1 00:00:01,440 --> 00:00:04,240 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you Should Know, a production of I 2 00:00:04,360 --> 00:00:13,319 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh 3 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:18,480 Speaker 1: chuckles Clark, there's Chuck Josh's chuckles. Bryant. Yeah, that would 4 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:22,320 Speaker 1: have been way better. And there's Jerry just Jerry rolling 5 00:00:22,760 --> 00:00:25,320 Speaker 1: hanging out too, and that makes this stuff you should 6 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:29,360 Speaker 1: Know about Vaudeville. Uh, my favorite day of the year 7 00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:35,599 Speaker 1: is today, Uh, Vaudeville Day. No, I mean, you can 8 00:00:35,640 --> 00:00:37,760 Speaker 1: never tell when it's gonna happen, and it will get 9 00:00:37,800 --> 00:00:41,080 Speaker 1: hot again. But it's that first whiff of fall. Oh, 10 00:00:41,159 --> 00:00:43,520 Speaker 1: I love that so much. It's so nice, isn't it. 11 00:00:43,720 --> 00:00:49,479 Speaker 1: It's one o'clock in Atlanta and it's seventy three degrees humidity, 12 00:00:49,560 --> 00:00:53,320 Speaker 1: which is for Atlanta that means zero humidity. Yeah, exactly, 13 00:00:53,320 --> 00:00:57,160 Speaker 1: a little cool breeze blowing. Yeah, it's beautiful out Those 14 00:00:57,240 --> 00:01:00,240 Speaker 1: leads are gonna start turning any second. No, we'll get 15 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:04,840 Speaker 1: hot as hades again before October. It just does Yeah, 16 00:01:04,920 --> 00:01:07,440 Speaker 1: it does that, like it makes sure it's nice and 17 00:01:07,520 --> 00:01:11,400 Speaker 1: balmy and muggy on Thanksgiving for some reason. And then 18 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:14,880 Speaker 1: in the winter it'll start to get nice, like you're like, okay, 19 00:01:14,880 --> 00:01:16,959 Speaker 1: spring is here, and then bam, they dumped you with 20 00:01:17,040 --> 00:01:20,840 Speaker 1: the only snowfall of the year in mid February. But 21 00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:23,240 Speaker 1: is an odd place at least for this one day 22 00:01:23,319 --> 00:01:26,480 Speaker 1: we get a little a little whiff of fall, a 23 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:30,040 Speaker 1: little whiff of football in the air. Yeah, the stank 24 00:01:30,080 --> 00:01:33,360 Speaker 1: of football is in the air. So we're not talking 25 00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:37,040 Speaker 1: about football, although I'm sure somebody did a jokey football 26 00:01:37,120 --> 00:01:40,040 Speaker 1: routine at some point in the history of vaudeville, which 27 00:01:40,080 --> 00:01:43,640 Speaker 1: is what we're talking about. We're talking about vaudeville. Like 28 00:01:43,680 --> 00:01:49,400 Speaker 1: I just said, yeah, and this was an idea by 29 00:01:49,600 --> 00:01:52,680 Speaker 1: the very guy who wrote it for us, or old 30 00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:56,760 Speaker 1: pal Dave Ruse. He said, uh. He got very aggressive 31 00:01:56,880 --> 00:02:01,520 Speaker 1: and said, hey, Chuck, since it's your turn to pick one. 32 00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:05,080 Speaker 1: You know this thing on vaudeville or saw something on vaudeville. 33 00:02:05,120 --> 00:02:07,960 Speaker 1: It sounded interesting, And I said, all right, smarty pants, 34 00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:10,360 Speaker 1: good do it. He said, oh, you want me do it? 35 00:02:10,600 --> 00:02:14,639 Speaker 1: Huh huh. Very. I'm surprised we haven't done this before though, 36 00:02:14,680 --> 00:02:17,440 Speaker 1: because it's really cool and kind of I think it's 37 00:02:17,440 --> 00:02:22,959 Speaker 1: appropriate that it's uh, sort of nearby our sitcoms too, 38 00:02:23,040 --> 00:02:26,400 Speaker 1: for right, because this was like this was it, this 39 00:02:26,440 --> 00:02:29,760 Speaker 1: was TV baby before there was TV. Yeah, and there's 40 00:02:29,840 --> 00:02:32,640 Speaker 1: before we get started. I'm hoping you can help me 41 00:02:32,680 --> 00:02:36,360 Speaker 1: figure this out. But we have definitely talked about the 42 00:02:36,440 --> 00:02:40,880 Speaker 1: vaudeville circuit at length in another episode, and it's been 43 00:02:40,960 --> 00:02:43,840 Speaker 1: driving me bananas because I cannot think of what the 44 00:02:43,880 --> 00:02:48,920 Speaker 1: episode was. Was it freak Shows? No, I think it 45 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:50,840 Speaker 1: was more recent than that, within the last year or 46 00:02:50,880 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 1: two it was. I don't think it was freak shows, man, 47 00:02:55,680 --> 00:02:58,600 Speaker 1: I really don't. But I looked. I was like, wait 48 00:02:58,600 --> 00:03:00,760 Speaker 1: a minute, have we done Vaudeville? But warm we definitely 49 00:03:00,760 --> 00:03:03,600 Speaker 1: have not, because we talked about the circuit on another 50 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:07,440 Speaker 1: episode exactly. Yeah, that was so we talked about like 51 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:10,480 Speaker 1: the Poconos, the borsched Belt and all that. Yeah. I 52 00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:12,800 Speaker 1: don't remember what we would have been talking. I don't 53 00:03:12,840 --> 00:03:16,000 Speaker 1: think it had anything to do with desert survival. Luckily, 54 00:03:16,080 --> 00:03:18,960 Speaker 1: we have a thousand people that listen to our show 55 00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 1: every week, at the very least eight hundred. Uh. Yeah, 56 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:26,560 Speaker 1: it's it's very familiar to me. I don't I don't 57 00:03:26,560 --> 00:03:29,720 Speaker 1: know unless we did. Boud Villain just spaced both of 58 00:03:29,840 --> 00:03:34,200 Speaker 1: us and didn't title it appropriately. We titled a podcast 59 00:03:34,200 --> 00:03:38,800 Speaker 1: to remember, so we are talking vaud Villain. I think 60 00:03:38,800 --> 00:03:40,960 Speaker 1: it's one of those things where even if you're gen Z, 61 00:03:41,240 --> 00:03:44,080 Speaker 1: even if you're a boomer, it doesn't matter. Everybody's at 62 00:03:44,120 --> 00:03:48,839 Speaker 1: least somewhat familiar cognizant that Vaudeville existed at some time 63 00:03:48,840 --> 00:03:52,320 Speaker 1: in the past and had to do with um jokes, 64 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:57,040 Speaker 1: There were yucks involved. Um, it happened on stage. It 65 00:03:57,160 --> 00:04:00,880 Speaker 1: was deeply racist in a lot of places, and for 66 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:02,920 Speaker 1: a lot of people that's like the sum total of 67 00:04:02,960 --> 00:04:06,560 Speaker 1: what they understand about Vaudeville. But it is not h 68 00:04:06,760 --> 00:04:10,000 Speaker 1: an overstatement to say that Vaudeville basically gave birth to 69 00:04:10,520 --> 00:04:13,960 Speaker 1: every form of entertainment that we know and love today. 70 00:04:14,280 --> 00:04:20,400 Speaker 1: It was a strange midwife between the theater and mass 71 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:25,880 Speaker 1: um commercial media. Yeah, did you write that down? That 72 00:04:25,960 --> 00:04:30,080 Speaker 1: was good? I did. I didn't, but I'm like furiously 73 00:04:30,120 --> 00:04:32,800 Speaker 1: rubbing it off in my form. Uh. You know, it's 74 00:04:33,000 --> 00:04:35,839 Speaker 1: for sure deeply racist in some ways at times, which 75 00:04:35,839 --> 00:04:41,280 Speaker 1: we'll talk about, but also deeply inclusive and that uh, 76 00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:47,760 Speaker 1: all kinds of people performed Vaudeville. Everybody loved Vaudeville. I 77 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:52,600 Speaker 1: mean it spanned every sort of demographic you could imagine, 78 00:04:52,680 --> 00:04:58,560 Speaker 1: from old to young and ethnic ethnicity to uh, wealthy 79 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:01,640 Speaker 1: people to poor people because it didn't cost a whole lot. 80 00:05:01,720 --> 00:05:04,320 Speaker 1: You know, people would would literally save their pennies to 81 00:05:04,360 --> 00:05:07,920 Speaker 1: get into these cheap dime Uh I was about say 82 00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:12,240 Speaker 1: dime store, but whatever dime a ticket entry shows, right, 83 00:05:12,600 --> 00:05:15,159 Speaker 1: and it was family friendly too, as we'll see, which 84 00:05:15,200 --> 00:05:20,000 Speaker 1: was kind of revolutionary. Um and that actually established vaudeville 85 00:05:20,080 --> 00:05:23,880 Speaker 1: is like a like a genuine American phenomenon. Yeah, I 86 00:05:23,880 --> 00:05:26,120 Speaker 1: mean that was the deal. And you know, we were 87 00:05:26,160 --> 00:05:30,240 Speaker 1: sort of the Vaudeville of podcast fifteen years ago in 88 00:05:30,279 --> 00:05:34,440 Speaker 1: some ways because everyone else came out of the gate, say, 89 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:40,159 Speaker 1: you know what, FCC doesn't care what we say, Phil Florence, 90 00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:43,479 Speaker 1: Phil foul And uh, looking back now, we were lucky 91 00:05:43,560 --> 00:05:46,120 Speaker 1: enough to have a I guess fortunate enough to have 92 00:05:46,160 --> 00:05:49,080 Speaker 1: a company at the time that was like you're not 93 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:53,119 Speaker 1: allowed to cuss and stuff, Uh, I don't even try stuff. 94 00:05:53,160 --> 00:05:56,000 Speaker 1: We didn't and uh we we had to park our 95 00:05:56,120 --> 00:05:59,400 Speaker 1: notoriously foul tongues at the door. And I think that's 96 00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:00,880 Speaker 1: what helped our show out in a lot of ways, 97 00:06:00,920 --> 00:06:03,160 Speaker 1: is that people listen to it in classrooms and in 98 00:06:03,240 --> 00:06:06,599 Speaker 1: the car with their families and stuff like that. Right, absolutely, 99 00:06:06,720 --> 00:06:10,040 Speaker 1: and like to to think today like of just randomly 100 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:14,000 Speaker 1: cursing casually and stuff. You should know. It's it seems weird. 