Dell O'Dell (1897-1962), July 2019
Unique hand-embroidered pigment print on archival paper with metallic thread
14 ½ x 11 ½ inch (36.83 x 29.21 cm) image
17 x 16 inch (43.18 x 40.64 cm) print
17 x 16 inch (43.18 x 40.64 cm) print
Version 1 of 5 + 2 APs
Dell O’Dell was a trailblazing entertainer who moved with times and every era of show business. Born Odella Newton in Wisconsin into a family with a small traveling circus, O’Dell...
Dell O’Dell was a trailblazing entertainer who moved with times and every era of show business. Born Odella Newton in Wisconsin into a family with a small traveling circus, O’Dell was billed initially as a circus strongwoman and exercise expert. She eventually became a magician, coupling slapstick humour and rhyming patter, and performed with her husband, Charles Carrer, a gifted juggler, across North America.
She played every venue imaginable. Whether it was in the circus, on vaudeville, a burlesque theatre, a Broadway stage, a swanky nightclub or on television, where she hosted a pioneering children’s show in Los Angeles, she captivated the crowd.
She played every venue imaginable. Whether it was in the circus, on vaudeville, a burlesque theatre, a Broadway stage, a swanky nightclub or on television, where she hosted a pioneering children’s show in Los Angeles, she captivated the crowd.