Footlight Notes news
Footlight Notes will begin its eighth year online at the beginning of next month. Meanwhile, having just posted edition 351, I'm already planning 352 for the week ending 19 June. I'll be featuring a photograph of Betty Fischer, the popular Viennese operetta star, and a review of the farcical musical comedy, Go-Bang, produced in 1894 at the Trafalgar Square Theatre (now the Duke of York's), London. Letty Lind, Jessie Bond, Harry Grattan and J.L. Shine were in the cast. I'm also hoping to include a short review of The Casino Girl on tour in 1901 with Gabrielle Ray, but that depends on whether I can find the appropriate photograph... Keep watching! JC

Nellie Wallace
On Tuesday, 18 May, BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour included an appreciation by Tony Barker and others of the wonderful Nellie Wallace, one of Britain's greatest Music Hall characters. If you are able, it's well worth catching: follow this link for details. JC

Florence Mills
Bill Egan writes to say that his long awaited book, Florence Mills: Harlem Jazz Queen, about the remarkable African American entertainer who died tragically young in 1927, will be published by the Scarecrow Press in November. For further information, follow this link. JC

Australian theatre
Another theatre site has come to notice: Leann Richards's The History of Australian Theatre On line. The database includes the names of over 3,000 individuals who have appeared in the theatre in Australia. JC

Halcyon Days Music site
Follow this link to Halcyon Days Music, a collection of American popular tunes from the 19th to the early 20th centuries. Colin, the site's webmaster, has written that 'Halcyon Days Music contains an ever expanding collection of Early American music in MIDI format. Each musical piece is accompanied with a scan of its sheet music front cover, and lyrics of each song is included.' JC

Sir Charles Hawtrey
Paul Clark has kindly written with a link to his Web page on Sir Charles Hawtrey. JC

Sword swallowing
Dan Meyer, a recent correspondent with an interest in the history and practice of sword swallowing, has written following a mention on Footlight Notes (Press Clippings, week ending 17 May 2003) of Ramo Samee. Sword swallowing is a little outside the usual scope of Footlight Notes but is thoroughly covered by Mr Meyer, the Executive Director of the Sword Swallowers Assoc Int'l, at swordswallow.com. The site is well worth a visit.

Oops! My mistake yesterday I managed to post next week's edtion of Footlight Notes (i.e. for the week ending 27 December) instead of this coming week's. I have now rectified this, so early visitors will have a 'double dose', so to speak.
With all good wishes for Christmas and the New Year.
JC

A visitor to Footlight Notes, in whose e-mail address there appears to be an error, has written asking about Dame May Whitty. My reply is as follows:
Many thanks for signing my Footlight Notes Guestbook and for your enquiry regarding Dame May Whitty.
Yes, May Whitty and Dame May Whitty are one and the same person. Her stage career began, I believe, in England in the late 1880s; she was married to the well-known English actor manager, Ben Webster; and was awarded the DBE in 1918.
According to the Internet Movie Database (http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0926599/), May Whitty began her film career in 1914, although she only became a familiar screen presence after the advent of the talkies, in the 1930s and 1940s. She died at the age of 83 in 1948.
I hope that will be of interest. - JC

Richard Bonehill has recently published the fruits of ongoing research into his famous kinswoman, the celebrated British music hall artist, Bessie Bonehill. In 'England's Gem', The Story of Bessie Bonehill, Richard celebrates Bessie's life and times during a forty year career that began in the 1860s. He describes his book, which has a selection of illustrations taken from rare original photographs and song sheets, as 'a work in progress.' Be that as it may, no one with an interest in the music hall or one of its finest performers should be without this fascinating volume.
Copies of 'England's Gem' are available direct from Richard Bonehill who may be contacted via his Web site.