Ziegfeld Follies

So I was walking through Times Square last week and for some reason the Ziegfield Follies sprung to mind...I often have these tangential thoughts. Happily, a plethora of images and some fascinating tid bits were easily unearthed about the Follies which were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York between 1907- 1931.They were inspired by the Folies Bergeres in Paris by Florenz Ziegfeld at the suggestion of his then wife Anna Held and according to Mr Ziegfeld himself  "Beauty, of course, is the most important requirement and the paramount asset of the applicant".That's certainly evident from the images below, some of whom went on to fame and glory and some died in obscurity.There's one image that show the girls practising on the roof of the Amsterdam Theater on a blistering hot day in th 1920's, reminiscent of the heat wave we're experiencing right now.....love these NY historical bites...The last several images are of Billie Burke, Mr Ziegfeld's second wife who was considered an accomplished actress in her day.

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Last 10 images from here.