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Spivy

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Bertha Levine (September 30, 1906 – January 7, 1971),[1][Note 1] who used the stage name Spivy (/ˈspɪvi/ SPIH-vee),[3] was an American entertainer, nightclub owner, and actress.[4][5]

Spivy
Spivy (left) with Stanley Adams in the 1962 film Requiem for a Heavyweight
Born
Bertha Levine

(1906-09-30)September 30, 1906
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
DiedJanuary 7, 1971(1971-01-07) (aged 64)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other namesSpivy Levoe, Spivy Le Voe, Madame Spivy
Occupation(s)Entertainer, actress

Biography

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Early life

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Bertha Levine was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1906, the eldest of the four daughters of Louis and Helen Levine, Jewish immigrants from Russia.[6][4][7][8] She played organ in churches and theaters before establishing a career as a singer-pianist in speakeasies and nightclubs under the name Spivy Le Voe, which she later shortened to Spivy.[6] Her stage name was reportedly based on a younger sister's mispronunciation of the word "sister."[5]: 31 

Performing career

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In 1936 she became a regular act at Tony's, a New York nightclub on West 52nd Street, where she performed satirical songs, some of which were written by John LaTouche, Charlotte Kent and Jill Rainsford.[6][9][10] In 1939, the New York Times wrote that "Spivy's material, witty, acid, and tragicomic, is better than most of the essays one hears about town, and her delivery is that of a sophisticated artist on her own grounds. She knows the value of surprise in punching a line, she uses understatement unerringly, and her piano accompaniment is superb."[11]

From 1940–1951 she ran her own nightclub, Spivy's Roof, on the top floor of 139 East 57th Street.[6] The club was noted for its tolerance of gay performers and patrons; Spivy herself was a lesbian in private life. Among the artists who performed there were The Revuers (which consisted of Judy Holliday, Betty Comden and Adolph Green), Frances Faye, Mabel Mercer, Moms Mabley, Alberta Hunter, Thelma Carpenter, Martha Raye, Bea Arthur, Arthur Blake, Rae Bourbon, Liberace, and actor-magician Fred Keating.[12][5][13] Although it was reported that Spivy and Keating intended to marry on Christmas Eve 1942,[14][15][16] this appears to have been a publicity stunt or lavender marriage.[17][18]

She released two 78 rpm albums of songs that she regularly performed in her live sets, including "The Tarantella" and "The Alley Cat".[6][19][20] These 13 recordings have never been reissued on CD. Her recordings indicate that her performing style was to "recite" (rather than sing) the lyrics over piano accompaniment.[21] In 1951, Paul Lynde was appearing at Spivy's Roof when the club closed. He later talked about Spivy and her club on the April 30, 1976 episode of Johnny Carson's Tonight Show.[19]

Later acting career

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In the 1950s, Spivy spent several years touring Paris, London, and Rome before returning to the U.S. in 1957, where she embarked on a new career as a character actor, usually billed as Madame Spivy.[5] In 1957–58, she appeared as Mother Burnside in the Broadway production of Auntie Mame.[22]

Spivy had supporting roles in the films The Fugitive Kind, Studs Lonigan, All Fall Down, Requiem for a Heavyweight, and The Manchurian Candidate, where her stout physique led to her being cast as matronly or villainous characters.[Note 2] Her best-remembered television appearance is a darkly humorous installment of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, the 1959 episode "Specialty of the House" in which she played the manager of a restaurant whose unsuspecting guests implicitly end up on the menu.[5]

Death

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By 1969, Spivy had been diagnosed with cancer. Her friend Patsy Kelly arranged for her to move into the Motion Picture Country Home in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles,[5][4] where she died on January 7, 1971, aged 64.[1][Note 1]

Discography

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  • Seven Gay Sophisticated Songs by Spivy (1939)[23]
  • An Evening with Spivy (1947)[6]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1960 The Fugitive Kind Ruby Lightfoot
1960 Studs Lonigan Mother Josephine
1962 All Fall Down Bouncer
1962 Requiem for a Heavyweight Ma Greeny
1962 The Manchurian Candidate Female Berezovo

