Marie Meeker (born Maybelle Meeker; November 6, 1886 – April 2, 1960), who performed under the name Dainty Marie, was an American vaudeville and circus performer.
Marie Meeker | |
|---|---|
 Newspaper image, 1917 | |
| Born | Maybelle Meeker November 6, 1886 Leavenworth, Kansas, U.S. |
| Died | April 2, 1960 (aged 73) Saugus, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Dainty Marie |
| Occupation | Vaudeville performer |
Life and career
editShe was born in Leavenworth, Kansas, the daughter of a prison guard, and niece of pioneer Ezra Meeker. She was apprenticed to a small circus as a child, and learned such skills as bareback riding, rope spinning, and aerial acrobatics.[1][2]
She rose to fame quickly in the early 1900s, and appeared in Broadway shows with Blanche Ring, Lew Fields, and Julian Eltinge.[2] She became a headline performer in vaudeville, with an act in which she first sang in an evening gown, or period costume, and then disrobed to perform acrobatic feats on a trapeze while clad in a leotard and tights.[3] She also performed living recreations of statues by Rodin.[4] In her youth she was noted for her attractive figure,[5] and also became known for her physical strength after an altercation with some "mashers" while she was walking on Broadway.[1] A follower of Christian Science, she promoted the values of exercise and moral reform.[6]
She became a featured performer with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, where she was billed as "the world's greatest aerialist".[7] She later returned to vaudeville. In 1923, her act was described as "in a class by itself as a vaudeville novelty that Is different".[8]
She retired in 1931 in order to start a physical culture school for women in Milwaukee.[5] In about 1948 she moved to Saugus, California, where she died in 1960 at the age of 73.[7]
She was married four times. She had brief marriages, ending in divorce, to Ewald "Wally" Hupel in 1903; to actor Earle Foxe in 1914; and to Clarence Williams in 1928. Her final marriage was to Walter Hickey, who predeceased her.[7]
References
edit- ^ a b "Portrait of Dainty Marie Meeker", Kansas City Public Library. Retrieved 5 March 2024
- ^ a b "Plays and Players", The Indianapolis News, July 28, 1926. Retrieved 5 March 2024
- ^ "New Empire Bill Is Well Liked", The Bakersfield Californian, September 18, 1907, p.6
- ^ Alan J. Stein, "Harry Houdini begins a week-long run...", HistoryLink.org, August 26, 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2024
- ^ a b "Dainty Marie at 50!" [sic], Wisconsin Jewish Journal, March 13, 1931, p.7
- ^ Seattle Star, October 19, 1915
- ^ a b c Obituary, Leavenworth Times, April 3, 1960, p.1
- ^ "New acts this week: Riverside", Variety, August 1923, p.76