Clowning Through Life

New York: E. P. Dutton and Company, 1928. 331 pages. Frontispiece Eddie Foy in "That Casey Girl" his last play. Illustrated. Usual library labels, stamps and markings. Eddie Foy (b. Edwin Fitzgerald) Actor, dancer, vaudevillian b. Mar. 9, 1854 (New York City) - d. Feb. 16, 1928 (Kansas City, MO). When his Irish immigrant father died, six year old Foy began performing in local saloons to support his family. He played the variety circuits for years in a series of song and dance acts, eventually rising to musical comedy stardom in such Broadway hits as The Strollers (1901), Mr. Bluebeard (1903), and Mr. Hamlet of Broadway (1908). Foy specialized in eccentric routines and costumes, often appearing in drag to hilarious effect. He spoke with a slurred lisp that audiences adored. Foy had several wives, the third of which gave him eleven children, seven survived. Foy earned tons of publicity with stories about his spirited brood, whose misbehavior he pretended to indulge far beyond the strict standards of that era. In 1910, he formed a family vaudeville act, and "Eddie Foy and The Seven Little Foys" quickly turned into a national institution. With Eddie acting as a stern disciplinarian backstage and an indulgent papa onstage, the Foys toured successfully for over a decade. When Eddy remarried in 1923, the children went their separate ways. A dedicated trouper, the elder Foy continued to appear in vaudeville and starred in the hit Broadway comedy, The Fallen Star. He died while headlining on the Orpheum circuit at age 73. His son Eddie Jr. went on to musical comedy stardom on Broadway. Sunned covers with much shelf wear and corners worn through. Upper ½" of backstrip missing with lower spine frayed. Hinges starting. Binding loose. Seems to be missing one or more front flyleaves, as half title is first page. Tear to half title page. Interior rather clean.. First Edition. Red Cloth. Fair. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Ex-Library.