MOLLIE FULLER: STAGE ACTRESS AND VAUDEVILLE PERFORMER

molly fuller

This cabinet card is a portrait of Mollie (Molly) Fuller (1868-1933), a Boston born stage and vaudeville performer. She appeared in two Broadway plays but is better known for her vaudeville career. She was the second wife of Frederick Hallen (1859-1920) and the couple were a popular team on the vaudeville stage for nearly twenty-five years. They were known for their short comedic plays. Mollie’s resume includes performances in “Adonis” and in “Evangeline”, both plays by  Edward Rice. He biggest hit was her starring role in “The Twentieth Century Girl” (1895). When producer Edward Albee learned Mollie was near blind an impoverished in Chicago, he arranged to bring her to New York. He commissioned a theater piece to be written for her to perform in. She returned to the stage to perform in the resulting playlet “Twilight”. Mollie was the sister of Loie Fuller (1862-1928). Loie was a pioneer of modern dance and theatrical lighting techniques. Among Loie’s skills was her talent as a “skirt dancer”. She died in Hollywood, California, at the age of 68 in 1933. At the time of her death she was receiving assistance from “Troupers”, a national vaudeville players association. This cabinet card was issued by “Newsboy” which was a tobacco company that used cabinet cards as premiums to encourage sales of their tobacco products. This image is number forty-one of a series.  SOLD

Published in: on June 3, 2016 at 6:50 pm  Leave a Comment  
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PORTRAIT OF A LOVELY COUPLE BY CELEBRATED PHOTOGRAPHER OTTO SARONY

otto sarony

This portrait of a lovely young couple was produced by the Otto Sarony studio in New York City. Otto Sarony (1850-1903) was the son of celebrated celebrity photographer Napoleon Sarony. Otto was quite talented in his own right and he also was a photographer of the rich and famous. It is impossible to know the extent of Otto’s work because he began directing photographic sessions that appeared under his fathers signature beginning in the late 1880’s. It has been reported that he was involved with every studio portrait from 1893 until his father’s death in 1896. Otto was the sole owner of the studio from 1896 until near the end of 1898. In 1898 he sold his business and all of his equipment and supplies to Jonathan Burrow. Also included in the sale was the trade-mark “Sarony”. In 1902 Otto Sarony sold the rights to his name (Otto Sarony) to photographic businessman Theodore C Marceau and took on the role of Marceau’s manager from the end of 1902 until late 1903. At the time Sarony was looking to fund his yachting activities. After Sarony’s death in 1903 the Otto Sarony Company remained as a brand until World War I.  Since the Otto Sarony Company was producing photographs long after Sarony’s death, one must keep in mind that many photographs with the Sarony label were not taken by Sarony. This fact makes it difficult for those who collect Sarony images.  On a side note, Otto Sarony was an athlete and a founding member of the New York Athletic Club. To view other photographs by Otto Sarony, click on the category “Photographer: Sarony (Otto).

 

 

 

Published in: on June 2, 2016 at 11:12 am  Leave a Comment  
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PORTRAIT OF LEE TONG: PASTOR OF THE BAPTIST CHINESE CHURCH IN PORTLAND OREGON

asian man

This photograph features a well dressed young Asian man sitting in a chair with his hat on his lap. He is is exhibiting an intense gaze at the photographer. On the reverse of this photograph is an inscription that informs us about the identity of this gentleman. His name is Lee Tong and he was a clergyman who attended the Eugene Bible University in Eugene, Oregon. The American Home Missionary (1913) journal lists him as a preacher. He also appears in the Portland directory as Reverend Lee Tong (1912-1914). A book entitled “Portland, Oregon: Its History and Builders” reports that he was the Pastor of the Baptist Chinese Church. Research reveals that the Eugene Bible College is now known as New Hope Christian College and it is located in Eugene. The school was founded by Fred Hornshuh in 1925. This photograph was taken at the Brown Studio in Portland, Oregon.

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Published in: on May 27, 2016 at 3:37 pm  Comments (2)  
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ADORABLE LITTLE BOY AND HIS TOY IN MANNHEIM, GERMANY (1926 REAL PHOTO POSTCARD)

little boy

This vintage postcard features a little boy (possibly girl) dressed in cute winter clothing and holding a toy in his right hand. The toy may be a ring. The reverse of the postcard has an inscription indicating that the photograph was taken in 1926 in Mannheim, Germany. In addition, the name of the child may also be included in the inscription. The child’s name is not clearly legible to me, but appears to be “Hilde Marz”.The postcard was produced with scalloped edges. (SOLD)