101 00:06:14,360 --> 00:06:17,359 Speaker 1: We could now if we wanted to. I mean, I 102 00:06:17,360 --> 00:06:23,159 Speaker 1: don't want to chuck. Don't make me oh cus cuss nay. Instead, 103 00:06:23,240 --> 00:06:25,320 Speaker 1: let's talk about Vaudeville. And we're gonna keep it clean 104 00:06:25,320 --> 00:06:28,040 Speaker 1: and family friendly, just like Vaudeville. And we're gonna start 105 00:06:28,120 --> 00:06:32,080 Speaker 1: chuck with actually the word vaudeville, which it sounds French, 106 00:06:32,640 --> 00:06:37,400 Speaker 1: vaguely French, and um correctly so because it actually originates 107 00:06:37,400 --> 00:06:40,560 Speaker 1: in the French language. That's right, apparently. And this is 108 00:06:41,080 --> 00:06:42,680 Speaker 1: I think Dave was right on point. He says it 109 00:06:42,680 --> 00:06:46,040 Speaker 1: has a pretty interesting etymology as far as etymologies go, 110 00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:50,880 Speaker 1: this one seems to be kind of ironclad and interesting. Yeah, 111 00:06:50,960 --> 00:06:53,599 Speaker 1: it's rare, because yeah, it's very rare. So uh. In 112 00:06:53,640 --> 00:06:56,120 Speaker 1: the fifteenth century in France, it was a poet. His 113 00:06:56,240 --> 00:07:01,039 Speaker 1: name was, I guess you would say Olivier Bassilie. But 114 00:07:01,120 --> 00:07:06,279 Speaker 1: the ironic thing is he didn't know it. It took 115 00:07:06,320 --> 00:07:09,039 Speaker 1: me a half a beat to get that one. It did. 116 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:12,520 Speaker 1: I was like, is there a latency here? Uh? And 117 00:07:12,680 --> 00:07:16,280 Speaker 1: he was a poet who wrote a satire. He was 118 00:07:16,320 --> 00:07:20,239 Speaker 1: I guess sort of like the Ray Stevens of his time. 119 00:07:22,120 --> 00:07:25,400 Speaker 1: That's something that gen Z will not get for sure. 120 00:07:26,000 --> 00:07:28,360 Speaker 1: God bless you for that, gen Z. And so what 121 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:30,880 Speaker 1: was the deal that? Where was he from? He was 122 00:07:30,960 --> 00:07:34,040 Speaker 1: from the vau de Vie, which is the Vier Valley 123 00:07:34,160 --> 00:07:39,280 Speaker 1: in French. And so um, these kind of silly, folksy 124 00:07:39,520 --> 00:07:43,200 Speaker 1: country songs, often satirical, that you know, found their origination 125 00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:45,520 Speaker 1: in the fourteen hundreds in France came to be known 126 00:07:45,560 --> 00:07:49,520 Speaker 1: as chanson de vaudeville, so songs from the Vier Valley 127 00:07:50,520 --> 00:07:54,520 Speaker 1: and basically, yeah, that would have that would have absolutely 128 00:07:54,560 --> 00:07:58,200 Speaker 1: been a chanson de vaudevie. So um. Over time, I 129 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:02,120 Speaker 1: guess in France, everybody's sick of, you know, putting the 130 00:08:02,640 --> 00:08:05,880 Speaker 1: Vier Valley on the map, and they just changed veer 131 00:08:06,200 --> 00:08:12,320 Speaker 1: to veal, which means town. So technically vaudeville means valley town, 132 00:08:13,280 --> 00:08:15,440 Speaker 1: which makes zero sense if you stop and think about it. 133 00:08:15,440 --> 00:08:17,520 Speaker 1: But it doesn't matter because it gets the point across, 134 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:21,800 Speaker 1: because it's evolved to take on a different meaning over time. Yeah, 135 00:08:21,840 --> 00:08:26,960 Speaker 1: and these in France they had uh fiata du vaudeville, 136 00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:30,600 Speaker 1: which were these parody plays. And then when America, you know, 137 00:08:30,680 --> 00:08:35,240 Speaker 1: Vaudeville is a uniquely American thing. Uh. Well, not uniquely American, 138 00:08:35,240 --> 00:08:39,439 Speaker 1: because there were precedents in other countries, but Vaudeville itself 139 00:08:39,480 --> 00:08:42,840 Speaker 1: became very American, and you'll see why. But they basically 140 00:08:42,920 --> 00:08:44,920 Speaker 1: just said, hey, that sounds kind of fancy and French, 141 00:08:44,960 --> 00:08:47,199 Speaker 1: and that was at a time in America and when 142 00:08:47,200 --> 00:08:52,040 Speaker 1: they liked to name things fancy French things. Well, yes, also, 143 00:08:52,240 --> 00:08:54,600 Speaker 1: so one of the things about Vaudeville that it's important 144 00:08:54,640 --> 00:08:58,320 Speaker 1: to realize is that it was created for this burgeoning 145 00:08:58,360 --> 00:09:03,079 Speaker 1: middle class where there like a lot more there's people 146 00:09:03,160 --> 00:09:05,640 Speaker 1: had a little more spending money than they did before. 147 00:09:06,160 --> 00:09:09,079 Speaker 1: There weren't conditions stunk, as we'll see, but there was 148 00:09:09,120 --> 00:09:12,200 Speaker 1: a middle class developing and this was designed specifically to 149 00:09:12,480 --> 00:09:16,079 Speaker 1: target those people. And they wanted to differentiate themselves from 150 00:09:16,080 --> 00:09:19,800 Speaker 1: some of the predecessors, which were much bodier, much racier, 151 00:09:19,920 --> 00:09:23,880 Speaker 1: much more drunken um and Vaudeville was like, no, we're different, 152 00:09:24,040 --> 00:09:28,199 Speaker 1: even though it's a lot the same stuff. Yeah, England, Italy, 153 00:09:28,960 --> 00:09:31,800 Speaker 1: they all had these sort of body plays where people 154 00:09:31,800 --> 00:09:36,480 Speaker 1: would get hammered in the audience or and or on stage. Uh. 155 00:09:36,520 --> 00:09:41,000 Speaker 1: In America, even pre Civil War, the shows were um, 156 00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:43,400 Speaker 1: you know, they were very risque. They were kind of 157 00:09:43,440 --> 00:09:46,960 Speaker 1: burlesque in nature, or you might have like, you know, 158 00:09:47,200 --> 00:09:50,040 Speaker 1: sort of uh scantily clad. At the time, of course 159 00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:52,200 Speaker 1: there was nothing like you would see today, but like 160 00:09:52,240 --> 00:09:56,480 Speaker 1: a scantily clad uh ladies dancing, uh and then like 161 00:09:56,559 --> 00:10:00,160 Speaker 1: two guys bare knuckle boxing right afterward and everyone is 162 00:10:00,200 --> 00:10:02,880 Speaker 1: getting drunk. And I bet those were a lot of fun. 163 00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:05,080 Speaker 1: But uh, you know, it sounds a lot like a 164 00:10:05,200 --> 00:10:10,040 Speaker 1: Chelsea Handler show today. But a few gentlemen came along, 165 00:10:10,080 --> 00:10:13,319 Speaker 1: in particular in the United States that said, hey, why 166 00:10:13,360 --> 00:10:15,440 Speaker 1: don't we, like you said, open this up to the 167 00:10:15,480 --> 00:10:18,240 Speaker 1: middle class, make it for everyone, and make it where 168 00:10:18,240 --> 00:10:21,280 Speaker 1: families could come. Because they wanted to make money. I 169 00:10:21,320 --> 00:10:24,240 Speaker 1: don't think they're on a crusade to clean up America's act. 170 00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:28,000 Speaker 1: Is they wanted to get rich. No, but they were 171 00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:33,960 Speaker 1: the kind of strict um like I guess taskmasters that 172 00:10:34,280 --> 00:10:37,560 Speaker 1: that like, they had some really strange requirements as we'll see. 173 00:10:37,559 --> 00:10:40,000 Speaker 1: Well we'll get to that in a second. But um, 174 00:10:40,040 --> 00:10:43,400 Speaker 1: in addition to the variety shows, circuses were a thing. 175 00:10:43,440 --> 00:10:46,480 Speaker 1: I think they we've never done an actual circus episode, 176 00:10:46,480 --> 00:10:50,080 Speaker 1: have we. We've done a lot of the circus arts, 177 00:10:50,160 --> 00:10:52,840 Speaker 1: but I don't know that we've done a full like 178 00:10:53,000 --> 00:10:58,400 Speaker 1: circus apply. I think very us it's hilarious. So circuses 179 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:01,160 Speaker 1: were kind of coming of age at the time. UM. 180 00:11:01,200 --> 00:11:04,960 Speaker 1: There were also side shows something called dime museums, which 181 00:11:04,960 --> 00:11:08,560 Speaker 1: is basically like a storefront um where people would pay 182 00:11:08,600 --> 00:11:11,160 Speaker 1: and just come look at some exhibits. And I saw 183 00:11:11,240 --> 00:11:16,960 Speaker 1: I found this amazing contemporary yes, reporting from the Saturday 184 00:11:17,240 --> 00:11:22,240 Speaker 1: Evening Post from June and it was basically UM an 185 00:11:22,320 --> 00:11:25,520 Speaker 1: article written by one of the big vaudeville producers at 186 00:11:25,520 --> 00:11:29,000 Speaker 1: the time, Percy G. Williams, and it was called Vaudeville 187 00:11:29,040 --> 00:11:32,120 Speaker 1: and the Vaudevillians, and he's talking about some of the 188 00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:36,040 Speaker 1: origins of vaudeville and he says that one of them 189 00:11:36,520 --> 00:11:41,400 Speaker 1: the three biggest people to establish vaudeville was Benjamin Franklin Keith, 190 00:11:41,720 --> 00:11:44,280 Speaker 1: and his first role as a manager was of a 191 00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:48,080 Speaker 1: store show that featured a fat baby as the main attractions. 