Selected television appearances

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Year Series Episode Role Notes
1959 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Season 5 Episode 12:
"Specialty of the House" 		Spirro
1960 Peter Gunn Dream Big, Dream Deadly Flo
1967 Daniel Boone A Matter of Blood Tatama

Notes

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  1. ^ a b Most sources, including the New York Birth Index,[2] support the 1906 birth year, although a few state 1907. The California Death Index records her date of death as Thursday, January 7, 1971. Some sources, including Gavin (2006) and her New York Times obituary, state she died January 8.
  2. ^ Gavin (2006) states she also appeared in 1962's Walk on the Wild Side, but this is not corroborated by other sources.

References

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  1. ^ a b "California Death Index, 1940-1997". FamilySearch. Retrieved 2 April 2018. (registration required)
  2. ^ "New York, New York, Extracted Birth Index, 1878-1909". Ancestry.com. Retrieved 4 November 2019. Surname misspelled as Levene.
  3. ^ "Say How?". National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. Library of Congress. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  4. ^ a b c "Spivy, 64, Actress and Entertainer". The New York Times. 10 January 1971.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Gavin, James (2006). Intimate Nights: the Golden Age of New York Cabaret. Back Stage Books. ISBN 9780823088256.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Pollack, Howard (2017). The Ballad of John Latouche: An American Lyricist's Life and Work. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780190458300.
  7. ^ "United States Census, 1930". FamilySearch. Retrieved 2 April 2018. (registration required)
  8. ^ Drutman, Irving (1976). Good Company: A Memoir, Mostly Theatrical. Little, Brown & Co. p. 213. ISBN 9780316193559.
  9. ^ "Guide to the Jill "Billy" Rainsford Papers (1922-1991)". Fales Library & Special Collections. New York University Libraries. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  10. ^ "Mme. Spivy: 100% American Girls". 30 October 2020.
  11. ^ Strauss, Theodore (November 19, 1939). "News of Night Clubs". New York Times. p. 2X. (subscription required)
  12. ^ Chauncey, George (2008). Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World, 1890-1940. Basic Books. ISBN 9780786723355.
  13. ^ Pyron, Darden Asbury (2013). Liberace: An American Boy. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226117126.
  14. ^ Kilgallen, Dorothy (December 14, 1942). "The Voice of Broadway". Elmira Star-Gazette. p. 6. Is it a gag, or are Spivy and Fred Keating serious when they invite friends to their 'wedding on Christmas Eve?'
  15. ^ Wilson, Earl (September 3, 1943). "Spivy at Folies Bergere". New York Post. p. 29.
  16. ^ Kilgallen, Dorothy (December 29, 1942). "The Voice of Broadway". The Cincinnati Enquirer – via Newspapers.com. Spivy and magician Fred Keating have postponed their wedding because of her father's illness
  17. ^ Kilgallen, Dorothy (January 27, 1944). "The Voice of Broadway". Olean Times Herald. p. 8. Although married, Fred Keating and Spivy occupy separate domiciles and only appear together formally at Spivy's Roof.
  18. ^ Oakley Christoph, M. (April 18, 1944). "Informing You". Hartford Courant. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com. Fred Keating... said, when we asked him if he was married to Spivy, 'People say so'...
  19. ^ a b "Madame Spivy's Tarantella". 31 October 2018.
  20. ^ "Madame Spivy's Alley Cat". 23 September 2018.
  21. ^ Aston, Martin (24 October 2017). "How music came out: 15 records by unsung LGBTQ+ pioneers". The Vinyl Factory. Archived from the original on 25 October 2017.
  22. ^ "Spivy – Broadway Cast & Staff". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  23. ^ "Spivy - Seven Gay Sophisticated Songs By Spivy". Discogs. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
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