Thoughts on "Dancing Girls"

In response to Olga's post, I became intrigued about the type of Latino performers there were in this era. Needless to say, my initial searches have not revealed much. From a few quick research stabs, I have found that there were several Latino musicians during this time, but mostly on the East Coast, with a few in Los Angeles.

Then I began to think about Vaudeville. Vaudeville itself began to decline during the 1930's due to the increase in films and also the need for theatres to reduce costs. Some vaudevillians were able to recreate their magic on the silver screen. Some continued performing live, as their skills just didn't transfer to film. Some shifted to other types of non-performance work. And some just became unemployed, like countless others.

I then began to look for Latino vaudevillians, and I came across Imogene Coca. She was born in 1908 to performing parents (her father was of Spanish descent) and began dancing and performing at a very early age. An untraditional beauty for her time, she knew she would not be able to have a "standard" leading lady acting career. However, her career began to take off between 1934-1937 when she was recognized for her comedic talents. Prior to this point, she was still performing on the vaudeville circuit.

Here's a physical comedy bit she performed with Sid Caesar:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wEj9aSZZZo&feature=related

At any rate, I could completely see a character styled after someone like her. (And I love her physical humor and the fact that it is completely non-verbal - always great for bilingual shows).

My dos centavos.