192 00:11:51,720 --> 00:11:53,320 Speaker 1: Did that baby grow up to be? Is there a 193 00:11:53,320 --> 00:11:56,800 Speaker 1: great ending there? Then the baby grew up to be 194 00:11:57,880 --> 00:12:02,080 Speaker 1: DC Fields. Let's you should just say that everybody would 195 00:12:02,080 --> 00:12:05,440 Speaker 1: believe you? Sure, I know that's It wasn't as funny 196 00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:09,520 Speaker 1: because it was sobelievable. No, no, no, I love it. 197 00:12:09,640 --> 00:12:12,400 Speaker 1: So b F. Keith was one of the guys. A 198 00:12:12,440 --> 00:12:15,280 Speaker 1: guy named e F. Albie was another guy. They teamed 199 00:12:15,360 --> 00:12:19,600 Speaker 1: up um As Cohorts in Boston and opened up the 200 00:12:19,640 --> 00:12:24,320 Speaker 1: Bijou Theater and basically developed a and as you'll see, 201 00:12:24,559 --> 00:12:27,280 Speaker 1: kind of with vaudeville, it wasn't just like, hey, listen, 202 00:12:27,320 --> 00:12:28,960 Speaker 1: you know, we'll just do a show every now and then. 203 00:12:29,000 --> 00:12:32,920 Speaker 1: They developed these circuits in these systems, in these tours 204 00:12:33,520 --> 00:12:37,080 Speaker 1: and these basically management companies where they would just send 205 00:12:37,080 --> 00:12:39,920 Speaker 1: people out all over the country, and it really kind 206 00:12:39,920 --> 00:12:44,600 Speaker 1: of quickly became like a big, big business. Chuck asked 207 00:12:44,600 --> 00:12:46,280 Speaker 1: me again, who the fat baby grew up to be? He? 208 00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:48,720 Speaker 1: Is there a great ending like who that fat baby 209 00:12:48,720 --> 00:12:56,320 Speaker 1: grew up to be? Yeah? That fathe? Take three? Hey? 210 00:12:56,480 --> 00:13:00,520 Speaker 1: Yeah that who that fat baby? Take four? Hey, does 211 00:13:00,600 --> 00:13:02,400 Speaker 1: have a great inning here that that baby grow up 212 00:13:02,440 --> 00:13:11,480 Speaker 1: to be Tony Danza even better? Okay, that's Tony Dance 213 00:13:11,559 --> 00:13:14,840 Speaker 1: is a better punch line in almost every joke. Agreed, man. 214 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:17,640 Speaker 1: And apparently Who's the Boss is having some sort of 215 00:13:17,640 --> 00:13:22,880 Speaker 1: reboot in I saw it on Entertainment tonight. So um 216 00:13:22,920 --> 00:13:26,679 Speaker 1: so it's true. So Tony Pastor was the guy who 217 00:13:26,760 --> 00:13:30,760 Speaker 1: supposedly coined the term vaudeville or adopted the term vaudeville 218 00:13:31,040 --> 00:13:34,560 Speaker 1: to describe this thing that was basically like those variety shows, 219 00:13:34,600 --> 00:13:39,000 Speaker 1: except no not body. Um there was no liquor on 220 00:13:39,120 --> 00:13:43,120 Speaker 1: the premises, which was a big one at the time. Um, 221 00:13:43,360 --> 00:13:47,440 Speaker 1: the skits and the performers were all family friendly. The 222 00:13:47,520 --> 00:13:49,960 Speaker 1: language was family friendly. It was like the kind of 223 00:13:50,000 --> 00:13:52,600 Speaker 1: thing that like the whole family, from the little kids 224 00:13:52,640 --> 00:13:54,720 Speaker 1: to the grandma and the parents could all go sit 225 00:13:54,760 --> 00:13:58,480 Speaker 1: down and enjoy this this show together. Right. Um. And 226 00:13:58,679 --> 00:14:02,200 Speaker 1: like I said, they had some really like strict requirements. 227 00:14:02,640 --> 00:14:08,120 Speaker 1: I saw BF Keith, Benjamin Franklin Keith particularly did not 228 00:14:08,320 --> 00:14:13,520 Speaker 1: like certain kinds of language. Um, he's he didn't like 229 00:14:13,600 --> 00:14:17,160 Speaker 1: it if you said slab okay, son of a gun, 230 00:14:18,640 --> 00:14:22,560 Speaker 1: holy g, which I think is maybe gali G. Yeah, 231 00:14:22,680 --> 00:14:24,960 Speaker 1: I don't get that one. That one's weird. And the 232 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:29,720 Speaker 1: kuda gra chuck pants. Do not say pants around b F. Keith. 233 00:14:29,760 --> 00:14:32,120 Speaker 1: You better say trousers or else you're gonna get what 234 00:14:32,200 --> 00:14:36,240 Speaker 1: was referred to as a blue envelope. Right Yeah, and 235 00:14:36,280 --> 00:14:41,200 Speaker 1: here's where it gets, Um, the whole notion of blue comedy, 236 00:14:41,280 --> 00:14:44,640 Speaker 1: which is comedy that is got like foul language or whatever, 237 00:14:44,880 --> 00:14:47,800 Speaker 1: like if you're doing blue work or blue comedy. There 238 00:14:47,840 --> 00:14:50,840 Speaker 1: are a lot of different because you know, Dave said 239 00:14:50,840 --> 00:14:53,200 Speaker 1: in here, uh, and Dave didnt make this up, but 240 00:14:53,240 --> 00:14:55,720 Speaker 1: he saw that that may have been one of the 241 00:14:55,760 --> 00:14:57,960 Speaker 1: origins of some people think it's the origin of the 242 00:14:58,080 --> 00:15:02,160 Speaker 1: term working blue. We're doing blue comedy. And I looked 243 00:15:02,160 --> 00:15:04,080 Speaker 1: into it and there were there there are a lot 244 00:15:04,640 --> 00:15:08,600 Speaker 1: of different explanations. Um, I mean I saw like eight 245 00:15:08,680 --> 00:15:12,240 Speaker 1: or ten and they all sounded pretty realistic. Everything from 246 00:15:12,240 --> 00:15:16,200 Speaker 1: this one uh comedian named Max Miller who kept all 247 00:15:16,240 --> 00:15:18,760 Speaker 1: his adult jokes in a blue notebook. That's kind of 248 00:15:18,840 --> 00:15:23,200 Speaker 1: roundly been dismissed to In England after the Theater Act 249 00:15:23,200 --> 00:15:26,240 Speaker 1: of eighty three, they had to submit plays to the 250 00:15:26,320 --> 00:15:30,880 Speaker 1: Examiner of Plays like Capital the Capital p to audit 251 00:15:30,920 --> 00:15:33,320 Speaker 1: the scripts and then send them back and say you 252 00:15:33,360 --> 00:15:36,960 Speaker 1: can't get a permit with the script. And apparently they 253 00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:40,280 Speaker 1: would do that in blue pencil. That sounded really realistic. 254 00:15:40,360 --> 00:15:43,160 Speaker 1: But there were a bunch of different stories. But at 255 00:15:43,200 --> 00:15:46,040 Speaker 1: any rate, perhaps if you got a blue envelope from 256 00:15:46,160 --> 00:15:49,400 Speaker 1: Benjamin Franklin Keith that that could have been the origin 257 00:15:49,440 --> 00:15:52,080 Speaker 1: as well. Who knows. Yeah, because it meant like he 258 00:15:52,160 --> 00:15:53,880 Speaker 1: was sending you a note to say, like, you better 259 00:15:53,960 --> 00:15:56,840 Speaker 1: tone your act down or you're gonna get the boot. Basically, 260 00:15:56,920 --> 00:16:00,160 Speaker 1: that's right. And in addition to blue, a lot out 261 00:16:00,160 --> 00:16:02,880 Speaker 1: of the terms we used today came out of Vaudeville. 262 00:16:02,960 --> 00:16:08,080 Speaker 1: I saw um like killing them, killing them, not that 263 00:16:08,120 --> 00:16:13,000 Speaker 1: word I just made up, just killed on stage, Yes, exactly, headliner, 264 00:16:13,640 --> 00:16:19,240 Speaker 1: sure fire, lemon for like a bad thing, like a failure, um, 265 00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:21,520 Speaker 1: a bunch of different stuff that I had no idea of. 266 00:16:21,560 --> 00:16:24,240 Speaker 1: This just completely part of the common vernacular. Just came 267 00:16:24,240 --> 00:16:30,400 Speaker 1: out of the vaudeville world. It's the origins of origins 268 00:16:30,440 --> 00:16:35,200 Speaker 1: of popular entertainment. We're having a hard time today. I 269 00:16:35,200 --> 00:16:37,040 Speaker 1: don't know what's going on. I got marbles in my mouth. 270 00:16:37,080 --> 00:16:40,160 Speaker 1: I'm all excited about fall. Maybe just take a break, okay, 271 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:41,920 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, let's do that, all right. I'm gonna get 272 00:16:41,920 --> 00:17:00,160 Speaker 1: these marbles out and we'll be right back. Okay. So 273 00:17:00,200 --> 00:17:02,360 Speaker 1: this is something we've talked a lot about in various 274 00:17:02,360 --> 00:17:06,040 Speaker 1: episodes over the years. But um, pre Civil War and 275 00:17:06,119 --> 00:17:10,119 Speaker 1: post Civil War America were very different in how people lived. 276 00:17:10,480 --> 00:17:14,560 Speaker 1: Pre Civil War about nine of Americans lived in the country. 277 00:17:15,160 --> 00:17:19,480 Speaker 1: Um by the you know, mid eighteen eighties or so. Um, 278 00:17:19,480 --> 00:17:23,119 Speaker 1: the industrial the Second Industrial Revolution comes around all of 279 00:17:23,160 --> 00:17:26,080 Speaker 1: a sudden, it is almost flip flopped. It's about half 280 00:17:26,080 --> 00:17:28,800 Speaker 1: and half of people living in cities and people still 281 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:31,560 Speaker 1: hanging out in the country. And in those cities there 282 00:17:31,400 --> 00:17:34,240 Speaker 1: are obviously a lot of immigrants coming in like really 283 00:17:34,280 --> 00:17:38,240 Speaker 1: really quickly, especially in places like New York obviously, and 284 00:17:38,400 --> 00:17:41,919 Speaker 1: they were you know, didn't make a lot of money, 285 00:17:41,960 --> 00:17:44,720 Speaker 1: but they worked really really long hours and had very 286 00:17:44,760 --> 00:17:47,280 Speaker 1: little free time. And all of a sudden, there was 287 00:17:47,400 --> 00:17:50,080 Speaker 1: this thing that you could do with your very little 288 00:17:50,080 --> 00:17:53,160 Speaker 1: free time that costs like a nickel or a dime, 289 00:17:53,600 --> 00:17:55,560 Speaker 1: and you could go in there for a few hours 290 00:17:55,640 --> 00:17:58,959 Speaker 1: and kind of forget the drudgery of living in a 291 00:17:58,960 --> 00:18:03,000 Speaker 1: tenement building and working in a factory. Yeah, and so like, 292 00:18:03,520 --> 00:18:05,240 Speaker 1: not only did it bring like the people from the 293 00:18:05,240 --> 00:18:09,120 Speaker 1: neighborhood around, because like one vaudeville theater owner might own 294 00:18:09,400 --> 00:18:13,000 Speaker 1: ten theaters in one city like New York, so that 295 00:18:13,040 --> 00:18:14,960 Speaker 1: they were they catered to the neighborhood, so you don't 296 00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:18,560 Speaker 1: have to go very far. Um. Dave also points out 297 00:18:18,640 --> 00:18:22,199 Speaker 1: that through some of like the the most cringe e 298 00:18:22,359 --> 00:18:26,840 Speaker 1: and outright racist ethnic jokes and slurs that were part 299 00:18:26,840 --> 00:18:29,080 Speaker 1: of the acts of some of these not all the acts, 300 00:18:29,119 --> 00:18:31,120 Speaker 1: but enough of them that it was definitely a thing 301 00:18:31,720 --> 00:18:36,440 Speaker 1: that it wasn't meant to be mean spirited, um, at 302 00:18:36,520 --> 00:18:39,080 Speaker 1: least not in the vaudeville world that had definitely been 303 00:18:39,160 --> 00:18:42,480 Speaker 1: means spirited before. UM. But say like if you were 304 00:18:42,560 --> 00:18:46,200 Speaker 1: poking fun at Chinese immigrants and how they talked, or um, 305 00:18:46,240 --> 00:18:49,840 Speaker 1: Irish immigrants and how they talked, um, it was a 306 00:18:49,880 --> 00:18:53,359 Speaker 1: form of assimilation in a weird way because those very 307 00:18:53,400 --> 00:18:57,040 Speaker 1: people were out there in the audience laughing along with 308 00:18:57,080 --> 00:19:01,480 Speaker 1: everybody else. Or sometimes, as we'll see, um, people of 309 00:19:01,560 --> 00:19:05,000 Speaker 1: that ethnicity may have been playing those you know, over 310 00:19:05,040 --> 00:19:08,800 Speaker 1: the top stereotype versions of their ethnicity and and in 311 00:19:08,840 --> 00:19:11,000 Speaker 1: a weird way it does. It is kind of how 312 00:19:11,080 --> 00:19:15,159 Speaker 1: people came together and initially melted together when America was 313 00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:17,960 Speaker 1: just beginning to be a melting pot. Yeah, was the 314 00:19:18,040 --> 00:19:21,719 Speaker 1: initial melt right. Um. So let's talk a little bit 315 00:19:21,720 --> 00:19:24,399 Speaker 1: about how these things went down, because there was a 316 00:19:24,480 --> 00:19:28,800 Speaker 1: very kind of great motto for vaudeville, which was, if 317 00:19:28,800 --> 00:19:32,160 Speaker 1: you don't like this, wait a few minutes and that's 318 00:19:32,200 --> 00:19:37,240 Speaker 1: how it went down. They were variety shows in every uh, 319 00:19:37,280 --> 00:19:40,160 Speaker 1: every essence of that word. Um. We've done a few 320 00:19:40,440 --> 00:19:44,439 Speaker 1: variety shows over the years, and I definitely enjoy our 321 00:19:44,520 --> 00:19:47,480 Speaker 1: stuff you should know live, which, by the way, look 322 00:19:47,520 --> 00:19:51,879 Speaker 1: for some announcements soon for early next year. Yeah, West Coast, 323 00:19:52,400 --> 00:19:56,480 Speaker 1: Hint Antonia. I definitely prefer those. But early on we 324 00:19:56,520 --> 00:19:58,440 Speaker 1: did a few variety shows where we would have like 325 00:19:58,920 --> 00:20:01,200 Speaker 1: some music and it can median and someone you were 326 00:20:01,200 --> 00:20:06,639 Speaker 1: reading and uh, you know the someone uh interpretive dance. 