Happy Birthday, Gypsy

Dear Constant Reader,

My apologies, this goes out a day late, but your faithful correspondent was at the dentist yesterday and her entire schedule went keflewie (that’s a technical term) as a result.

A very happy 102* to the greatest Lady of Burlesque, Gypsy Rose Lee!

For your pleasure, here’s a little picture of Gypsy:
gypsy inside
This is the program from her 1949 tour, from The Boston Babydoll Collection. And here’s a photo of her autographing one of those very same programs!
116129866.jpg

And just for fun, here’s Devora Darling, all dressed up for her Gypsy tribute act, “A Stripteaser’s Education” during the Madame Burlesque tour and the photo that inspired the costume.**

devora as gypsy grlsmaller

For more Gypsy goodness, you could read her famous memoir, Gypsy: Memoirs of America’s Most Celebrated Stripper, her novels, The G-String Murders and Mother Finds a Body, or listen to her on the albums Gypsy Rose Lee Remembers Burlesque and That’s Me All Over. Not to mention all the movies inspired by her writings: Gypsy, Lady of Burlesque, and Doll Face.

There’s also her son’s memoir Gypsy and Me: At Home and on the Road With Gypsy Rose Lee (also called My G-String Mother: At Home and Backstage with Gypsy Rose Lee).

And then there is a plethora of other books about her: American Rose: A Nation Laid Bare: The Life and Times of Gypsy Rose, Stripping Gypsy: The Life of Gypsy Rose Lee, Gypsy: The Art of the Tease, and Lady of Burlesque: The Career of Gypsy Rose Lee.

Not bad for someone who described herself as “no talent”!

M2

*Probably. Her mother had a fluid relationship with the truth and thought nothing of forging birth certificates to raise or lower her daughters’ ages when the situation arose.

**That’s not actually Gypsy; it’s Burgundy Brixx as Gypsy. Our costumer didn’t look too closely…

Published in: on 10 January 2013 at 1:00 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Babydollmas

Dear Constant Reader,

This past Sunday the troupe celebrated Babydollmas. It was a little late, but everyone had scattered hither and yon for various family obligations and wild trips to Vegas (I’m looking at you, Evie Sphinx!).

We assembled for a festive meal (at a restaurant near B.A.B.E. — Scratch wasn’t cooking a third holiday feast) and exchanged gifts. Everything was rather appropriate to the gift-givers personality: Evie gave everyone wine, Brigitte handed out gift cards to that very restaurant (it’s a favorite for Babydolls to retire to for drinks after extra rehearsals), Betty picked out fun books, Devora stuffed cute socks with all manner of whimsical (yet useful) items, I made lotion bars & lip balm, Scratch selected vintage or handmade items from local artists, Stella made us all nuts*. Ba-dum-dum.

And what did I wear to this festive occasion? I know you’re all dying to know, O Reader.trousersThese lovely 1941 trousers in navy wool twill. Sadly, because it’s a dark color you can’t really see all the charming details, like the pleats in front (darts in the back) or the side zip (balanced by a pocket on the other side). You might just be able to make out the wide belt loops because of the contrast against the leopard belt. And they’re not vintage, I made them my very self. Hence the pleased aura that surrounds me. That and they make me feel like Katharine Hepburn.

You have requested more photos in my missives and I’m going to try to make that happen. My camera is a bit of a relic these days and the flash is balky. Still, I will do what I can to make you happy, Dear Reader.

M2
*As much as I’d like to leave it at that, and Stella does make fine spiced nuts, these were actually from a local company, and Stella picked the perfect flavor for each of us.

Published in: on 8 January 2013 at 9:42 am  Comments (1)  
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Friday Tip!

Dear Constant Reader,

Today’s tip is something that’s been on my mind a lot lately.

Embrace failure.

You may be asking, “Why would I want to fail? Failure is bad.” Ah, but if you never fail, it means you haven’t set your sights high enough, Grasshopper. No one does everything perfectly right off1 and failure is normal. But failure isn’t the end. If you see it that way, you’ll never progress in your skills. Failure should be inspiration to keep improving. Challenge yourself. Allow yourself to fail and then work through it. Success will be that much sweeter.

