Charlotte Greenwood: The Life and Career of the Comic Star of Vaudeville, Radio and Film

by Grant Hayter-Menzies

Overview

Charlotte Greenwood never intended to become a comedienne, but she was unfashionably tall at 5' 10" and her early aspirations to become a great dramatic actress eventually led her to the field of comedy. Greenwood, whose early life had taught her nothing if not how to be optimistic, stifled her disappointment and used her considerable skill to become one of the greatest comedic actresses of the early twentieth century.

Based on Greenwood's unpublished memoirs, this biography presents a personal, detailed look at her colorful life. Beginning with her early years in Philadelphia, Boston and Norfolk, it relates her struggles with ill health, her social difficulties caused by her then unusual height and her realization of her ambition to become an actress. The main focus of the work is her career, which spanned more than 50 years and ranged from vaudeville to the dramatic stage and, finally, to films (during the World War II years she starred in Twentieth Century Fox musicals with Cesar Romero, Betty Grable, Edward Everett Horton, Jack Haley, Don Ameche, and Carmen Miranda). Her roles in a variety of works including The Passing Show of 1912, So Long Letty (both stage and film), and I Remember Mama are also discussed. Special emphasis is placed on her career-defining (and best-known) role as Aunt Eller Murphy in the 1955 film adaptation of Oklahoma! Charlotte Greenwood's performance history, a list of her known recordings, and a filmography for her husband Martin Broones are also included, along with a collection of rare photographs and memorabilia.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786429950
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Publication date:	05/02/2007
Pages:	266
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.54(d)

About the Author

Biographer Grant Hayter-Menzies lives in British Columbia. His works include biographies of Charlotte Greenwood, Princess Der Ling, Sarah Pike Conger, Pauline Benton, and Lillian Carter, along with the life of a dog, military mascot Rags of the First Division in World War I. He is the literary executor of playwright William Luce.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments      
Foreword by Brian Kellow     
Preface     
Introduction     

Part One
1. “I come from a long line of Philadelphia barbers!”     
2. Illness and Abandonment     
3. Near Death in Boston, New Life in Virginia     
4. “Show people were my people”     
5. The White Cat     
6. A Wayburn Girl     
7. Two Girls and a Piano     
8. The Passing Show of 1912     
9. The Birth of Letty     
10. Love and War     
11. Trotting Tintypes and the Music Box Revue     
12. “My darling”     
13. Mrs. Martin Broones     
14. Back to Hollywood     
15. “Life is just a circus”     
16. To London on the Santa Fe Express     

Part Two
17. Wild Violets     
18. Toast of the West End     
19. “Charlotte Greenwood, the actress”     
20. The Late Christopher Bean     
21. Gay Deceivers     
22. Letty’s Last Dance     
23. “To the Antipodes and back”     
24. Battle Drums     
25. Zanuck and Stardust     
26. Down Argentine Way     
27. The Stars at War     
28. Home in Indiana     
29. Mrs. Eddy     
30. Doris Day     
31. Out of This World     
32. Oklahoma!     
33. “She knew what she had and she knew who she was”     
34. Farewell Performance     

Epilogue     
Afterword by William Luce     
Appendix A: Greenwood’s Performance History     
Appendix B: Known Vocal Recordings of Greenwood     
Appendix C: Lyrics Credited to Greenwood     
Appendix D: Shows with Songs or Scores by Martin Broones     
Appendix E: Martin Broones Filmography     
Appendix F: Known Piano Recordings of Martin Broones     
Appendix G: GUPPA (Greenwood’s Unusual Painless Pound Annihilator)     
Appendix H: Greenwood’s Family Circle     
Chapter Notes     
Bibliography     
Index     

What People are Saying About This

Martin Bernheimer

"Charlotte Greenwood was a tough and bright show-biz cookie who broke the rules and wrote her own. Grant Hayter-Menzies chronicles her zig-zags, public and private, with remarkable
passion and compassion, precision and perception. Those who only know Greenwood at twilight, essentially as sweet old Aunt Eller, are in for some happy jolts.

Rex Reed

"A unique talent and an overlooked chapter in show business history, diligently researched and informatively written. Beloved Charlotte Greenwood has been brought back to life with candor and charm. A movie lover's must-read!"

Editorial Reviews

a first-rate biography...Grant Hayter-Menzies does his subject proud”—The Slide Area; “extensively researched”—Vancouver Voice; “a unique talent and an overlooked chapter in show business history, diligently researched and informatively written. Beloved Charlotte Greenwood has been brought back to life with candor and charm. A movie lover’s must-read!”—Rex Reed, journalist, New York Observer; “Charlotte Greenwood was a tough and bright show-biz cookie who broke the rules and wrote her own. Grant Hayter-Menzies chronicles her zig-zags, public and private, with remarkable passion and compassion, precision and perception. Those who only know Greenwood at twilight, essentially as sweet old Aunt Eller, are in for some happy jolts”—Martin Bernheimer, music critic, Financial Times, London.

From the Publisher

a unique talent and an overlooked chapter in show business history, diligently researched and informatively written. Beloved Charlotte Greenwood has been brought back to life with candor and charm. A movie lover's must-read!

journalist, New York Observer - Rex Reed

extensively researched

Vancouver Voice

a first-rate biography...Grant Hayter-Menzies does his subject proud

The Slide Area