327 00:20:07,200 --> 00:20:09,720 Speaker 1: That's the one thing we liked. But those are always 328 00:20:09,720 --> 00:20:11,240 Speaker 1: a lot of fun because I think we both enjoyed 329 00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:15,200 Speaker 1: that spirit of the variety show. When you're a kid 330 00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:18,360 Speaker 1: of the seventies and eighties, those were still very much 331 00:20:18,359 --> 00:20:21,560 Speaker 1: a part of television growing up. Um, and they they're 332 00:20:21,600 --> 00:20:24,520 Speaker 1: they're the you can draw a direct line from what 333 00:20:24,560 --> 00:20:27,520 Speaker 1: you saw on you know, the Mandrell Sister Show or 334 00:20:27,560 --> 00:20:31,200 Speaker 1: he haw right back to vaudeville. Uh. And the whole 335 00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:33,240 Speaker 1: idea was, if you don't like it, wait a few minutes. 336 00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:38,240 Speaker 1: They would have you know, maybe ten fifteen minute, twenty 337 00:20:38,280 --> 00:20:41,640 Speaker 1: minute at the longest, the thirty minute act and then 338 00:20:41,760 --> 00:20:45,760 Speaker 1: somebody completely different would come out next. Yeah, and um, 339 00:20:45,800 --> 00:20:48,239 Speaker 1: Percy Williams kind of put it pretty plainly in that 340 00:20:48,280 --> 00:20:51,920 Speaker 1: Saturday Evening Post article that like a vaudeville theater manager 341 00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:55,440 Speaker 1: is entirely different from what he called the legitimate theater 342 00:20:55,520 --> 00:20:59,520 Speaker 1: manager um in that every week you were coming up 343 00:20:59,560 --> 00:21:04,040 Speaker 1: with a new you like show of ten twelve acts 344 00:21:04,560 --> 00:21:06,879 Speaker 1: that you had to arrange just the right way to 345 00:21:06,960 --> 00:21:10,920 Speaker 1: keep the audience entertained. You lull them into like complacency 346 00:21:10,920 --> 00:21:13,680 Speaker 1: with a beautiful like ballet act, and then after that, 347 00:21:13,760 --> 00:21:16,080 Speaker 1: like two acrobats who may or may not have been 348 00:21:16,080 --> 00:21:19,320 Speaker 1: brothers came bounding out onto the stage, and after that 349 00:21:19,359 --> 00:21:22,359 Speaker 1: there was a comedian who would just slay everybody. Um Like. 350 00:21:22,400 --> 00:21:25,200 Speaker 1: It was very much laid out in the way that 351 00:21:25,359 --> 00:21:27,639 Speaker 1: um that it was supposed to be, and it was 352 00:21:27,720 --> 00:21:30,439 Speaker 1: all all vaudeville shows were laid out in the exact 353 00:21:30,440 --> 00:21:33,400 Speaker 1: same way, but they're the different kinds of acts. Dave 354 00:21:33,480 --> 00:21:36,639 Speaker 1: dug up a handbook from nineteen fourteen called how to 355 00:21:36,840 --> 00:21:42,480 Speaker 1: Enter Vaudeville Your Favorites, Yes, proceed though I'm marked down 356 00:21:43,640 --> 00:21:47,320 Speaker 1: five six seven. All right, Uh, well, my first favorite 357 00:21:47,359 --> 00:21:49,160 Speaker 1: was the first one on the list, a shadow list, 358 00:21:50,160 --> 00:21:52,399 Speaker 1: because those are just fun those are people who I 359 00:21:52,440 --> 00:21:55,080 Speaker 1: guess do like the hand shadows and things, right, that 360 00:21:55,119 --> 00:21:59,320 Speaker 1: would be my take on it too, Yeah for sure. Yeah. Um. 361 00:21:59,359 --> 00:22:01,919 Speaker 1: My first him was a hobo act. And the reason 362 00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:05,920 Speaker 1: why the reason why I chose hobo acts because I 363 00:22:05,960 --> 00:22:10,560 Speaker 1: saw that, Um, Benjamin Franklin Keith's shows at his theaters. 364 00:22:10,600 --> 00:22:12,520 Speaker 1: Even if you're doing a hobo act, you still had 365 00:22:12,560 --> 00:22:16,760 Speaker 1: to wear a clean shirt. That's pretty funny. Yeah, You're like, no, 366 00:22:16,840 --> 00:22:20,080 Speaker 1: but this is my outfit and said sorry sorry. The 367 00:22:20,119 --> 00:22:25,000 Speaker 1: next on my list was the human Calculator act. Okay, 368 00:22:25,119 --> 00:22:29,480 Speaker 1: I'd like that too. Yeah. Um, I've got one electrical act, 369 00:22:30,080 --> 00:22:32,280 Speaker 1: which I mean we're talking like the beginning of the 370 00:22:32,280 --> 00:22:36,919 Speaker 1: twentieth century, so electricity was really strange and exotic, and 371 00:22:36,960 --> 00:22:40,560 Speaker 1: there were people who would have different acts. So, um, 372 00:22:40,560 --> 00:22:45,399 Speaker 1: I found this site called uh Vaudeville America, and every 373 00:22:45,480 --> 00:22:48,040 Speaker 1: single Vaudeville act that ever performed would have a little 374 00:22:48,040 --> 00:22:51,600 Speaker 1: note card with like a little summation about their show, 375 00:22:51,960 --> 00:22:55,400 Speaker 1: how it was received by the audience, how long it ran, um, 376 00:22:55,480 --> 00:22:58,280 Speaker 1: and Vaudeville America has all of these things, and I 377 00:22:58,320 --> 00:23:01,560 Speaker 1: found him for electrical act. It was all over the place, 378 00:23:01,600 --> 00:23:05,000 Speaker 1: like it could be electricity used to trigger special effects 379 00:23:05,160 --> 00:23:09,240 Speaker 1: or um it could be like a scientist demonstrating different 380 00:23:09,240 --> 00:23:14,640 Speaker 1: things with electricity, or sometimes people took massive electrical shocks 381 00:23:14,680 --> 00:23:17,720 Speaker 1: to the body to perform, like that was what they 382 00:23:17,760 --> 00:23:20,679 Speaker 1: did as part of their electrical show. So that was 383 00:23:20,720 --> 00:23:22,919 Speaker 1: definitely one of my favorites too. Yeah, I mean there 384 00:23:22,920 --> 00:23:26,600 Speaker 1: were definitely some sort of Jim Rose Circus adjacent things 385 00:23:27,880 --> 00:23:30,119 Speaker 1: like sword swallowing and stuff like that. Um, but my 386 00:23:30,240 --> 00:23:39,000 Speaker 1: favorite my last two our statuary posing and uh paper tearing. Yeah, 387 00:23:39,440 --> 00:23:42,280 Speaker 1: paper tearing. It was like I don't know about that one. 388 00:23:42,600 --> 00:23:44,960 Speaker 1: I mean it must be well, I don't know. I 389 00:23:45,040 --> 00:23:46,960 Speaker 1: was gonna say it must be like ripping phone books 390 00:23:46,960 --> 00:23:49,840 Speaker 1: in f but it might not have been. Maybe it 391 00:23:49,880 --> 00:23:53,560 Speaker 1: was tearing paper like a reverse or a gami or something. Yeah, 392 00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:56,400 Speaker 1: that's what I would take it as for sure. It's 393 00:23:56,400 --> 00:24:00,879 Speaker 1: basically a vaudeville show. Was uh comp elation of stuff 394 00:24:00,920 --> 00:24:04,280 Speaker 1: that you would see today at halftime at NBA games. 395 00:24:05,960 --> 00:24:08,000 Speaker 1: You know, like there'd be a dude like balancing a 396 00:24:08,119 --> 00:24:11,159 Speaker 1: chair on his chin and on top of that or 397 00:24:11,160 --> 00:24:13,159 Speaker 1: eight other chairs and at the very top of that 398 00:24:13,280 --> 00:24:16,119 Speaker 1: is his wife. Like like that's the kind of stuff 399 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:18,000 Speaker 1: that you would see at vaudeville, and then you'd also 400 00:24:18,040 --> 00:24:20,920 Speaker 1: see serious stuff too, Like there were tabloid plays where 401 00:24:20,920 --> 00:24:25,600 Speaker 1: they would distill like a three four act play down 402 00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:29,359 Speaker 1: into fifteen minutes, and it wasn't necessarily a comedy. It 403 00:24:29,359 --> 00:24:31,480 Speaker 1: could be a tragedy. And these people just figured out 404 00:24:31,520 --> 00:24:34,000 Speaker 1: how to do the reader's diegt version. So it was 405 00:24:34,160 --> 00:24:36,600 Speaker 1: all over the place, and they they were laid out 406 00:24:36,600 --> 00:24:39,640 Speaker 1: in just the right way by the vaudeville theater managers. Yeah, 407 00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:41,800 Speaker 1: that was a great quote from this. Did you watch 408 00:24:41,800 --> 00:24:44,760 Speaker 1: any of that PDS documentary? Yeah, it was very good. 409 00:24:44,800 --> 00:24:47,000 Speaker 1: It was good. Uh. The quote from there was there 410 00:24:47,040 --> 00:24:49,439 Speaker 1: was everything from a guy playing a piano to a 411 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:53,280 Speaker 1: guy eating a piano. Did you see that agent who 412 00:24:53,320 --> 00:24:57,199 Speaker 1: described the guy who would eat a baby shark and 413 00:24:57,240 --> 00:25:00,280 Speaker 1: then throw it up back into like a are and 414 00:25:00,280 --> 00:25:03,560 Speaker 1: the shark would just swim around afterwards. It's I mean, 415 00:25:03,560 --> 00:25:06,240 Speaker 1: that was vaudeville, um, And you know, like you said, 416 00:25:06,240 --> 00:25:08,040 Speaker 1: they had to lay it out in such a way 417 00:25:08,760 --> 00:25:10,520 Speaker 1: it was. It wasn't just willy nilly, you know, it 418 00:25:10,560 --> 00:25:14,240 Speaker 1: was very intentional. And apparently the first act to be 419 00:25:14,359 --> 00:25:17,960 Speaker 1: the first act of the last act wasn't a great sign. Uh, 420 00:25:18,000 --> 00:25:20,439 Speaker 1: for you that well, probably what it probably meant is 421 00:25:20,480 --> 00:25:24,560 Speaker 1: that you were either brand new or just not very good, 422 00:25:24,600 --> 00:25:26,639 Speaker 1: and you didn't really have a great act. But they 423 00:25:26,680 --> 00:25:29,800 Speaker 1: needed somebody because the opening act would be kind of 424 00:25:29,800 --> 00:25:31,920 Speaker 1: the seating act, like people are still sort of getting 425 00:25:31,920 --> 00:25:33,960 