Exotic World Burlesque Museum
Encyclopedia
The Burlesque Hall of Fame is the name of the burlesque
museum located on Fremont Street
in Downtown Las Vegas
. Formerly known as Exotic World, the museum historically was located on the site of an abandoned goat farm in Helendale, California
. The museum
documents the history of American burlesque
from its 19th-century origins through its golden age in the mid 20th century, and displays artifacts commemorating historic burlesque performers.
Exotic World originated as the private collection of retired exotic dancer
Jennie Lee. It is currently curated
by retired burlesque performer Dixie Evans, who often personally leads tours through the exhibits.
Exotic World also serves as the home office for the Exotic Dancers' League of America trade union
, and as the site of the annual Miss Exotic World Pageant
.
in San Pedro, California. After Lee was diagnosed with breast cancer
, she and her husband moved to an abandoned goat farm in Helendale, California, located in the Mojave desert
about one third of the way between Los Angeles, California
and Las Vegas, Nevada
.
Lee intended to create a burlesque museum, found a burlesque school and run a bed and breakfast
, and the goat farm site had enough room to contain her growing collection. Only the museum got started within her lifetime.
After Lee died in 1990, Dixie Evans took over the farm and turned it into the Exotic World Burlesque Museum, aided by Lee's widower, Charlie Arroyo. Lee's memorabilia formed the core of the collection, but people from around the world soon started to donate items to Exotic World. The collection grew large enough to fill the entire farm.
In late 2005, the museum was temporarily closed for inventory and renovations in the wake of Arroyo's unexpected death and significant weather damage to the museum facilities. Although the museum was not open at the time of the annual Miss Exotic World Pageant in 2006, the pageant was nevertheless held at an alternate venue, the Celebrity Theater in Las Vegas.
s, photograph
s, publicity
stills, newspaper
clippings, and playbill
s related to famous burlesque performers including Blaze Starr
, Lili St. Cyr
, Chesty Morgan
, Candy Barr
and Tempest Storm
.
The museum includes costume
elements and props such as feather boa
s, fans
, glove
s, garter belts, gowns
, shoe
s, pasties
, g-string
s, and jewelry. Many of these items are specially made for use in striptease routines.
Unique individual items include ivory fans used by Sally Rand
, gloves and a black velvet
shoulder cape worn by Gypsy Rose Lee
, a heart-shaped couch owned by Jayne Mansfield
and the cremation
ashes of Miss Sheri Champagne.
performer is crowned Miss Exotic World in a contest often referred to as the Miss America
of burlesque. Winners receive both the title and a trophy.
Dixie Evans initiated the Miss Exotic World pageant in 1990 as a way to draw people to the museum. She garnered attention by sending out a press release claiming that "Lili St. Cyr, Tempest Storm, Blaze Starr and 30 other alumni of burlesque will all be invited to attend this reunion." While technically true, none of those invitees attended that year. However, the release garnered press attention for the pageant, which was successful enough to become an annual event.
Each contest features burlesque performances by both stars from burlesque's golden age and younger women involved in the New Burlesque scene.
The organization initiated a Hall of Fame whose inductees include:
.
American burlesque
American Burlesque is a genre of variety show. Derived from elements of Victorian burlesque, music hall and minstrel shows, burlesque shows in America became popular in the 1860s and evolved to feature ribald comedy and female striptease...
museum located on Fremont Street
Fremont Street
Fremont Street is a street in Las Vegas, Nevada, and is the second most famous street in the Las Vegas metropolitan area after the Las Vegas Strip...
in Downtown Las Vegas
Downtown Las Vegas
Downtown Las Vegas is the central business district of Las Vegas, Nevada. It is the original gambling district of Las Vegas, prior to the Strip, and the area still incorporates downtown gaming.-Tourism:...
. Formerly known as Exotic World, the museum historically was located on the site of an abandoned goat farm in Helendale, California
Helendale, California
Helendale is an unincorporated community located in San Bernardino County, California, on historic Route 66 west of the Mojave Freeway, between Barstow and Victorville, in the Victor Valley. It includes the Helendale resort community of Silver Lakes.-History:...
. The museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
documents the history of American burlesque
American burlesque
American Burlesque is a genre of variety show. Derived from elements of Victorian burlesque, music hall and minstrel shows, burlesque shows in America became popular in the 1860s and evolved to feature ribald comedy and female striptease...
from its 19th-century origins through its golden age in the mid 20th century, and displays artifacts commemorating historic burlesque performers.
