May Irwin : Singing, Shouting, and the Shadow of Minstrelsy
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| Title: | May Irwin : Singing, Shouting, and the Shadow of Minstrelsy |
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| Description: | May Irwin reigned as America's queen of comedy and song from the 1880s through the 1920s. A genuine pop culture phenomenon, Irwin conquered the legitimate stage, composed song lyrics, and parlayed her celebrity into success as a cookbook author, suffragette, and real estate mogul. Sharon Ammen's in-depth study traces Irwin's hurly-burly life. Irwin gained fame when, layering aspects of minstrelsy over ragtime, she popularized a racist'Negro song'genre. Ammen examines this forgotten music, the society it both reflected and entertained, and the ways white and black audiences received Irwin's performances. She also delves into Irwin's hands-on management of her image and career, revealing how Irwin carefully built a public persona as a nurturing housewife whose maternal skills and performing acumen reinforced one another. Irwin's act, soaked in racist song and humor, built a fortune she never relinquished. Yet her career's legacy led to a posthumous obscurity as the nation that once adored her evolved and changed. |
| Authors: | Sharon Ammen |
| Resource Type: | eBook. |
| Subjects: | Minstrel music--United States--History and criticism, Minstrel shows--United States--History |
| Categories: | MUSIC / General, MUSIC / History & Criticism, PERFORMING ARTS / Theater / History & Criticism, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Cultural & Ethnic Studies / American / African American & Black Studies |
| Database: | eBook Collection (EBSCOhost) |
| Abstract: | May Irwin reigned as America's queen of comedy and song from the 1880s through the 1920s. A genuine pop culture phenomenon, Irwin conquered the legitimate stage, composed song lyrics, and parlayed her celebrity into success as a cookbook author, suffragette, and real estate mogul. Sharon Ammen's in-depth study traces Irwin's hurly-burly life. Irwin gained fame when, layering aspects of minstrelsy over ragtime, she popularized a racist'Negro song'genre. Ammen examines this forgotten music, the society it both reflected and entertained, and the ways white and black audiences received Irwin's performances. She also delves into Irwin's hands-on management of her image and career, revealing how Irwin carefully built a public persona as a nurturing housewife whose maternal skills and performing acumen reinforced one another. Irwin's act, soaked in racist song and humor, built a fortune she never relinquished. Yet her career's legacy led to a posthumous obscurity as the nation that once adored her evolved and changed. |
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| ISBN: | 9780252040658 9780252082153 9780252099090 |