Speaker 1: in their seats and doing their thing, but they wanted 426 00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:35,920 Speaker 1: to have something up there. I was about to say 427 00:25:35,960 --> 00:25:38,560 Speaker 1: on the screen on the stage. Um. And then the 428 00:25:38,640 --> 00:25:42,720 Speaker 1: last one, which is hysterical and goes counter to every 429 00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:45,359 Speaker 1: show biz rule now, which was like leave them with 430 00:25:45,400 --> 00:25:48,840 Speaker 1: something great. They wanted to purposely leave them with something 431 00:25:48,920 --> 00:25:51,320 Speaker 1: not so great so they could just turn the house 432 00:25:51,320 --> 00:25:53,240 Speaker 1: over and get people the heck out of there and 433 00:25:53,240 --> 00:25:56,919 Speaker 1: they wouldn't be like more and more so they would 434 00:25:57,320 --> 00:25:59,919 Speaker 1: It was like in Mexicali Grill in Athens when we 435 00:26:00,000 --> 00:26:03,520 Speaker 1: would uh, we would crank like you know Public Enemy 436 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:06,560 Speaker 1: or you know, some really heavy metal or something at 437 00:26:06,560 --> 00:26:07,880 Speaker 1: the end of the night, just to get people out 438 00:26:07,920 --> 00:26:10,840 Speaker 1: of there. For sure, they called the last act on 439 00:26:10,880 --> 00:26:14,080 Speaker 1: the bill of the haircut act because that performer would 440 00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:16,520 Speaker 1: just see the back of everybody's heads on their way out. 441 00:26:16,880 --> 00:26:20,240 Speaker 1: To be clear, we loved Public Enemy. The people that 442 00:26:20,280 --> 00:26:25,040 Speaker 1: dined at Mexicali hated it. Sure, just wat chocolate and 443 00:26:25,080 --> 00:26:27,879 Speaker 1: public Enemy to get people out of there if you need. 444 00:26:27,920 --> 00:26:30,879 Speaker 1: The clientele at Mexicality, Rill and Athens in the mid nighties, 445 00:26:30,960 --> 00:26:34,280 Speaker 1: you know, yeah, some email are just just like yeah, 446 00:26:34,359 --> 00:26:39,320 Speaker 1: same draft. Um. So what that meant was that second 447 00:26:39,359 --> 00:26:41,400 Speaker 1: to the last act was is what you would look 448 00:26:41,440 --> 00:26:44,040 Speaker 1: at as sort of the the best act of the night. 449 00:26:44,560 --> 00:26:47,680 Speaker 1: And sometimes yeah, that could be like a really big name. 450 00:26:47,840 --> 00:26:50,240 Speaker 1: I mean it could be Harry Hudini on any given night. 451 00:26:50,280 --> 00:26:54,200 Speaker 1: It could be um, you know, Al Jolson for better 452 00:26:54,280 --> 00:26:57,480 Speaker 1: or for worse on any given night, like a huge, 453 00:26:57,760 --> 00:27:01,720 Speaker 1: massive star. Like these the people who were um, who 454 00:27:01,760 --> 00:27:04,520 Speaker 1: were the second to last act on a bill at 455 00:27:04,560 --> 00:27:08,600 Speaker 1: a big vaudeville theater in a big city were probably 456 00:27:08,760 --> 00:27:12,160 Speaker 1: the most famous people in the United States and Europe 457 00:27:12,240 --> 00:27:15,320 Speaker 1: in a lot of cases. Like they were as famous 458 00:27:15,359 --> 00:27:19,959 Speaker 1: as you can possibly get, legendary in their fields, beloved 459 00:27:19,960 --> 00:27:23,639 Speaker 1: by all, like and you could go spend ten or 460 00:27:23,800 --> 00:27:26,199 Speaker 1: twenty five cents, depending on how good the show was, 461 00:27:26,480 --> 00:27:29,080 Speaker 1: and see those people like in your neighborhood, you know, 462 00:27:29,160 --> 00:27:31,880 Speaker 1: depending on what city it was. Because like you said, 463 00:27:31,880 --> 00:27:35,800 Speaker 1: the um, the whole thing that kind of spread Vaudeville 464 00:27:35,800 --> 00:27:37,880 Speaker 1: far and wide was the fact that they created these 465 00:27:37,880 --> 00:27:41,240 Speaker 1: circuits and so you didn't even necessarily have to live 466 00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:43,879 Speaker 1: in a big city to see these people alive. Um, 467 00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:46,840 Speaker 1: because if you had a theater in your town that 468 00:27:46,920 --> 00:27:49,920 Speaker 1: was part of a circuit that originated in New York, 469 00:27:50,560 --> 00:27:53,199 Speaker 1: they might end up there performing as the second to 470 00:27:53,280 --> 00:27:55,720 Speaker 1: last act on the bill. And we'll, I mean, we'll 471 00:27:55,760 --> 00:27:57,560 Speaker 1: talk more about circuits in a minute, but I just 472 00:27:57,600 --> 00:28:03,320 Speaker 1: got very excited about that. Yeah, let's go back to racism. Yeah, okay, 473 00:28:03,400 --> 00:28:05,480 Speaker 1: So you know we made the point that um or 474 00:28:05,520 --> 00:28:07,840 Speaker 1: I don't know if we made this original point. Um, 475 00:28:08,200 --> 00:28:11,879 Speaker 1: when the someone was doing what you would call like 476 00:28:11,920 --> 00:28:16,880 Speaker 1: an ethnic dialogue act or a dialect act um, they 477 00:28:16,920 --> 00:28:21,080 Speaker 1: would go up there and do this racial ethnic stereotype 478 00:28:21,840 --> 00:28:24,879 Speaker 1: and it could be anything. It was like nobody was safe. 479 00:28:25,240 --> 00:28:27,680 Speaker 1: It could be a big Italitian guy doing this is 480 00:28:27,760 --> 00:28:31,080 Speaker 1: big spicy meatball thing. That's the only one I'm allowed 481 00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:32,520 Speaker 1: to do, so that's all I'm gonna do. No, it 482 00:28:32,560 --> 00:28:36,280 Speaker 1: could be like German, Irish, uh in any sort of 483 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:39,880 Speaker 1: European immigrant. They could be making fun of Jewish people, 484 00:28:40,000 --> 00:28:44,280 Speaker 1: Chinese people, Native Americans who also had as we'll see, 485 00:28:44,320 --> 00:28:47,240 Speaker 1: their own circuit, and they would also make fun of themselves. 486 00:28:47,280 --> 00:28:50,000 Speaker 1: So it was interesting in that it was sort of 487 00:28:50,040 --> 00:28:54,520 Speaker 1: a uh, it was sort of the great leveling ground, 488 00:28:54,760 --> 00:28:59,760 Speaker 1: and that no one was really spared right right, And 489 00:29:00,760 --> 00:29:03,400 Speaker 1: in a lot of ways, it was because a lot 490 00:29:03,480 --> 00:29:06,440 Speaker 1: of the members of those same ethnic groups, like I 491 00:29:06,520 --> 00:29:10,760 Speaker 1: was saying, performed those dialect acts where they were really 492 00:29:10,800 --> 00:29:13,600 Speaker 1: hamming it up and really going over the top with 493 00:29:13,640 --> 00:29:18,360 Speaker 1: these stereotypes of their own ethnicity. Um. And even black face, 494 00:29:18,960 --> 00:29:24,240 Speaker 1: depending on the context was um depending on who is 495 00:29:24,280 --> 00:29:26,880 Speaker 1: doing it was anti racist because one of the overlooked 496 00:29:26,880 --> 00:29:30,040 Speaker 1: things about black faces as far as vaudeville is concerned, 497 00:29:30,320 --> 00:29:34,400 Speaker 1: there were a number of African American vaudeville performers who 498 00:29:34,480 --> 00:29:37,040 Speaker 1: did black face and actually preferred to do black face 499 00:29:37,320 --> 00:29:41,160 Speaker 1: because it changed everything. It said, we're in an alternate 500 00:29:41,280 --> 00:29:43,680 Speaker 1: universe here and the rules are kind of out the window. 501 00:29:44,400 --> 00:29:46,880 Speaker 1: And then they could all of a sudden do it 502 00:29:46,920 --> 00:29:50,840 Speaker 1: a take on a satire, let's say about the white 503 00:29:50,840 --> 00:29:53,680 Speaker 1: guy who's running the vaudeville show and get away and 504 00:29:53,680 --> 00:29:57,240 Speaker 1: get away with it, yeah, or make fun of the 505 00:29:57,280 --> 00:30:00,680 Speaker 1: idea of black face done by white people, like make 506 00:30:00,720 --> 00:30:04,480 Speaker 1: fun of black face acts as a black face act 507 00:30:05,280 --> 00:30:08,440 Speaker 1: performed by an African American, So yeah, it gave them 508 00:30:08,480 --> 00:30:11,280 Speaker 1: a lot more leeway to just kind of set things 509 00:30:11,320 --> 00:30:14,840 Speaker 1: straight a little more. But um, the history of black 510 00:30:14,840 --> 00:30:20,040 Speaker 1: faces terribly horribly racist. Um, but everything leading up to vaudeville, 511 00:30:20,120 --> 00:30:23,640 Speaker 1: and some vaudeville acts were still terribly racist. But um, 512 00:30:24,240 --> 00:30:29,840 Speaker 1: the stuff leading up to it was indisputably vilely racist. Yeah. Absolutely. Um. 513 00:30:29,920 --> 00:30:33,320 Speaker 1: One of the biggest stars in the early twentieth century 514 00:30:34,120 --> 00:30:39,040 Speaker 1: was a black man named Burt Williams. Very handsome, smooth, 515 00:30:39,080 --> 00:30:41,160 Speaker 1: cool looking dude. If you look at pictures of this guy, 516 00:30:41,800 --> 00:30:44,480 Speaker 1: he's like, he's like the Billy D. Williams of his time, 517 00:30:45,440 --> 00:30:48,560 Speaker 1: Billy D. Williams. Did I get that right? Yeah? Okay, 518 00:30:48,560 --> 00:30:50,320 Speaker 1: I don't know why that sounded wrong all of a sudden. 519 00:30:50,840 --> 00:30:54,440 Speaker 1: Do you ever do that? Yeah, and you're like what 520 00:30:55,440 --> 00:30:59,280 Speaker 1: it's called semantic satiation, really where you you do or say, 521 00:30:59,320 --> 00:31:03,960 Speaker 1: you're speak something so much that it just loses its 522 00:31:04,000 --> 00:31:06,640 Speaker 1: meaning and like doesn't look right spelled and all that stuff. 