Exotic World originated as the private collection of retired exotic dancer
Exotic dancer
The terms exotic dancer and exotic dance can have different meanings in different parts of the world and depending on context. In the erotic sense, "exotic dance" is a often used to refer to practitioners of striptease...
Jennie Lee. It is currently curated
Curator
A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...
by retired burlesque performer Dixie Evans, who often personally leads tours through the exhibits.
Exotic World also serves as the home office for the Exotic Dancers' League of America trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
, and as the site of the annual Miss Exotic World Pageant
Miss Exotic World Pageant
The Miss Exotic World Pageant is an annual neo-burlesque pageant and convention, and is the annual showcase event the Burlesque Hall of Fame...
.
History
Retired dancer Jennie Lee started collecting burlesque memorabilia when she owned the Sassy Lassy nightclubNightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
in San Pedro, California. After Lee was diagnosed with breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
, she and her husband moved to an abandoned goat farm in Helendale, California, located in the Mojave desert
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
about one third of the way between Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
and Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
.
Lee intended to create a burlesque museum, found a burlesque school and run a bed and breakfast
Bed and breakfast
A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...
, and the goat farm site had enough room to contain her growing collection. Only the museum got started within her lifetime.
After Lee died in 1990, Dixie Evans took over the farm and turned it into the Exotic World Burlesque Museum, aided by Lee's widower, Charlie Arroyo. Lee's memorabilia formed the core of the collection, but people from around the world soon started to donate items to Exotic World. The collection grew large enough to fill the entire farm.
In late 2005, the museum was temporarily closed for inventory and renovations in the wake of Arroyo's unexpected death and significant weather damage to the museum facilities. Although the museum was not open at the time of the annual Miss Exotic World Pageant in 2006, the pageant was nevertheless held at an alternate venue, the Celebrity Theater in Las Vegas.
Collection
The Exotic World museum collection includes posterPoster
A poster is any piece of printed paper designed to be attached to a wall or vertical surface. Typically posters include both textual and graphic elements, although a poster may be either wholly graphical or wholly text. Posters are designed to be both eye-catching and informative. Posters may be...
s, photograph
Photograph
A photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
s, publicity
Publicity
Publicity is the deliberate attempt to manage the public's perception of a subject. The subjects of publicity include people , goods and services, organizations of all kinds, and works of art or entertainment.From a marketing perspective, publicity is one component of promotion which is one...
stills, newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
clippings, and playbill
Playbill
Playbill is a monthly U.S. magazine for theatregoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most Playbills are printed for particular shows to be distributed at the door...
s related to famous burlesque performers including Blaze Starr
Blaze Starr
Blaze Starr is an American former stripper and American burlesque star. Her vivacious presence and inventive use of stage props earned her the nickname "The Hottest Blaze in Burlesque"...
, Lili St. Cyr
Lili St. Cyr
Lili St. Cyr , was a prominent American burlesque stripper.- Early years :She was born as Willis Marie Van Schaack in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1918. She had a sister, Rosemary Van Schaack Minsky...
, Chesty Morgan
Chesty Morgan
Chesty Morgan is a Polish-born Jewish American exotic dancer who starred in two films directed by Doris Wishman.-Biography:An orphan, Morgan was sent from Poland to live in Ein Gev, a kibbutz in the British Mandate of Palestine, at the outbreak of World War II.Morgan married an American and moved...
, Candy Barr
Candy Barr
Candy Barr was an American stripper, burlesque exotic dancer, actress in one pornographic movie, and model in men's magazines of the mid-20th century....
and Tempest Storm
Tempest Storm
Tempest Storm is the stage name of an American stripper, burlesque star, and motion picture actress. Along with Lili St. Cyr and Blaze Starr, she was one of the best known burlesque performers of the 1950s and 1960s. She is regarded as having one of the longest careers as a burlesque performer,...
.
The museum includes costume
Costume
The term costume can refer to wardrobe and dress in general, or to the distinctive style of dress of a particular people, class, or period. Costume may also refer to the artistic arrangement of accessories in a picture, statue, poem, or play, appropriate to the time, place, or other circumstances...
elements and props such as feather boa
Feather boa
A feather boa is a fashion accessory that is usually worn wrapped around the neck like a scarf.-Construction:A boa can be made of fur, but it is usually made instead from various types of feathers. Ostrich, marabou, chandelle, and turkey are the most common feathers used, although non-feather boas...
s, fans
Fan (implement)
A hand-held fan is an implement used to induce an airflow for the purpose of cooling or refreshing oneself. Any broad, flat surface waved back-and-forth will create a small airflow and therefore can be considered a rudimentary fan...
