dot com, where all of our show notes 387 00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:53,800 Speaker 1: are for any of the episodes that have included Tracy 388 00:20:53,800 --> 00:20:57,080 Speaker 1: and myself as hosts. Or we also have an archive 389 00:20:57,160 --> 00:20:59,720 Speaker 1: of all of the episodes from the beginning with previous host, 390 00:20:59,800 --> 00:21:02,040 Speaker 1: but there aren't show notes for all of those, just 391 00:21:02,160 --> 00:21:04,360 Speaker 1: for the ones in the Tracy and Holly era, so 392 00:21:04,560 --> 00:21:06,360 Speaker 1: we encourage you to come and visit us at miss 393 00:21:06,440 --> 00:21:12,760 Speaker 1: in history dot com and House gop Works dot com 394 00:21:12,760 --> 00:21:15,160 Speaker 1: for more on this and thousands of other topics because 395 00:21:15,200 --> 00:21:28,840 Speaker 1: it how stuff works dot com.