Personal story: I once saw a performer do something amazing and I decided I wanted to learn how to do it. I was even able to take lessons from the master of the craft. Our upcoming show, The Bod of Avon was the perfect opportunity to debut this act. I knew it was going to be hard, but I envisioned something spectacular and that would be worth all the work.

Except I can’t do it the amazing thing consistently yet. It’s not ready for performance. It’s a failure.

I made the decision to remove that bit from the act. And it’s actually a huge relief. But that doesn’t mean I’ve just thrown it aside. I’m going to continue to work at it. You won’t be seeing it during the previews this month, but maybe at the show in February. Or maybe later in February. Or maybe in another show all together. I’m not giving up.

M2
1 Well, except maybe one former Babydoll, but she was a freak of nature — yes, I mean you, Dom.

Published in: on 4 January 2013 at 9:43 am  Leave a Comment  
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Happy New Year!

Dear Constant Reader,

I hope you had a lovely New Year’s Eve celebration and 2013 is a wonderful year for you!

At Stately Babydoll Manor, Scratch made a sumptuous feast, as is his wont. [EDIT: Scratch points out that I neglected to mention the hors d’oeuvres of artichoke tapenade on rounds of Persian cucumber and broiled shrimp wrapped in bacon. Albert, the Manor cat, received a single plain boiled shrimp, but he turned up his nose in favor of cat food. He’s weird.] The main course included a pork roast braised in cider with pears and quinoa mixed with sweet spiced wild rice. But the highlight was a ratatouille galette.

Scratch took slices of zucchini, tomato, and onion, and alternated them in concentric rings in a cast iron frying pan that had been lightly coated with basil-infused olive oil. He sprinkled more onions on top and seasoned it (I know dill was involved and seasoned salt. but I’m unsure of the details). It baked for about an hour and everything caramelized. I wish I’d taken a picture, but your Faithful Correspondent is not in the habit of photographing her dinner. That may change this year. You’ll just have to take my word for it that the dish was beautiful and delicious.

Also, beautiful and delicious (and similarly undocumented for posterity) was the dessert I made: blackberry clafouti1. Clafouti is a sort of fruity custardy baked pancake. And it’s so easy to make —  just put the fruit in a pie pan, pour the batter over it, and bake until it puffs up and turns brown around the edges. In early July I make it with sour cherries from the Manor’s orchards. As a bonus, the recipe I use is quite light & healthy, despite it being for a French dessert.

At midnght there was peach prosecco, as there should be.

New Year’s Day was spent working on my new costume for The Bod of Avon, which you should all come see, either in previews or the real thing. No photos of the costume, although I desperately want to show you — the fabric is just stunning. Come to the show and see it!

And how did you spend the holiday?

M2
1Technically, clafouti is made with cherries and if any other kind of fruit is used, it’s called flaugnarde, but I’m not that much of a stickler for accuracy.

Published in: on 2 January 2013 at 11:07 am  Comments (1)  
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Friday Tip!

Dear Constant Reader,

For the last Friday Tip of 2012, I thought it should be something topical.

For every glass of booze, have a glass of water.

By staying hydrated, you’ll help stave off a hangover. Also, you’ll probably consume fewer alcoholic drinks over the course of the evening — good for your waistline and your wallet!

Now I want to share a somewhat contradictory story. Once upon a time I was a student on a tall ship. After several days at sea, we anchored (and that’s a story in its own right) at a small town in Nova Scotia. It being our first night in a port, a number of the crew and trainees went to a pub. (Your humble correspondent was on the 8-12 watch and had to stay on board.) My friend DK was conscientiously drinking one glass of water for every glass of beer. The next day, he was terribly ill. Since he & I were the only students not to suffer from seasickness, there was a theory that he was “landsick” (it happens).

