Product Details

Early original 1930's 8x10 inch AP Press photograph of vaudeville blues singer RUTH PETTY at the famous CHEZ PAREE Nightclub in Chicago. A rare chance to own a piece of music and photo history! This photo came from the private collection of one of Seymour's photographers who kept samples from his shoots. The back contains original press materials and stamp. Press inscription reads "RUTH PETTY, sensational blues singer, appears in the new Chez Paree revue which stars Jimmy "Schnozzle" Durante and marks the return of Lou Breese and his orchestra." Stamped "Thanks For Credit - Maurice Seymour - Chicago, Illinois" It is an original AP Press photo which is far more rare and desirable than sold prints. Among other engagements, Ruth appeared in the bizarre Vitaphone short JACK WHITE AND HIS MONTREALERS ('29), singing "I'm Kar-azy For You". This photograph was studio signed at the bottom left by the famous studio photographer “MAURICE SEYMOUR - CHICAGO”. Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill. Types of acts included popular and classical musicians, dancers, comedians, trained animals, magicians, female and male impersonators, acrobats, illustrated songs, jugglers, one-act plays or scenes from plays, athletes, lecturing celebrities, minstrels, and movies. Vaudeville developed from many sources, including the concert saloon, minstrelsy, freak shows, dime museums, and literary burlesque. Called "the heart of American show business," vaudeville was one of the most popular types of entertainment in North America for several decades. After the repeal of Prohibition, a nightclub opened in Chicago under the name Chez Paree and became one of the most popular live entertainment venues in the country. For nearly 30 years, the Chez Paree played host to lavish productions and to the greatest legends of stage, screen, and radio—Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, Sammy Davis, Jr., Ethel Merman, Milton Berle, Jimmy Durante, Pearl Bailey, and the list goes on and on. During the radio years, these shows were often broadcast around the nation. A classic supper club, the Chez Paree could accommodate 650 patrons who would enjoy steakhouse fare and a couple rounds of drinks before the brightly-costumed “Adorables” warmed up the crowd with a dance routine as the house band performed. The vaudeville stars, singers, pianists and showmen often played three shows a night and, between shows, they were expected to mingle with patrons who paid an additional fee in a private bar known as the Key Club. Sophie Tucker, a big, baudy, blonde and bold vaudeville star who billed herself as “The Last of the Red Hot Mamas,” opened the first show at the Chez Paree with the phrase “Revelry is in order.” Other regulars included comedian Joey Bishop, who earned the nickname “the Frown Prince of Comedy” for his glum demeanor. Joe E. Lewis made the crowds laugh with his “drunk’s view of the world.” Nat King Cole broke attendance records at the Chez, and Sammy Davis Jr., a consummate song-and-dance man, was a friend of the nightclub through the 1950s. Photograph measures 8 x 10 inches and is in great condition with only minor discolorations and slight normal wave warping over time. The image is very sharp and has strong tones with great contrast and clarity.