American Vaudeville was a stage entertainment consisting of unrelated songs, dances, acrobatic and magic acts, and humorous skits and sketches. From humble origin in barrooms and "museums," vaudeville came to be the attraction in hundreds of theaters throughout the United States from 1881, when Tony Pastor gave the first "big time" vaudeville show in New York City, until 1932, when its greatest center, the Palace Theatre, became a movie theater. Such headliners as George M. Cohan, Harry Houdini, Eva Tanguay, W. C. Fields, Fay Templeton, Will Rogers, Ed Wynn, Eddie Cantor, Jimmy Durante, Irene Franklin, Fred Allen, Jack Benny, and Edgar Bergen began their careers by playing the circuits. The popularity of radio and motion pictures caused vaudevilležs decline, but television brought about a revival of vaudeville revues.
LINKS, HISTORICAL & SPECTACULAR
Wikipedia
- A vast array of basic Info
Bob Hope & American Variety
American Masters
- From PBS (nice documentary too)
American Vaudeville Museum
- Great features on performers (click past the registration pages to the features)
Library of Congress - American Variety
- Houdini, playbills, motion pictures, recordings, playscripts, more
Vintage Vaudeville & Ragtime Show
University of Virginia Sites:
Business of Theater: 1896-1919
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show
Dazzling Display of Heterogeneous Splendor
- Motion pictures, recordings, hIstories
Ohio Vaudeville
Posters and Images
Vaudeville Postcards & Images
Musicals 101:
Musical Vaudeville
Minstrel Shows
Gallery
Buster Keaton
Damfinos
Columbia University
American Masters
Bibliography page
Public Domain Book on Writing for Vaudeville
Cylinder Preservation Project
- Streaming ole-timey music
Janet Klein
- Great new ole-timey Music
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