, glove
Glove
A glove is a garment covering the hand. Gloves have separate sheaths or openings for each finger and the thumb; if there is an opening but no covering sheath for each finger they are called "fingerless gloves". Fingerless gloves with one large opening rather than individual openings for each...
s, garter belts, gowns
Evening gown
An evening gown is a long flowing women's dress usually worn to a formal affair. It ranges from tea and ballerina to full-length. Evening gowns are often made of a luxury fabric such as chiffon, velvet, satin, or silk...
, shoe
Shoe
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot while doing various activities. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture to culture, with appearance originally being tied to function...
s, pasties
Pasties
Pasties are adhesive coverings applied to cover a woman's nipples and areolae. Though pasties are commonly associated with burlesque and erotic entertainment, they are also at times worn as an undergarment and occasionally as beachwear.Some women wear pasties when wearing a strapless or backless...
, g-string
G-string
A G-string is a type of thong underwear or swimsuit, a narrow piece of cloth, leather, or plastic, that covers or holds the genitals, passes between the buttocks, and is attached to a band around the hips, worn as swimwear or underwear by women and men...
s, and jewelry. Many of these items are specially made for use in striptease routines.
Unique individual items include ivory fans used by Sally Rand
Sally Rand
Sally Rand was a burlesque dancer and actress, most noted for her ostrich feather fan dance and balloon bubble dance. She also performed under the name Billie Beck.-Early life and career:...
, gloves and a black velvet
Velvet
Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed,with a short dense pile, giving it a distinctive feel.The word 'velvety' is used as an adjective to mean -"smooth like velvet".-Composition:...
shoulder cape worn by Gypsy Rose Lee
Gypsy Rose Lee
Gypsy Rose Lee was an American burlesque entertainer famous for her striptease act. She was also an actress, author, and playwright whose 1957 memoir was made into the stage musical and film Gypsy.-Early life:...
, a heart-shaped couch owned by Jayne Mansfield
Jayne Mansfield
Jayne Mansfield was an American actress working both in Hollywood and on the Broadway theatre...
and the cremation
Cremation
Cremation is the process of reducing bodies to basic chemical compounds such as gasses and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high-temperature burning, vaporization and oxidation....
ashes of Miss Sheri Champagne.
Miss Exotic World Pageant
Exotic World hosts the annual Miss Exotic World pageant on the first Saturday of every June. Each year a Neo-burlesqueNeo-Burlesque
Neo-Burlesque is the revival and updating of the traditional burlesque performance. Though based on the traditional Burlesque art, the new form encompasses a wider range of performance styles; Neo-burlesque acts can be anything from classic striptease to modern dance to theatrical mini-dramas to...
performer is crowned Miss Exotic World in a contest often referred to as the Miss America
Miss America
The Miss America pageant is a long-standing competition which awards scholarships to young women from the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...
of burlesque. Winners receive both the title and a trophy.
Dixie Evans initiated the Miss Exotic World pageant in 1990 as a way to draw people to the museum. She garnered attention by sending out a press release claiming that "Lili St. Cyr, Tempest Storm, Blaze Starr and 30 other alumni of burlesque will all be invited to attend this reunion." While technically true, none of those invitees attended that year. However, the release garnered press attention for the pageant, which was successful enough to become an annual event.
Each contest features burlesque performances by both stars from burlesque's golden age and younger women involved in the New Burlesque scene.
The organization initiated a Hall of Fame whose inductees include:
Film
The history of the Burlesque Hall of Fame is the featured subject of the 2010 documentary Exotic World & the Burlesque Revival. Dixie Evans appears in Leslie Zemeckis' documentary Behind the Burly QBehind the Burly Q
Behind the Burly Q is a film documentary looking back at the golden age of Burlesque - one of America's most popular forms of live entertainment in the first half of the 20th century....
.
External links
- Exotic World Burlesque Museum
- Behind the Burly Q. 2010 documentary film by Leslie Zemeckis
- Exotic World & the Burlesque Revival documentary website