523 00:31:06,680 --> 00:31:08,240 Speaker 1: You know, I thought I got it wrong, actually just 524 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:12,360 Speaker 1: figured out because in my head I had D as 525 00:31:12,520 --> 00:31:15,760 Speaker 1: D period like an initial and not D e E 526 00:31:16,840 --> 00:31:22,200 Speaker 1: like d Wallace, Billy D Wallace Williams anyway, Uh, he 527 00:31:22,280 --> 00:31:24,160 Speaker 1: kind of looked like Billy D a little bit, very 528 00:31:24,160 --> 00:31:27,440 Speaker 1: smooth looking guy. And he was the first black performer 529 00:31:27,520 --> 00:31:31,800 Speaker 1: to star to star in the Zike Field Follies, which was, 530 00:31:32,240 --> 00:31:34,479 Speaker 1: you know, one of the biggest vaudeville reviews in New 531 00:31:34,560 --> 00:31:37,800 Speaker 1: York City at the time. And he and also all 532 00:31:37,800 --> 00:31:41,200 Speaker 1: white too. Well, yeah, exactly. That's why it was important 533 00:31:41,200 --> 00:31:44,680 Speaker 1: that he was the first black performer. Sure, but he 534 00:31:44,800 --> 00:31:47,560 Speaker 1: was um. He did black face, of course, and he 535 00:31:47,960 --> 00:31:50,840 Speaker 1: was on record as saying, like he said, quote, it 536 00:31:50,880 --> 00:31:53,400 Speaker 1: was not until I was able to see myself as 537 00:31:53,440 --> 00:31:56,440 Speaker 1: another person, and I think he meaning black face, that 538 00:31:56,520 --> 00:31:59,080 Speaker 1: my sense of humor developed. So for him, I think 539 00:31:59,160 --> 00:32:01,120 Speaker 1: he said it a lot of to come out of 540 00:32:01,120 --> 00:32:05,400 Speaker 1: his shell sort of comedically. Fully. Yeah, there's um. They 541 00:32:05,440 --> 00:32:08,200 Speaker 1: covered him really well in that PBS documentary and there 542 00:32:08,280 --> 00:32:11,800 Speaker 1: was a quote from W. C. Fields. No word what 543 00:32:11,880 --> 00:32:15,240 Speaker 1: Tony Danza had to say, but W. C. Fields said that, um, 544 00:32:15,240 --> 00:32:18,320 Speaker 1: Burt Williams was the funniest man I ever saw and 545 00:32:18,400 --> 00:32:21,360 Speaker 1: the saddest man I ever met. And what he was 546 00:32:21,400 --> 00:32:24,240 Speaker 1: referring to is that Burt Williams is called the Jackie 547 00:32:24,360 --> 00:32:27,480 Speaker 1: Robinson of of vaudeville because he broke that color. Berrier 548 00:32:27,520 --> 00:32:29,680 Speaker 1: was the first one. But he also like seemed to 549 00:32:29,720 --> 00:32:31,800 Speaker 1: feel like the weight of history on his shoulders, and 550 00:32:32,160 --> 00:32:35,520 Speaker 1: he spent He just worked tirelessly to prove that he 551 00:32:35,640 --> 00:32:38,640 Speaker 1: was at least as good, if not better than any 552 00:32:38,680 --> 00:32:42,840 Speaker 1: white Carville performer, and supposedly, according to this PBS documentary, 553 00:32:42,880 --> 00:32:47,480 Speaker 1: essentially worked himself to death at age forty. Yeah, but 554 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:50,560 Speaker 1: he was a great talent and um even even in 555 00:32:50,640 --> 00:32:53,760 Speaker 1: his time he was considered just a legendary star and 556 00:32:53,840 --> 00:32:58,120 Speaker 1: comedian but like beloved by all. Yeah, I'm gonna take 557 00:32:58,160 --> 00:33:00,640 Speaker 1: issue with PBS and if someone else right in saying 558 00:33:00,640 --> 00:33:04,000 Speaker 1: the same thing, I don't think you can say that 559 00:33:04,040 --> 00:33:07,240 Speaker 1: someone is said Jackie Robinson of something before Jackie Robinson 560 00:33:09,960 --> 00:33:12,680 Speaker 1: what people like to say, but like Jackie Robinson was 561 00:33:12,680 --> 00:33:15,720 Speaker 1: the Burt Williams of baseball if anything, very nice, very nice. 562 00:33:16,280 --> 00:33:19,880 Speaker 1: That's a great, great correction. Well, I think a lot 563 00:33:19,880 --> 00:33:21,840 Speaker 1: of people just use that term now, you know, like 564 00:33:22,480 --> 00:33:24,880 Speaker 1: somebody could say so and so is the Jackie Robinson 565 00:33:24,880 --> 00:33:29,160 Speaker 1: of cave People. It took took was the Jackie Robinson 566 00:33:29,160 --> 00:33:32,720 Speaker 1: of cave People. All right, I mean it still gets 567 00:33:32,800 --> 00:33:36,680 Speaker 1: the point across into a prescriptive no no, no, no no. 568 00:33:36,960 --> 00:33:40,440 Speaker 1: I'm moving on. Uh to al Jolson, who he mentioned earlier. 569 00:33:40,520 --> 00:33:42,600 Speaker 1: He was one of the biggest stars in the world 570 00:33:42,600 --> 00:33:46,560 Speaker 1: as well. He very famously uh don blackface. Uh. And 571 00:33:46,640 --> 00:33:49,360 Speaker 1: he is someone who went on to have a huge 572 00:33:49,400 --> 00:33:52,040 Speaker 1: career once movies came around. And won't you know, we'll 573 00:33:52,040 --> 00:33:54,640 Speaker 1: get to the effect movies had on all that. But 574 00:33:54,720 --> 00:33:57,800 Speaker 1: he started he was Jewish and he started the jazz singer, 575 00:33:58,120 --> 00:34:02,280 Speaker 1: which was the big sort of first huge feature length 576 00:34:02,320 --> 00:34:07,920 Speaker 1: talkie in n Yeah. And it's interesting that this vaudeville 577 00:34:07,920 --> 00:34:13,960 Speaker 1: star became the first um talkie star for movies because um, 578 00:34:14,040 --> 00:34:18,280 Speaker 1: that was that was a transition that that quickly took over. Actually, 579 00:34:18,320 --> 00:34:20,399 Speaker 1: as we'll see um and I say, we take a break, 580 00:34:20,520 --> 00:34:23,680 Speaker 1: chuck and come back to more vaudeville stuff about that. 581 00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:43,439 Speaker 1: Let's do it. So now finally we're onto that part 582 00:34:43,480 --> 00:34:47,240 Speaker 1: that I was so excited about. Circuits. Yeah, the circuit 583 00:34:47,360 --> 00:34:52,360 Speaker 1: was the business model basically, uh, that allowed everybody to 584 00:34:52,400 --> 00:34:55,680 Speaker 1: make a lot of money. Certainly the owners of these 585 00:34:55,719 --> 00:34:59,239 Speaker 1: theaters and the people who UM had lots and lots 586 00:34:59,280 --> 00:35:03,080 Speaker 1: of these performers signed up to exclusive contracts. Yeah, and 587 00:35:03,280 --> 00:35:06,720 Speaker 1: just as an aside about that big money, UM, I 588 00:35:06,800 --> 00:35:13,480 Speaker 1: put together Percy Williams Saturday Evening post information with our 589 00:35:13,560 --> 00:35:17,799 Speaker 1: friends at west Egg the inflation calculator. Some of the 590 00:35:18,040 --> 00:35:20,759 Speaker 1: some of the amounts that he was thrown out, like 591 00:35:20,880 --> 00:35:23,480 Speaker 1: three dollars a week was not out of the question, 592 00:35:24,320 --> 00:35:29,520 Speaker 1: um for a good like performer on vaudeville, and that 593 00:35:29,560 --> 00:35:32,200 Speaker 1: meant you automatically made half a million dollars a year. 594 00:35:32,920 --> 00:35:35,239 Speaker 1: But it just kept going up from there, like UM, 595 00:35:35,280 --> 00:35:38,319 Speaker 1: I think the highest paid that he mentioned, um was 596 00:35:38,360 --> 00:35:41,320 Speaker 1: a performer who pulled in three thousand dollars a week 597 00:35:41,600 --> 00:35:45,480 Speaker 1: a week, yes, which is forty seven grand a week today, 598 00:35:45,520 --> 00:35:49,240 Speaker 1: which is like over five million dollars in today's money 599 00:35:49,239 --> 00:35:55,759 Speaker 1: for a year. It's like mid level podcaster money, right. Uh, 600 00:35:55,960 --> 00:36:00,680 Speaker 1: the average American was making about bucks at the time. 601 00:36:01,360 --> 00:36:04,640 Speaker 1: So if you're making three fifty dollars a week, and 602 00:36:04,719 --> 00:36:07,200 Speaker 1: you know, it's the same today that the big entertainers 603 00:36:08,080 --> 00:36:10,520 Speaker 1: sort of have always made lots and lots and lots 604 00:36:10,520 --> 00:36:14,319 Speaker 1: of money because they could charge a lot or not 605 00:36:14,400 --> 00:36:16,120 Speaker 1: a lot of money, but they could charge a lot 606 00:36:16,160 --> 00:36:19,839 Speaker 1: of people money to buy to the cell tickets. Yeah, 607 00:36:19,880 --> 00:36:22,400 Speaker 1: and Percy Williams also said one of the other distinctions 608 00:36:22,440 --> 00:36:25,799 Speaker 1: between a legitimate theater house and a vaudeville theater house 609 00:36:26,160 --> 00:36:28,200 Speaker 1: is that that legitimate theater might be happy to have 610 00:36:28,280 --> 00:36:31,160 Speaker 1: five thousand patrons in a week, whereas on a really 611 00:36:31,160 --> 00:36:34,040 Speaker 1: good week with a really good bill of vaudeville house 612 00:36:34,120 --> 00:36:37,319 Speaker 1: might pull in thirty five thousand people in that week. 613 00:36:37,400 --> 00:36:38,840 Speaker 1: So that kind of gives you an idea of just 614 00:36:38,880 --> 00:36:41,799 Speaker 1: how popular it was because it wasn't high brow, it 615 00:36:41,840 --> 00:36:45,160 Speaker 1: wasn't high falutin, it was understandable, it was funny, it 616 00:36:45,239 --> 00:36:48,439 Speaker 1: was moving, um, and just about anybody could could tap 617 00:36:48,480 --> 00:36:50,440 Speaker 1: into it and get it and be moved by it. 618 00:36:50,560 --> 00:36:54,560 Speaker 1: So um. The The thing is, though, is if they're 619 00:36:54,640 --> 00:36:58,759 Speaker 1: charging ten cents apiece, that's still only thirty dollars. So 620 00:36:58,840 --> 00:37:00,759 Speaker 1: one of the ways these theaters made money is to 621 00:37:00,840 --> 00:37:04,319 Speaker 1: have really good performers that they just squeezed because three 622 00:37:04,360 --> 00:37:07,120 Speaker 1: hundred bucks a week was not the average, and apparently 623 00:37:07,120 --> 00:37:09,239 Speaker 1: there were plenty of performers who all they wanted to 624 00:37:09,239 --> 00:37:11,120 Speaker 1: do was perform, and if you could give them just 625 00:37:11,239 --> 00:37:14,000 Speaker 1: enough money to get to the next show and maybe 626 00:37:14,040 --> 00:37:16,440 Speaker 1: eat along the way, they would just keep doing it 627 00:37:16,600 --> 00:37:18,719 Speaker 1: year after year. And that's how they really made their 628 00:37:18,719 --> 00:37:20,680 Speaker 1: money was with those acts. Yeah, and they I mean 629 00:37:20,680 --> 00:37:26,000 Speaker 1: these people were performing, um, fourteen to twenty times a week, 630 00:37:26,440 --> 00:37:28,640 Speaker 1: you know, definitely two shows a day. Sometimes on the 631 00:37:28,640 --> 00:37:32,560 Speaker 1: weekend they would do three or more. And they were 632 00:37:32,600 --> 00:37:34,840 Speaker 1: you know, I'm not sure how much I guess the 633 00:37:34,840 --> 00:37:37,799 Speaker 1: bigger star you get, you know, leverage is always worked 634 00:37:37,800 --> 00:37:40,080 Speaker 1: the same way. You might have had a little more say, 635 00:37:40,160 --> 00:37:43,120 Speaker 1: but unless you got to that tippy top point, like 636 00:37:43,160 --> 00:37:45,400 Speaker 1: you were kind of doing what you were told and 637 00:37:45,440 --> 00:37:48,240 Speaker 1: you were getting paid handsomely for it. But these people 638 00:37:48,280 --> 00:37:51,680 Speaker 1: were working themselves to the bone on stage every day. Yeah. 639 00:37:51,760 --> 00:37:53,520 Speaker 1: And I also have the impression that if you're a 640 00:37:53,560 --> 00:37:58,640 Speaker 1: Volueville performer, even the top of the pile, uh, to 641 00:37:58,640 --> 00:38:01,919 Speaker 1: to act like a a normal star, like a theater star, 642 00:38:02,000 --> 00:38:05,840 Speaker 1: would be anathetical to the whole spirit of vaudeville. I 643 00:38:05,880 --> 00:38:09,000 Speaker 1: think even like the biggest stars were still like, you know, 644 00:38:09,560 --> 00:38:11,960 Speaker 1: work people, like they just got to work, and they 645 00:38:11,960 --> 00:38:14,040 Speaker 1: didn't they didn't put on airs. I guess you could 646 00:38:14,080 --> 00:38:17,760 Speaker 1: say is they would put it in Scotland, right, Uh, 647 00:38:17,800 --> 00:38:21,000 Speaker 1: there was a black vaudeville circuit that was fully its 648 00:38:21,040 --> 00:38:25,200 Speaker 1: own thing. Uh. Generally black owned theaters and there was 649 00:38:25,239 --> 00:38:28,680 Speaker 1: a booking circuit of vaudeville circuit um called the Theater 650 00:38:28,800 --> 00:38:33,239 Speaker 1: Owners Booking Association or TOBA t O b A. And 651 00:38:33,400 --> 00:38:35,919 Speaker 1: they were again they were, you know, grinding these people 652 00:38:35,960 --> 00:38:39,000 Speaker 1: through the entertainment grinder. Still paying them pretty well though 653 00:38:39,320 --> 00:38:42,800 Speaker 1: although it was less than people on the white vaudeville circuit. 