Life of Comedienne Fanny Brice Term Paper

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She was a gifted singer and comedienne, and that is where she finally concentrated her efforts.

Brice worked almost continually on the stage, and one reason was, she had a family to support. In 1918, she married Jules "Nicky" Arnstein, who survived as a thief and a con man. She had two children with Nicky, and virtually supported him throughout their marriage. In 1924, Arnstein was accused of a Wall Street bond theft. Brice spent thousand of dollars on his defense, but he was convicted, and served time in the penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas. He was released in 1927, but he disappeared from her life, and she finally divorced him. She raised the children alone, and worked constantly to support them. She was a single mother, just as her own mother had been. Later, she noted how difficult the role could be. She said, "If you have a career, then the career is your life. [...] It is the biggest part of you and you can be married, have children, have a husband, but it isn't enough for you because the career is always there in your mind, taking the best out of you which you should give to your husband and kids" (Grossman, 1991, p. 229). She married Broadway composer Billy Rose in 1929, their marriage broke up in 1938, and she moved to California, where she would live the rest of her life.

Brice is known for many humorous songs, such as "Second Hand Rose," "I'm an Indian," "Yiddle on Your Fiddle," and many others.

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She could sing seriously too, however, and one of her most moving performances was "My Man," sung alone onstage in a single spotlight. She left the Follies in 1938 and began her own radio show. Author Grossman continues, "Until her death in 1951, she would be Baby Snooks, the mischievous moppet whose precocious pranks had delighted audiences in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1934 and 1936" (Grossman, 1991, p. 228). Brice understood the need to grow and change throughout her career, and recognized the importance of radio, so she capitalized on it.

In conclusion, Fanny Brice was a remarkable entertainer and woman. She was a divorcee and a single, working mother at a time when none of those things was very common. She was incredibly talented, and learned how to perform by gauging her audience and finding what worked for her own personality, looks, and talents. She also knew how to grow with her career. Starting in burlesque, she worked in plays, musicals, and comedy, and then moved on to radio when it became a dominating force in American entertainment. She also appeared in films and lives on in the Streisand films made about her. Fanny Brice died in 1951 at the age of sixty, and she performed on her radio show until she died......

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