Introducing…Elsie Clark, Vaudevillian Extraordinaire!

I told you in the latest Paper Lantern Writers Q&A that I inherited the scrapbooks, photographs, recordings, and so much more belonging to vaudevillian and Okeh recording artist Elsie Clark.

So here’s the proof. These are just a few photos of Elsie’s career in vaudeville, but I think you get the picture…

Publicity Photo #1 – A Study in Sepia

 

Publicity photo #2 – Same day, same dress, but a Profile in Color

 

Elsie on the street in front of a Pantages Theatre somewhere in the American West (or Western Canada)

 

Elsie and friend in a theater alleyway

 

Elsie Clark and her husband Nelson Story ~ Together they performed as The Two Storys

 

Elsie and Nelson having fun at the beach (and check out Elsie’s T-Strap shoes!)

 

And finally, for today, Elsie and Nelson hitting the road

  

 

Finis for now, folks!


3 thoughts on “Introducing…Elsie Clark, Vaudevillian Extraordinaire!”

  1. Beth Petty says:

    Hi,
    I’m Beth Petty and Director at the Hank Williams Museum in Montgomery, AL.
    I am doing a piece on the song “Lovesick Blues”.
    Elsie Clark recorded this song first on March 21, 1922.
    I have the 78 RPM of this recording.

    Hank Williams recorded this in 1949. He is featured in my piece that I’m working on as the 5th to record “Lovesick Blues”.

    Do you happen to have anything about Elsie Clark that I can use in my blurb?

    The piece is called the “Evolution of Lovesick Blues”. I do have all 5 78’s.
    Elsie Clark, Jack Shea, Emmett Miller and Rex Griffin are the first 4 artists to record the song.

    I would like to hear from you.

    With Best Wishes and Warm Regards,
    Beth Petty

    1. Ana Brazil says:

      Hi Beth…
      Isn’t it amazing how many artists can explore the same music and lyrics?
      Let me dig into my archives and see what I can find. I hope to get back to you soon.
      Ana.

  2. Julie (Nielsen) Richards says:

    In the 1960s, Mom (Edna Nielsen) would take me along when shed go visit Aunt Elsie. We lived near Los Angeles, CA. Mom told us Elsie had been on stage when she was young. “Stage” to a kid in the 60s meant little, but famous people like the Foys and Burns & Allen had been on stage… entertainment before TV. Mom said Elsie was Austrian and had come over in 1912, when for a few years Europeans were welcomed without all the paperwork. And that in later years, maybe with SS, the government had forgotten about that and Elsie had to prove it was true.
    Edna came to L.A. in about 1939-40. She was a carhop in those gorgeous outfits of the era. She rented at Elsie’s apartments in Los Angeles. In 1943, I think, Elsie introduced Edna to Mike. Mike was a soldier who shared an apartment with at least one of his brothers. By then, I believe, the brothers were back from the war and trucking.
    Mike was getting ready to go see his fiance in San Diego, CA when Elsie stopped him in the hallway and introduced Edna to Mike. 2 weeks later, they were married.
    Mike’s real name was Holger, from Danish parents, if you look him up.
    Anyway, my family still has a photo of our Elsie Story who passed away in the 1970s in Los Angeles County. When Elsie was needing to go to the hospital, she told my Mom to come get what she liked from her house, because she probably wouldn’t be coming home… and a nephew (Elsie didn’t have children, so perhaps from her husband’s side) that she didn’t care about would surely take everything. I don’t think I can attach the photo here but will try. Same NY photographer.

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