Tess Gardella
Encyclopedia
Therese "Tess" Gardella was an Italian American
performer whose stage persona was "Aunt Jemima
".
A native of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
, Gardella performed on both stage and screen, usually in blackface
. In 1927, she originated the role of Queenie in the classic stage musical Show Boat
. She was the only member of the original Broadway cast to appear in blackface; the show featured an African-American chorus.Jules Bledsoe
, who originated the role of Joe in the same production and sang Ol' Man River
, was also African-American.
series Rambling 'Round Radio Row
(1932–1934). She was usually billed as "Aunt Jemima." In 1938, the Vitaphone studio starred her as "Tess Gardella (Aunt Jemima)" in the two-reel musical short A Swing Opera.
In this updated condensation of the famous operetta The Bohemian Girl
, with special lyrics by Sammy Cahn
and Saul Chaplin
, Gardella was top-billed as the gypsy queen and does not wear blackface.
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
performer whose stage persona was "Aunt Jemima
Aunt Jemima
Aunt Jemima is a trademark for pancake flour, syrup, and other breakfast foods currently owned by the Quaker Oats Company of Chicago. The trademark dates to 1893, although Aunt Jemima pancake mix debuted in 1889. The Quaker Oats Company first registered the Aunt Jemima trademark in April 1937...
".
A native of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Wilkes-Barre is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, the county seat of Luzerne County. It is at the center of the Wyoming Valley area and is one of the principal cities in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area, which had a population of 563,631 as of the 2010 Census...
, Gardella performed on both stage and screen, usually in blackface
Blackface
Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used in minstrel shows, and later vaudeville, in which performers create a stereotyped caricature of a black person. The practice gained popularity during the 19th century and contributed to the proliferation of stereotypes such as the "happy-go-lucky darky...
. In 1927, she originated the role of Queenie in the classic stage musical Show Boat
Show Boat
Show Boat is a musical in two acts with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It was originally produced in New York in 1927 and in London in 1928, and was based on the 1926 novel of the same name by Edna Ferber. The plot chronicles the lives of those living and working...
. She was the only member of the original Broadway cast to appear in blackface; the show featured an African-American chorus.Jules Bledsoe
Jules Bledsoe
Jules Bledsoe was a once renowned, but now semi-forgotten baritone, and the first African American artist to gain regular employment on Broadway, subsequent to Bert Williams, William Grant Still, Ford Dabney and others....
, who originated the role of Joe in the same production and sang Ol' Man River
Ol' Man River
"Ol' Man River" is a song in the 1927 musical Show Boat that expresses the African American hardship and struggles of the time with the endless, uncaring flow of the Mississippi River; it is sung from the point-of-view of a dock worker on a showboat, and is the most famous song from the show...
, was also African-American.
Aunt Jemima
During the 1930s, Gardella appeared in occasional movie shorts filmed in New York, including the VitaphoneVitaphone
Vitaphone was a sound film process used on feature films and nearly 1,000 short subjects produced by Warner Bros. and its sister studio First National from 1926 to 1930. Vitaphone was the last, but most successful, of the sound-on-disc processes...
series Rambling 'Round Radio Row
Rambling 'Round Radio Row
Rambling 'Round Radio Row is a series of short subjects, produced by Jerry Wald, and released by the Vitaphone division of Warner Brothers...
(1932–1934). She was usually billed as "Aunt Jemima." In 1938, the Vitaphone studio starred her as "Tess Gardella (Aunt Jemima)" in the two-reel musical short A Swing Opera.
In this updated condensation of the famous operetta The Bohemian Girl
The Bohemian Girl
The Bohemian Girl is an opera composed by Michael William Balfe with a libretto by Alfred Bunn. The plot is loosely based on a Cervantes tale, La Gitanilla.The opera was first produced in London at the Drury Lane Theatre on November 27, 1843...
, with special lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Sammy Cahn
Sammy Cahn was an American lyricist, songwriter and musician. He is best known for his romantic lyrics to films and Broadway songs, as well as stand-alone songs premiered by recording companies in the Greater Los Angeles Area...
and Saul Chaplin
Saul Chaplin
Saul Chaplin was an American composer and musical director.He was born Saul Kaplan in Brooklyn, New York.He had worked on stage, screen and television since the days of Tin Pan Alley...
, Gardella was top-billed as the gypsy queen and does not wear blackface.