A century ago, this star ‘female impersonator’ made men swoon

  • 📰 washingtonpost
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 31 sec. here
  • 2 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 16%
  • Publisher: 72%

United States Headlines News

United States Latest News,United States Headlines

A century before the battles over drag performances today, Julian Eltinge represented a unique form of the art, one that emphasized fidelity to femininity instead of risqué repartee, outlandish outfits or high-energy lip syncing.

“We live at a time when gender fluidity is in the foreground. But it was not in his day until he came along. He was a transformative figure,” said cultural historian David Hajdu, one of the authors of “A Revolution in Three Acts,” aEltinge was also a sad figure. Throughout his career, the man known offstage as William Dalton had to tout his own masculinity to prevent audiences from speculating about his private life. And the physical toll of his work may have contributed to his death.

“The Changing Room: Sex, Drag and Theatre.” In many cases, Eltinge portrayed a man who is forced to dress up as a woman, a precursor to movies like “Some Like It Hot” and “Mrs. Doubtfire.”“He was a very handsome man in his youth and able to transform himself into a beautiful woman and sing in a really lovely contralto voice.

Eltinge sparred with boxer “Gentleman Jim” Corbett, and his own magazine in 1912 touted him as “a husky young man of 29, agreeable, manly and without the slightest trace of the sissiness one might expect to find in the nature of a man who impersonates a woman.”

Source: Entertainment Trends (entertainmenttrends.net)

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 95. in US

United States Latest News, United States Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

NYC officials celebrate newest phase of plan to upgrade public spaces along BroadwayTourists, shoppers, pedestrians and cyclists now have more room to roam in Midtown.
Source: ABC7NY - 🏆 592. / 51 Read more »

Broadway Vision project enters next phase, creating new plazas and two-way bike laneThe project working to create safer public spaces from Madison to Herald Square celebrated the start of its latest phase Friday.
Source: CBSNewYork - 🏆 268. / 63 Read more »

Bargains on Broadway: How TKTS helped to save theater and Times SquareEnvisioned as a way to rejuvenate the theater district in 1973, the TKTS booth in Times Square — now housed in a red staircase — has sold 68.6 million discounted tickets, generating $2.68 billion in revenue for Broadway and off-Broadway productions.
Source: Gothamist - 🏆 456. / 53 Read more »

Julian Sands’ Family Speaks Out For The First Time Since He Went Missing 6 Months AgoIt’s been more than six months since actor Julian Sands, 65, went missing near Mount Baldy on January 13. During that time the San Bernardino Sheriff and rescue crews have searched the area r…
Source: DEADLINE - 🏆 109. / 63 Read more »

Julian Sands' loved ones say 'wonderful' actor is 'in our hearts' as search continuesIn a statement shared by the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department earlier this week, the family of actor Julian Sands said they were “very grateful” to all those who had worked to find the actor months after he was reported missing in January.
Source: latimes - 🏆 11. / 82 Read more »

NBA draft: Chicago Bulls trade to land Julian PhillipsThe Chicago Bulls injected some life into a sleepy NBA draft night on Thursday by making a late-night trade to acquire Tennessee product Julian Phillips with the No. 35 pick.
Source: chicagotribune - 🏆 8. / 91 Read more »