Claire Rochester

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Claire Rochester was a vaudeville performer popular in the early 1900s. She was from Atlanta, Georgia, where her father was a judge of the court of appeals.

She was a descendant of the founder of Rochester, New York, Nathaniel Rochester. Rochester moved north to study at the Boston Conservatory of Music. Lew Fields offered her the most money and she became the prima donna in his production of All Aboard. High class vaudeville promoters competed for her services and she headlined as a two-a-day attraction following her stint with Fields.[1]

In March 1916 she was among the entertainers in the Midnight Frolic produced by Flo Ziegfeld. The New Amsterdam Roof also featured performances by Will Rogers, the Dolly Sisters dancers, and Oscar Shaw.[2] One of the venues where she appeared was the Hippodrome Theatre, New York City.[3] In August 1917 she was a part of a musical revue presented there which was staged by R.H. Burnside.[4]

Rochester was active in the Liberty Bond movement during World War I. A car enthusiast, she took part in an automobile tour from New York to San Francisco in 1917, to raise money for the war effort.[5] She drove an Apperson Roadaplane on a previous coast-to-coast trip, establishing a record run.[1]


[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Miss Rochester Coming To Sipe Next Week, Kokomo, Indiana Daily Tribune, October 19, 1916, pg. 9.
  2. ^ Roof Top Fun, New York Times, March 12, 1916, pg. X9.
  3. ^ Variety Is The Spill Of The Revue, New York Times, August 5, 1917, pg. X4.
  4. ^ Display Ad 206--No Title, New York Times, August 19, 1917, pg. X3.
  5. ^ Claire Rochester Will Do Her Bit To Help Out On Liberty Bond Sale, Lowell Sun, May 25, 1917, pg. 18.

[edit] External link