Edith Clasper
A young white woman with dark hair, photographed in profile, wearing a striped head scarf tied at the nape
Edith Clasper in 1924
BornOctober 12, 1894
Stranton, Hartlepool, U.K.
DiedMay 1984
United States
Occupation(s)Dancer, vaudeville performer
Years active1920s

Edith Crosbie Clasper (October 12, 1894[1] – May 1984) was an English-born American dancer active on the vaudeville stage in the 1920s.

Early life and education

Clasper was born in Stranton, Hartlepool, the daughter of Robert Clasper and Barbara Crosbie Clasper.[2] Her mother was born in Scotland. Her father died in 1898.[3] Clasper moved to the United States as a little girl, with her widowed mother, and lived with relatives in Chicago.[4]

Career

Clasper was billed as "the daintiest of dancers".[5][6] She headlined on tours of the United States and Canada in the 1920s,[7][8] as the leader of Edith Clasper and Boys, a comedy dance act.[9][10] She cautioned beginning dancers that "it is just downright hard work"[11] and advised them to "dance, not only with your heels, but with your head."[12] In 1920 she was stricken mid-performance with appendicitis in Madison, Wisconsin; her male assistants carried her off-stage and continued the act, while she took a train back to Chicago for medical attention.[13]

The Pacific Coast Musical Review reported in 1920 that Clasper "has every asset necessary to the successful dancer — appearance, youth, grace, abandon, and poetry."[14] The Montreal Star observed in 1923 that Clasper "obviously delights to dance. There is a freshness about her work that is infectious."[15] Variety magazine reported on her stage costumes in detail.[16]

In his youth, actor Dick Baldwin was one of the male dancers in Clasper's act.[17]

Personal life

Later in life, Clasper worked as a baby nurse for a family on Park Avenue.[18] She became a naturalized United States citizen in 1953.[1] She died in 1984, at the age of 89.[19]

References

  1. 1 2 Edith Crosbie Clasper, in the New York, U.S., Index to Petitions for Naturalization filed in New York City, 1792-1989; via Ancestry
  2. ↑ Edith Crosbie Clasper, in the England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975; via Ancestry.
  3. ↑ "Death of Mr. Robert Clasper". Northern Guardian. January 4, 1898. p. 3. Retrieved August 13, 2023 – via The British Newspaper Archive, via The Wikipedia Library.
  4. ↑ Edith C. Clasper, in the 1900 Federal Census, via Ancestry.
  5. ↑ "Edith Clasper, Dancer, to top Columbia Bill: Dainty Star to Feature Program Here First of this Week". Quad-City Times. 1920-08-29. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ National Vaudeville Artists (1924). National vaudeville artists : May 11, 1924. Media History Digital Library – via Internet Archive.
  7. ↑ "Orpheum". Altoona Tribune. 1922-12-29. p. 9. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Real Vaudeville Bill at Orpheum; Edith Clasper in her Dancing Act Makes Hit; Nelson a Riot". Calgary Herald. 1924-08-26. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Edith Clasper and Boys". Dramatic Mirror. 83: 866. May 14, 1921.
  10. ↑ Hutton, Maurice C. (1925-05-04). "Music Lovers Get 'Kick' from Keith 'Band' Burlesque". The Dayton Herald. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Edith Clasper". The Kentucky Post and Times-Star. 1923-10-05. p. 24. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Miss Clasper Has Wholesome Advice". The Vancouver Sun. 1920-12-02. p. 7. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Orpheum Actress Stricken in Act". The Capital Times. September 13, 1920. p. 1. Retrieved August 13, 2023 – via Internet Archive.
  14. ↑ "Orpheum" Pacific Coast Musical Review 39(December 18, 1920): 6.
  15. ↑ "Edith Clasper Brings Charm and Originality to Imperial Program". The Montreal Star. 1923-11-20. p. 6. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ Mac, Alice (June 18, 1920). "Among the Women". Variety. 59 (4): 5 – via Internet Archive.
  17. ↑ Niemeyer, H. H. (1937-08-22). "Making a Touchdown in Movies". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 53. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ Edith Clasper, in the 1950 United States Federal Census, in the Judson Bell Shafer household on Park Avenue, New York City; via Ancestry.
  19. ↑ Edith Clasper, in the U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014; via Ancestry.
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