654 00:38:42,800 --> 00:38:45,440 Speaker 1: We're getting paid and I think the theaters probably were 655 00:38:45,480 --> 00:38:49,040 Speaker 1: cheaper as well. Um, but the performers used to joke 656 00:38:49,080 --> 00:38:52,640 Speaker 1: apparently that t O b A uh stood for tough 657 00:38:52,760 --> 00:38:56,960 Speaker 1: on black asses. Yeah, because they really like put them 658 00:38:56,960 --> 00:39:00,200 Speaker 1: through the grinder, like you need to be here, and um, 659 00:39:00,239 --> 00:39:03,200 Speaker 1: the gigs were guaranteed and there was you know, good money, 660 00:39:03,200 --> 00:39:05,800 Speaker 1: like you said, but it was I get the impression 661 00:39:05,800 --> 00:39:08,200 Speaker 1: too that it was more grueling. They're also a little 662 00:39:08,200 --> 00:39:11,120 Speaker 1: bit looser, so you could get away with a little 663 00:39:11,239 --> 00:39:15,080 Speaker 1: less family friendly content, a little more sexual innuendo and 664 00:39:15,120 --> 00:39:18,680 Speaker 1: body humor. Um. There was one example they found called 665 00:39:19,280 --> 00:39:21,759 Speaker 1: It was a husband wife duo called butter Beans and 666 00:39:21,840 --> 00:39:26,840 Speaker 1: Susie and their big hit song was uh that Susie 667 00:39:26,840 --> 00:39:29,600 Speaker 1: saying was I want a hot dog for my role m. 668 00:39:29,960 --> 00:39:34,759 Speaker 1: So you know, just there you have it. One of 669 00:39:34,800 --> 00:39:37,759 Speaker 1: the other um stars of the Black vaudeville circuit was 670 00:39:37,840 --> 00:39:42,120 Speaker 1: Mom's Madly Isn't Madly? Or Maybely? Okay, that's what I 671 00:39:42,160 --> 00:39:46,000 Speaker 1: thought too. So Mom's maybe was a star UM into 672 00:39:46,040 --> 00:39:48,600 Speaker 1: the sixties and I think maybe even the seventies on 673 00:39:48,640 --> 00:39:51,399 Speaker 1: television with this one vaudeville character that she came up 674 00:39:51,400 --> 00:39:54,520 Speaker 1: with way back in the twenties, Um, and I saw 675 00:39:54,600 --> 00:39:57,239 Speaker 1: that she was a trailblazer in that she came out 676 00:39:57,280 --> 00:40:03,160 Speaker 1: as a lesbian in N one. Yeah, and they called 677 00:40:03,160 --> 00:40:05,080 Speaker 1: her Moms. Her real name was Jackie, but they called 678 00:40:05,080 --> 00:40:07,640 Speaker 1: her Moms because she was such like a maternal figure 679 00:40:07,920 --> 00:40:10,440 Speaker 1: to all of the other performers on the vaudeville circuit, 680 00:40:10,520 --> 00:40:13,160 Speaker 1: whoever she was on the bill with. You know, backstage, 681 00:40:13,160 --> 00:40:15,840 Speaker 1: she's had kind of a maternal presence, so everybody nicknamed 682 00:40:15,840 --> 00:40:18,799 Speaker 1: her Mom's and that led to that character that just 683 00:40:18,880 --> 00:40:21,759 Speaker 1: carried her for decades on. Yeah. I mean she if 684 00:40:21,800 --> 00:40:24,240 Speaker 1: you look up a picture of her, like I forture 685 00:40:24,280 --> 00:40:27,360 Speaker 1: saw her on television in the seventies, right, she definitely 686 00:40:27,360 --> 00:40:29,960 Speaker 1: looks familiar. So, um, did you see that there is 687 00:40:30,000 --> 00:40:34,320 Speaker 1: still a theater, a black owned theater from the black 688 00:40:34,600 --> 00:40:38,239 Speaker 1: vaudeville circuit? Um in Athens, still in operation today, the 689 00:40:38,239 --> 00:40:40,319 Speaker 1: Morton Theater. Did you know that I've been to a 690 00:40:40,320 --> 00:40:43,919 Speaker 1: play there. Yeah, so it started in nineteen and it's 691 00:40:43,960 --> 00:40:46,920 Speaker 1: still going. It's awesome. There's another one in make in 692 00:40:46,920 --> 00:40:50,399 Speaker 1: Georgia called the Douglas Theater. Uh. So it's it's cool 693 00:40:50,440 --> 00:40:53,319 Speaker 1: that these are still around. I love it. Yeah. Uh. 694 00:40:53,360 --> 00:40:56,440 Speaker 1: And then in addition to the Um Black Vaudeville Circuit, 695 00:40:56,480 --> 00:40:59,720 Speaker 1: there was also a Yiddih Vaudeville circuit Um which Fanny 696 00:40:59,760 --> 00:41:02,400 Speaker 1: b Ice, the inspiration for Funny Girl, came out of. 697 00:41:03,440 --> 00:41:05,600 Speaker 1: There was that Native American volb Will Circle that you 698 00:41:05,640 --> 00:41:09,080 Speaker 1: talked about. And I don't remember what episode we talked 699 00:41:09,080 --> 00:41:13,080 Speaker 1: about it, and maybe Geronimo, yeah, or the Apache Wars 700 00:41:13,160 --> 00:41:17,080 Speaker 1: episode we talked about how Geronimo joined Buffalo Bill's Wild 701 00:41:17,080 --> 00:41:20,560 Speaker 1: West Show. That would be an excellent example of native 702 00:41:20,680 --> 00:41:23,680 Speaker 1: Native American vaudeville from what I understand. Yeah, and they 703 00:41:23,680 --> 00:41:26,600 Speaker 1: would do you know, they would uh sort of play 704 00:41:26,640 --> 00:41:29,680 Speaker 1: up their ethnic stereotype as well for yucks, but then 705 00:41:29,719 --> 00:41:32,920 Speaker 1: also do stuff like, you know, show off some of 706 00:41:32,920 --> 00:41:36,920 Speaker 1: their their skills, like whether it's roping or dancing or 707 00:41:37,080 --> 00:41:39,960 Speaker 1: you know, shooting arrows and stuff like that. So you know, 708 00:41:40,360 --> 00:41:43,439 Speaker 1: it had something for everyone, and I think their audiences, um, 709 00:41:43,520 --> 00:41:46,560 Speaker 1: we're pretty much exclusively although that's not true. They would 710 00:41:46,800 --> 00:41:51,759 Speaker 1: perform for uh all kinds of audiences, right, yeah, I 711 00:41:51,800 --> 00:41:55,319 Speaker 1: think basically everybody that It wasn't a segregated performance from 712 00:41:55,320 --> 00:41:58,279 Speaker 1: what I understand, unless, of course, the theater was strictly segregated. 713 00:41:58,960 --> 00:42:02,200 Speaker 1: Good point, So I should also I think we should 714 00:42:02,200 --> 00:42:04,760 Speaker 1: point out, Chuck that when we're saying yuck's in this episode, 715 00:42:04,760 --> 00:42:08,080 Speaker 1: we're saying it without a seat, like not yuck, but 716 00:42:08,320 --> 00:42:11,120 Speaker 1: like a laugh, right, Just want to make sure everybody 717 00:42:11,120 --> 00:42:13,640 Speaker 1: knows that because we're always talking about yuck in somebody's 718 00:42:13,719 --> 00:42:16,920 Speaker 1: yum and they might be confused at this point. Oh yeah, yeah, 719 00:42:17,000 --> 00:42:22,520 Speaker 1: yuck like a comedic yuck. Yeah, uk, exactly. I guess 720 00:42:22,520 --> 00:42:25,600 Speaker 1: we can go over here towards the end some of 721 00:42:25,640 --> 00:42:29,040 Speaker 1: the bigger stars who came out of vaudeville. I mean, 722 00:42:29,080 --> 00:42:31,920 Speaker 1: it's sort of a a hit list of some of 723 00:42:31,960 --> 00:42:36,360 Speaker 1: the most famous people of early televised entertainment when that 724 00:42:36,440 --> 00:42:39,960 Speaker 1: came along, everyone from Jack Benny to Fred Astaire and 725 00:42:40,160 --> 00:42:43,440 Speaker 1: Will Rogers and Bob Hope. You know they you think, like, 726 00:42:43,520 --> 00:42:49,400 Speaker 1: were they old enough? They were generally child performers in vaudeville. Yeah, 727 00:42:49,640 --> 00:42:53,839 Speaker 1: um so uh. I Also I saw George Burns one 728 00:42:53,880 --> 00:42:56,040 Speaker 1: of them, and he apparently had been in vaudeville since 729 00:42:56,040 --> 00:43:00,800 Speaker 1: he was seven, and he finally met his wife, Gracie Allen, 730 00:43:01,160 --> 00:43:04,160 Speaker 1: and they became this amazing comic duo that went onto 731 00:43:04,239 --> 00:43:06,640 Speaker 1: the radio and went onto the TV. Like they followed 732 00:43:06,680 --> 00:43:11,080 Speaker 1: the trajectory that um that most like the the absolute 733 00:43:11,160 --> 00:43:15,800 Speaker 1: cream of the crop, most successful vaudeville performers followed um. 734 00:43:15,840 --> 00:43:19,719 Speaker 1: And for our younger listeners, George Burns played God in 735 00:43:19,840 --> 00:43:24,120 Speaker 1: the John Denver vehicle, Oh God and Joker more familiar 736 00:43:25,480 --> 00:43:28,160 Speaker 1: folk singer who you should listen to because he was 737 00:43:28,160 --> 00:43:32,840 Speaker 1: the best. Would you call him a folk singer? Yeah, singer, songwriter, 738 00:43:32,880 --> 00:43:39,160 Speaker 1: folk singer? What would you call him? Just called? I 739 00:43:39,160 --> 00:43:41,719 Speaker 1: mean he was kind of his own thing. It was yeah, yeah, 740 00:43:41,760 --> 00:43:44,279 Speaker 1: I mean he was definitely not like yacht rock or 741 00:43:44,280 --> 00:43:47,000 Speaker 1: anything like that, because he was a mountain lion sure, 742 00:43:47,480 --> 00:43:51,480 Speaker 1: who liked flying his plane high on cocaine. Was he 743 00:43:51,560 --> 00:43:54,640 Speaker 1: high on cocaine? Yes, but that's not why you crashed. 744 00:43:54,640 --> 00:43:56,279 Speaker 1: I think he ran out of gas. But they he 745 00:43:56,320 --> 00:43:58,680 Speaker 1: did have cocaine into the system when they did the autopsy. 746 00:43:58,880 --> 00:44:01,399 Speaker 1: That's sad. Uh. Quickly, I do want to mention Jack 747 00:44:01,400 --> 00:44:05,200 Speaker 1: Benny's story because it's kind of cool. Uh. He was 748 00:44:05,280 --> 00:44:10,160 Speaker 1: born Benjamin Kubelski and he was a violin prodigy. So 749 00:44:10,320 --> 00:44:13,239 Speaker 1: his act at first as a vaudevillian as a child 750 00:44:13,400 --> 00:44:16,000 Speaker 1: was a very serious sort of let me play my violin. 