Ladies and gentlemen: THIS IS BURLESQUE! Part 1: The dance begins

Imagine a time when burlyq dancers didn't hustle men out of their money and women were in the audience as well as men. Where the dancer had to have an act, not just go onstage naked. That's burlesque!

Quote: By modern standards, the burlesque dancers of the 1860's through the 1890s barely deserve notice for their attire - tights covering their legs from foot to waist, many wore long sleeves to cover their arms and nary a spot of cleavage to be found.
But in their time, these women were positively scandalous. Their form-fitting clothes showed off the shapes of their legs and thighs. Their corsets accentuated their bosoms. And everywhere they performed men threw themselves into frenzies of erotic desire.

Burlesque began in the United States when Lydia Thompson brought her troupe, the British Blondes, to New York City stages in 1868.
They were independent, confident women who performed on stage and defied most of the social and cultural mores of women of the day. And they were as wildly popular as they were reviled.
Most people in 'proper' society viewed these ladies as being in the same category as common street prostitutes -- selling their bodies for sex.

But men adored them. Their acts were considered 'low brow,' but that simply made them more approachable for the common man.

They presented the image of a woman who willfully defied the place society had dictated. Through exaggerated humor, performers addressed political issues of the day and spoke freely and challenged the men in their audience.
By the 1920s, however, burlesque declined with the advent of motion pictures, vaudevillian theater and Broadway revues.

Revolutionary: Burlesque was surprisingly political, as well. Women openly defied social conventions on stage by speaking their minds, showing off their bodies and challenging the role a woman should play in public life. UNQUOTE:

Read the full story and see the pics here early burlyq

Mabel Santley Was one of the first stars and pioneer of early Burlesque in the 1870's. Became part owner of the Leavitt's 'Mme. Rentz's Female Minstrels' (1869) to the newer 'Rentz-Santley Novelty company' in the 1879 along with her partnerMichael B. Leavitt (1843-1935) and Sam T. Jacks as manger. Leavett already owned theRentz's Circus (aka: Mme. Rentz's Female Minstrels') and at first Mabel was the star Blackface attraction.

The show was later renamed to include Santley. This traveling show was where the term Burlesque would be defined and be copied by the likes of and others. Mabel was arrested at least once in her career for indecent exposure during the Can-Can when she lifted her skirt on 3/1879.

The first burlyq dancer ever filmed:

"Trapeze Disrobing Act" (1901) - Thomas Edison Studios, vintage burlesque

By the 1930’s, Sally Rand emerged as a superstar. She and the World’s Fair producers had arranged for her to be arrested repeatedly causing the press to go into a frenzy. She was usually back at work within an hour! Click on WATCH ON YOUTUBE:

Here is home movie footage of the fair and Sally Rand. Children were allowed to see her shows!

The Beloved Dancer, LILLY CHRISTINE, she is the cat girl dancer in the video:

Lilly Christine emerged in the 1940’s and was beloved by all the competitive dancers of the day:

Gypsy Rose Lee dominates the 20th century. She would write hit broadway plays, wrote Hollywood movies, acted in movies, wrote books, she even did a talk show when women were never hosts. In many ways she was like Dita Von Teese today.

Her dancers in her troupe- also drew women who loved her patter, talking, while stripping. You can see them in this photo:

Gypsy has her arm raised. Her book, THE G STRING MURDERS was turned into an incredible movie that captured the behind the scenes world of burlyq. The star, Barbara Stanwyck, had been a Ziegfeld girl appearing with very little clothes on and posing nude. I think that’s why she’s so great in Gypsy’s film:

Natalie Wood played Gypsy Rose Lee in the 1962 film GYPSY

Behind the paywall: Burlesque Is Alive & Living in Burbank Never aired, Carl Reiner, Goldie Hawn, Bobby Darin and Henny Youngman put on a show-stopping performance filled with comedy sketches, parody and song and dance in homage to vintage Burlesque Theater.