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Published in: on May 24, 2016 at 2:42 pm  Comments (1)  
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PORTRAIT OF PRETTY THEATER ACTRESS AND PLAYWRIGHT GRACE HEYER (PHOTOGRAPHER: JACOB SCHLOSS)

heyer

This cabinet card portrait features stage performer and playwright Grace Heyer. The Internet Broadway Data Base lists Miss Heyer as performing in eleven Broadway shows. Her “Great White Way” career began with “Cyrano de Bergerac” (1900) and ended with “Great Gatsby” (1926). Her photo appears in Munsey’s Magazine (1899) and she is credited with appearing in “The Wife”. Her portrait also appears in Theatre Magazine (1904) where she is described as a “young emotional actress” who has headed her own theater company. The Greenback Magazine (1914) describes Heyer as a “formerly well known actress” whose new play “The Philosopher” was to be introduced by the “Liebler Company”. Miss Heyer looks quite beautiful in this cabinet card image. The photograph is subtly provocative. The profile portrait reveals her partially bare back and her bare neck and in the image her expression can be described as being sultry. This photograph was taken by celebrity photographer Jacob Schloss (1856-1938) in his Manhattan studio. Schloss received his education at the Cooper Union in New York City. He graduated in 1872 as an etcher. He joined Benjamin J. Falk’s photography studio and worked there in the mid 1870’s. He left Falk’s employ to open his own studio (54 West 23rd Street) where like Falk, he specialized in theatrical photography. He tended to favor photographing actresses in costume in front of generic studio furnishings. He produced many cabinet card photographs but also was active in the production of magazine images. By the 1890’s he was particularly known for his photographs of beautiful women, much like photographer Jose Maria Mora. Schloss also was an activist for photographers rights. He was very involved in the movement to copyright images. He sued those who used his photographs without crediting or paying him. He was very involved in national photographer associations and was an active photographer until the 1910’s. To view other photographs by this photographer, click on the category “Photographer: Schloss”.

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Published in: on May 21, 2016 at 12:12 pm  Comments (12)  
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YOUNG FRENCH CYCLIST WEARING HIS BICYCLE CLUB UNIFORM POSES WITH HIS BIKE (VINTAGE REAL PHOTO POSTCARD)

bike

A young cyclist poses with his bicycle in this vintage real photo postcard. The studio photograph shows the young man wearing the uniform of his bike club (V.C.K.). His bike clothing looks comfortable and clearly facilitates easier riding. Compare his clothing to the cumbersome bicycle clothing seen in photographs of woman of this era. Women clearly had to sacrifice comfort for beauty and modesty.  I believe that this RPPC is of French origin. The logo of the publishing company of the postcard paper has a logo showing a horse and horseshoe (see image or reverse).

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Published in: on May 20, 2016 at 12:00 pm  Comments (1)  
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A DAPPER MAN AND HIS DOG

black dog

This vintage photograph features a dapper man and his dog. The well dressed gentleman is wearing a three piece suit and bow tie. Note his watch fob and pinky ring. The small dark dog is sitting on a wooden chair with a toy (rolled up sock?) beside him. The photographer and locale of his studio is unknown.   (SOLD)

 

 

Published in: on May 19, 2016 at 12:00 pm  Leave a Comment  
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PORTRAIT OF A HANDSOME MAN AND HIS HANDSOME JACK RUSSELL TERRIER (1932 RPPC)

 

jack

This vintage real photo postcard features a handsome grey haired older man sitting on a chair with his handsome Jack Russell Terrier sitting on his lap. The well dressed man is reading a magazine. The dog is very alert and seems very interested in whatever he is looking at. The message on the reverse of the postcard indicates that it was written in 1932. I decipher the message as the following. “Much obliged by and am very sorry about the sponges. I shall have to (give coconuts?) this year and hope that by next December contact with the Greek merchants will be restored. Best wishes to you and all your family for Christmas and the New Year.” If any visitors to the Cabinet Card Gallery can improve on my interpreting the handwriting, please do not hesitate to help via a comment. The gentleman had this photograph taken at the Proctor’s Day & Electric Light Studios in Penge, England. Penge is a suburb of southeast London.  (SOLD)jack 2

 

 

Published in: on May 17, 2016 at 12:00 pm  Leave a Comment  
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A PRETTY WOMAN WEARING A BATHING SUIT AT THE BEACH IN ORIVAL, FRANCE (1933 REAL PHOTO POSTCARD)

bathing suit

A pretty young woman, with her hands on her hips, poses in her bathing suit at a French beach. She flashes a sweet smile at the photographer. Note her bathing cap. An inscription on the reverse of this vintage real photo postcard indicates that the photo was taken in 1933 in Orival, France. Located in the Seine-Maritime department, Orival is in Northern France. The village is in the woods and situated on the banks and cliffs of the river Seine. This image is a particularly nice French beach photo.  (SOLD)

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Published in: on May 16, 2016 at 12:22 pm  Comments (3)  
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PORTRAIT OF A YOUNG WOMAN IN ADAMS, MASSACHUSETTS

marsh

I tend to buy nice cabinet card images by photographers named “Marsh”. I do so because my last name is also “Marsh”. None of the photographers are my relatives because my earlier American ancestors were not named Marsh and the name “Marsh” was an Ellis Island invention. Levi Marsh is the photographer who took the cabinet card portrait above. He operated a studio in Adams, Massachusetts. The North Adams Transcript (1954) described him as a “one-armed photographer”. Levi was born in Canada in 1846 and immigrated to the United States in 1865. He married Blanche Knight Marsh in 1868 and appears to have married again in about 1885 to Elmeda Marsh. He is listed as a photographer in Adams in the 1870, 1880, and 1900 US censuses. Levi Marsh died in Adams in 1901. This cabinet card features a young woman wearing a ruffled  high collar dress. She appears a bit bewildered in this photograph indicating she did not have a great degree of comfort in front of the camera.

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Published in: on May 15, 2016 at 7:02 pm  Leave a Comment  
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