751 00:44:16,560 --> 00:44:20,160 Speaker 1: But as the story goes, he bombed really bad one 752 00:44:20,280 --> 00:44:23,200 Speaker 1: night and like cracked a really great one liner which 753 00:44:23,200 --> 00:44:26,520 Speaker 1: made everyone laugh really hard, and then started sort of 754 00:44:26,560 --> 00:44:28,640 Speaker 1: working jokes into his act, and before he knew it, 755 00:44:28,680 --> 00:44:32,720 Speaker 1: he was a comedian. Yeah. Yeah, I guess Will Rogers 756 00:44:32,800 --> 00:44:34,279 Speaker 1: had the same thing happened to him. He was a 757 00:44:34,400 --> 00:44:40,440 Speaker 1: rope trick roper, roper, sure, and um he failed at 758 00:44:40,480 --> 00:44:43,000 Speaker 1: some trick and made a joke and everybody laughed, and 759 00:44:43,040 --> 00:44:45,200 Speaker 1: he's like, maybe I should try adding jokes to my act, 760 00:44:45,239 --> 00:44:47,920 Speaker 1: and that kind of went from there. He became America's 761 00:44:47,920 --> 00:44:51,560 Speaker 1: most beloved humorous after a while. That's right. Uh, But 762 00:44:51,640 --> 00:44:54,920 Speaker 1: you teased earlier about movies, and I think I teased 763 00:44:54,920 --> 00:44:57,200 Speaker 1: it too, And I think everybody sees where this is 764 00:44:57,239 --> 00:45:02,240 Speaker 1: headed is movies came along, and movies throwing a movie 765 00:45:02,280 --> 00:45:04,080 Speaker 1: on a TV on a on a movie screen in 766 00:45:04,080 --> 00:45:06,920 Speaker 1: a theater as a heck of a lot easier than 767 00:45:06,960 --> 00:45:11,440 Speaker 1: booking eight or ten human animal acts every single day 768 00:45:11,440 --> 00:45:14,520 Speaker 1: of the week. Yeah, and um, apparently movies kind of 769 00:45:14,600 --> 00:45:17,479 Speaker 1: started out as a vaudeville act, like you might see 770 00:45:17,480 --> 00:45:20,680 Speaker 1: a ten or twenty minute short film as part of 771 00:45:20,719 --> 00:45:24,440 Speaker 1: the show. Um and Keith Benjamin Franklin Keith and his 772 00:45:24,600 --> 00:45:27,600 Speaker 1: partner Mr. Albi I don't remember his first thing. They 773 00:45:27,640 --> 00:45:30,120 Speaker 1: are aptly they were the first ones to actually start 774 00:45:30,160 --> 00:45:34,880 Speaker 1: showing movies at vaudeville shows. And then it started a transition, chuck, 775 00:45:35,280 --> 00:45:38,000 Speaker 1: because they would need time to cool down the projector 776 00:45:38,040 --> 00:45:42,600 Speaker 1: in between shows, and um, they would have vaudeville acts 777 00:45:42,680 --> 00:45:46,759 Speaker 1: in between movies. So it went from a movie is 778 00:45:46,880 --> 00:45:49,880 Speaker 1: just one part of a vaudeville bill to vaudeville just 779 00:45:49,920 --> 00:45:54,360 Speaker 1: getting narrower, narrower and smushed down into these lesser roles. 780 00:45:54,440 --> 00:45:56,680 Speaker 1: And then movies just kind of took off from there, 781 00:45:56,680 --> 00:45:59,720 Speaker 1: and vaudeville got left in the dust, left in the dust. 782 00:46:00,520 --> 00:46:03,640 Speaker 1: But again, if you look at early TV, uh, and 783 00:46:03,800 --> 00:46:08,239 Speaker 1: even again into the fifties, sixties and seventies, that those 784 00:46:08,239 --> 00:46:11,600 Speaker 1: were vaudeville shows. Heehaw and the man drell sisters and 785 00:46:12,520 --> 00:46:18,319 Speaker 1: uh solid gold maybe not solid gold, kind of still 786 00:46:18,440 --> 00:46:23,960 Speaker 1: dance focused. Yeah. What about Ed Sullivan? Yeah, probably so. 787 00:46:24,000 --> 00:46:26,839 Speaker 1: Supposedly when he was canceled in nine seventy one, he said, 788 00:46:27,239 --> 00:46:32,440 Speaker 1: Vaudeville has died at second death. Wow. Yeah, he dropped 789 00:46:32,440 --> 00:46:35,680 Speaker 1: his mind after that. I love it. This is good stuff. 790 00:46:36,800 --> 00:46:39,440 Speaker 1: You got anything else about Vaudeville? I got nothing else. 791 00:46:39,480 --> 00:46:42,799 Speaker 1: Go out and support your local Vaudeville theater, that's all right, 792 00:46:43,160 --> 00:46:45,879 Speaker 1: and then maybe see your roller Derby after that. Uh. 793 00:46:45,920 --> 00:46:48,719 Speaker 1: And since I said roller Derby everybody, of course, that 794 00:46:48,760 --> 00:46:53,319 Speaker 1: means it's time for listener mail. Al Right, what we're 795 00:46:53,320 --> 00:46:56,799 Speaker 1: gonna do today instead of listener mail is, uh, do 796 00:46:56,960 --> 00:47:01,520 Speaker 1: a way overdue plug for a couple of things. But 797 00:47:01,640 --> 00:47:05,480 Speaker 1: certainly our Kiva team, Um, many years ago, what year 798 00:47:05,640 --> 00:47:08,919 Speaker 1: was this, I'm trying to see you two two thousand 799 00:47:09,000 --> 00:47:11,560 Speaker 1: nine October two thousand nine, So this is close to 800 00:47:11,600 --> 00:47:15,560 Speaker 1: the anniversary actually of when we started this team in 801 00:47:15,600 --> 00:47:17,640 Speaker 1: the very early days of stuff. You should know. Kiva 802 00:47:17,760 --> 00:47:22,759 Speaker 1: is a micro lending organization who uh does great work. 803 00:47:22,800 --> 00:47:26,319 Speaker 1: Micro Lending organizations aren't perfect, but Kiva is a good 804 00:47:26,320 --> 00:47:29,120 Speaker 1: one and they do a pretty good job of getting 805 00:47:29,760 --> 00:47:32,720 Speaker 1: very small amounts of money sourced from around the world 806 00:47:32,719 --> 00:47:37,120 Speaker 1: into the hands of entrepreneurs and uh sometimes in America. 807 00:47:37,120 --> 00:47:40,799 Speaker 1: We usually in in developing countries who really need it. Right. Yeah, 808 00:47:40,840 --> 00:47:43,440 Speaker 1: it's like you said, it's a great organization. We've our 809 00:47:43,560 --> 00:47:47,440 Speaker 1: team has been going gangbusters for years. So let me 810 00:47:47,520 --> 00:47:50,080 Speaker 1: just update everyone with a couple of stats. If you 811 00:47:50,080 --> 00:47:53,319 Speaker 1: want to join, Kiva, doesn't cost anything to join, but 812 00:47:53,400 --> 00:47:55,920 Speaker 1: to make a donation. I think you can donate as 813 00:47:55,920 --> 00:47:58,440 Speaker 1: little as like twenty five bucks. Yeah, if you want 814 00:47:58,440 --> 00:48:00,160 Speaker 1: to just get the ball rolling. And the idea is 815 00:48:00,200 --> 00:48:02,880 Speaker 1: that these people pay the stuff back almost all the time, 816 00:48:03,320 --> 00:48:06,000 Speaker 1: and then you can re lend that money. And I've 817 00:48:06,040 --> 00:48:09,520 Speaker 1: been relending the same you know, from the same kitty 818 00:48:09,520 --> 00:48:12,319 Speaker 1: of money I started with years ago. But we have 819 00:48:12,440 --> 00:48:15,120 Speaker 1: now raised as a collective stuff you should know, team 820 00:48:15,160 --> 00:48:20,560 Speaker 1: over twelve million dollars, which is staggering, uh four hundred 821 00:48:20,560 --> 00:48:25,279 Speaker 1: and fifty five thousand loans uh plus you know and 822 00:48:25,440 --> 00:48:29,080 Speaker 1: change and then for an average of almost forty loans 823 00:48:29,680 --> 00:48:36,200 Speaker 1: per member and eleven thousand, five hundred and six team members. 824 00:48:36,719 --> 00:48:40,759 Speaker 1: That's fantastic. It's really congratulations to everybody on the Kiva team. 825 00:48:40,840 --> 00:48:43,520 Speaker 1: Keep it up and what else we got going, Well, 826 00:48:43,520 --> 00:48:45,320 Speaker 1: hold on one other thing about the Kiva team. I 827 00:48:45,400 --> 00:48:47,680 Speaker 1: always wanted to make sure to say, like, it's extremely 828 00:48:47,719 --> 00:48:51,680 Speaker 1: inclusive and they're always happy to let any new member joined, 829 00:48:51,760 --> 00:48:54,719 Speaker 1: so don't feel shy about it at all. And then 830 00:48:54,719 --> 00:48:56,799 Speaker 1: the other thing we just found out about recently we 831 00:48:56,840 --> 00:49:00,319 Speaker 1: didn't know is we have not one, but two Red 832 00:49:00,440 --> 00:49:03,680 Speaker 1: Cross blood donation teams Stuff you Should Know teams. I 833 00:49:03,719 --> 00:49:05,440 Speaker 1: didn't know. I didn't know that was a thing. I 834 00:49:05,480 --> 00:49:08,759 Speaker 1: didn't know there were blood donation teams at all. Now 835 00:49:08,840 --> 00:49:12,040 Speaker 1: you do. So if you donate blood to the Red Cross, 836 00:49:12,280 --> 00:49:14,799 Speaker 1: you can do it as a part of the stuff 837 00:49:14,840 --> 00:49:17,560 Speaker 1: you Should Know team if you want, we'll be happy 838 00:49:17,640 --> 00:49:21,879 Speaker 1: to support you anyway. We can't with T shirts, maybe UM, 839 00:49:21,920 --> 00:49:25,759 Speaker 1: small grants, UM or just you know, our thanks in 840 00:49:25,800 --> 00:49:29,520 Speaker 1: advance for being a good person. Let's go get a go, 841 00:49:29,640 --> 00:49:35,839 Speaker 1: donate some blood butters in our name, get your sweet cookies. God, 842 00:49:35,880 --> 00:49:39,080 Speaker 1: I love Nutter butters. Yeah they're great, but they're particularly 843 00:49:39,120 --> 00:49:40,839 Speaker 1: great when you're down a pine of blood in your 844 00:49:40,840 --> 00:49:42,520 Speaker 1: head swimming a little bit. That's the only time I 845 00:49:42,560 --> 00:49:44,040 Speaker 1: have I m I can't buy Nutter butters and keep 846 00:49:44,120 --> 00:49:46,480 Speaker 1: them in the house. You know. It's one of the 847 00:49:46,600 --> 00:49:50,680 Speaker 1: weird things of America is that there's two types of 848 00:49:50,760 --> 00:49:54,000 Speaker 1: Nutter butters and they're totally different. Have you noticed there's 849 00:49:54,040 --> 00:50:00,239 Speaker 1: like a wafer like there's a wafer e kindly, Yes, No, 850 00:50:00,600 --> 00:50:04,120 Speaker 1: it's square, it's very basic hashtag basic. But then there's 851 00:50:04,160 --> 00:50:07,440 Speaker 1: the peanut shaped one that's a cookie. It's got you know, 852 00:50:07,480 --> 00:50:13,080 Speaker 1: it's a cookie sandwich. This is like a filled wafer. Um. Yeah, 853 00:50:13,120 --> 00:50:16,480 Speaker 1: And they're both Nutter butters, same logo, same packaging, just 854 00:50:16,880 --> 00:50:19,759 Speaker 1: two different types of peanut butter cookies. Man, you know 855 00:50:19,800 --> 00:50:23,440 Speaker 1: how disappointed I would be if I bought the wrong package. 856 00:50:23,760 --> 00:50:26,560 Speaker 1: Hopefully this happening more than one person for sure, all right, 857 00:50:26,640 --> 00:50:30,200 Speaker 1: So pay attention at the cookie everyone. So if you 858 00:50:30,239 --> 00:50:32,839 Speaker 1: want to join our keyva team, go ahead. Uh it's 859 00:50:32,880 --> 00:50:36,120 Speaker 1: at kiva dot org slash team slash stuff you should Know. 860 00:50:36,160 --> 00:50:38,319 Speaker 1: If I'm not mistaken, or just go to kiva dot 861 00:50:38,400 --> 00:50:40,920 Speaker 1: organ search Stuff you should know. I'm quite sure you 862 00:50:40,960 --> 00:50:42,719 Speaker 1: can do the same thing on the Red Cross Blow 863 00:50:43,480 --> 00:50:47,359 Speaker 1: Good donation site. And you can also get in touch 864 00:50:47,400 --> 00:50:53,480 Speaker 1: with us at stuff Podcasts at iHeart radio dot com. 865 00:50:53,600 --> 00:50:55,880 Speaker 1: Stuff you should Know is a production of iHeart Radio 866 00:50:56,360 --> 00:50:59,200 Speaker 1: For more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio 867 00:50:59,280 --> 00:51:02,240 Speaker 1: app app podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite 868 00:51:02,239 --> 00:51:09,239 Speaker 1: shows h m hm