Turns out that the water was heavily chlorinated and if he’d just stuck to beer, he probably would have been a lot less sick. About the incident, he realized he should have taken W.C. Fields advice on water (which I will not share, as I am a lady and my mother reads this blog — you can look it up).

However, this is no excuse to ignore my excellent advice! If you’re some place where the water quality is dubious, order bottled water.

Wishing you a happy & safe New Year’s Eve and no hangover to start your 2013.

M2

Published in: on 28 December 2012 at 9:43 am  Leave a Comment  
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Brightening a Gloomy Day

Dear Constant Reader,

The weather is simply dreadful in Babydoll-land: pouring down rain, windy, and cold. At least it’s not snowing. Your faithful correspondent’s feet got soaked on her morning constitutional and that makes her cranky.

To brighten up your (and my) day, I’d like to share a photo from a gig we had earlier this month. Newbury Comics had a Boardwalk Empire-themed holiday party and we were hired to provide a little set-dressing.

Evie, Devora, Betty, and I lounged on the stage under a backdrop of decadent Cleopatra-style fans, as sort of Jazz Age courtesans (but not showing too much skin, as requested by the client). Cigarette girls Stella & Brigitte wandered the crowd, handing out boxes of candy smokes. And Scratch, well, I’m not quite sure what he was doing. Making sure all was well, as usual, I suppose.

Periodically guests would come on stage and have their picture taken with us, courtesy of the roving photographer and his old-school instant camera. At the end of the evening, we all gathered for this shot:

newbury-comics-party-1

It was fun and I’m always happy to have an excuse to wear my ostrich-trimmed robe and marabou mules in public.

M2

Published in: on 27 December 2012 at 10:07 am  Leave a Comment  
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Seasons Greetings

Dear Constant Reader,

I hope you had a very merry Christmas, if that’s what you celebrate. Otherwise, I hope you enjoyed your Chinese food and movie.

M2

Published in: on 26 December 2012 at 10:01 am  Leave a Comment  

Friday Tip!

Dear Constant Reader,

Have business cards. And always carry them.

I like cards printed on uncoated stock, so one can scrawl a note on the back. A lovely thing about cards is that they require you to have a business card case, and there are many wonderful designs out there. Personally, I keep mine in a German cigarette case.

This year Scratch gave all the Babydolls a year-end bonus of personalized business cards:

M2

Published in: on 21 December 2012 at 9:38 am  Leave a Comment  
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Burlesque-a-Pades

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s Wednesday and I hoped to have a book review for you, but I’ve been busy getting ready for this:

burlesque-a-pades

Brigitte, Devora, and I (and stage kitten Scratch) will be making a guest appearance at Burlesque-a-Pades, Holiday Inn tonight at the Iron Horse in Northampton.

We’ll be presenting “Factory Girls”, dressed up for the holidays! It’s going to be so much fun!

M2

Published in: on 19 December 2012 at 10:30 am  Leave a Comment  

In the Kitchen with Mina

Dear Constant Reader,

I did a little cooking yesterday, and, among other items, made a classic fruit salad. This one, although popular in the 1950’s, has its origins in the 1920’s. The salad is quite whimsical in its design, which was typical of ladies’ “dainty” luncheon dishes.

Candle stick salad ingredientsTake your ingredients: lettuce leaves, canned pineapple rings, bananas, maraschino cherries, and mayonnaise. There was a bit of a tropical fruit craze in the ’20’s, probably promoted by Dole, which was the main importer of pineapple (canned, of course) and bananas from Hawaii to the mainland. Maraschino cherries (the neon red kind) are also a product of the 1920’s.

The assembly of this salad is key. You need to properly present all the ingredients or the impact is lost. A toothpick or two can help with the architecture. Don’t forget that this was commonly served at ladies’ luncheons, so you want to make sure the shape is instantly recognizable.

Tada!

Candlestick salad!

Isn’t that clever! A pineapple ring candle holder, a banana candle, a cherry flame, and mayonnaise wax!

Why? What did you think it was?

M2

Published in: on 17 December 2012 at 10:57 am  Leave a Comment  
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