Oh, for a time machine!
On this date in 1938, Helen opened a week of film-house vaudeville at the Shubert in Newark, NJ.
That may not sound like a particularly auspicious occasion: Morgan spent much of her career doing film-house vaudeville, playing four or five shows a day.
But this time, she shared the stage with her frequent co-star Lou Holtz …
… and Ann Miller …
… and Abbott and Costello …
… and Betty Hutton.
All this – for $0.20.
The show, cobbled together from the recent record-breaking program at Billy Rose’s Casa Mañana in New York, was so strong, the Shubert didn’t bother booking a feature film to accompany its stage show.
It simply ran an hour of short subjects.
Oh, for a time machine – and a 1938 quarter!
This site serves as a companion to the book Helen Morgan: The Original Torch Singer and Ziegfeld’s Last Star.
The Helen Morgan Page 
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