On May 11, 1902, the Chicago Sunday Tribune
announced that rehearsals for The Wizard of Oz would soon begin at the
Grand Opera House, under the direction of Julian Mitchell. The management also mentioned
“. . . with an air of mystery, that Charles Dana Gibson’s original model for
the 'Widow' in his series of pictures entitled A Widow and Her Friends,
has been engaged to make her stage debut in The Wizard of Oz.”
This gossipy tidbit would certainly have
caught the eyes and imaginations of readers in 1902. Charles Dana Gibson
(1867-1944) was at the height of his popularity as an artist. Gibson created
the “Gibson Girl” in 1890 for Life magazine. In 1894 he began publishing
luxurious coffee-table books reprinting his exquisite pen-and-ink drawings of high society
and his “Gibson girls” exploring life, relationships, independence, and, in
subtle ways, their sexuality.
In 1901 Gibson drew a new series of drawings, A Widow and her Friends. The “Widow” was a stunningly beautiful young woman, who lusciously goes through mourning, weighs a possible career, and, well, is a Gibson girl or, at least, a Gibson woman.
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A Widow and Her Friends by Charles Dana Gibson. Click to enlarge |
In 1901 Gibson drew a new series of drawings, A Widow and her Friends. The “Widow” was a stunningly beautiful young woman, who lusciously goes through mourning, weighs a possible career, and, well, is a Gibson girl or, at least, a Gibson woman.
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Charles Dana Gibson's "Widow" is feeling better. Click to enlarge |
So did the management of the Grand Opera
House truly secure the model who had posed for the “Widow,” or was this just a
bit of publicity-seeking “name” dropping? Or rather publicity seeking
“name-withheld” dropping—as the Wizard of Oz article continues “ . .
.[the Gibson girl model] has made it an absolute condition that her real name
and identity be kept strictly secret. Mr. Hamlin is said to have pledged his
word.”
This story has some legs, like
presumably the Gibson girl does, though of course she would never show hers.
On June 8, 1902, the Chicago Inter Ocean reported, “Manager Hamlin of the
Grand opera-house is willing to wager real money that he will place on
exhibition in the chorus of The Wizard of Oz next week the only and
original Gibson model for the widow in the artist’s series of pictures known as
The [sic] Widow and Her Friends. . . . According to the Chicago manager, he
was in New York recently, when he heard that the real Gibson widow had
determined to become a sextet or an actress, or something back of the
footlights. He investigated, and discovered that the young woman’s name was
Jane Blair, that her beauty had not been overestimated, and that she was really
anxious to make her stage debut.”
Hamlin interviewed the girl and found
“that Miss Blair’s record was genuine, and the engagement followed. She has
been rehearsing with the chorus of The Wizard, envied by the less
beautiful of the girls, and admired by the promoters of the entertainment. She
declares that she is glad to get her first training in Chicago, as her society
friends in New York might try to play some joke on her if she made her debut
there.”
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Jane Blair model for C. D. Gibson & Chorus girl in Wizard of Oz Click to Enlarge |
The young woman chose to appear in The
Wizard of Oz as Jane Blair. Her photo appeared in the June 8, 1902, issue
of the Inter Ocean—and she bears a good resemblance to the “Widow.”
On June 15, 1902, the Inter Ocean updated
Chicago on the chorus girls in the forthcoming Wizard of Oz: “Jane
Blair, [is] another example, the only genuine model for the Gibson widow, who
is going to be noticed for her beauty, it is said, as well as her reputation as
a famous model.”
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Jane Blair and Gibson's "Widow." Click to enlarge |
Jane Blair performed in the chorus of The
Wizard of Oz during the summer of 1902. She played a Munchkin, a Poppy,
a Lady in the Wizard’s Court, and a Dreamland Maid. I’ve not been able to identify
her in any of the photos from the original Chicago rehearsals or the production
photos.
On August 24, 1902, the Jane Blair story
made the news again. The Buffalo Courier published a short piece on the
backgrounds of some of the Wizard chorus girls, including “ . . . the nom de
theater of Jane Blair conceals the identity of a daughter of one of the first
families of New York.” And that’s the last one hears of Jane Blair.
So did this young woman from the
upper-crust of New York society really pose for Charles Dana Gibson? She might
have. She is pretty enough, and the story kept on going that summer, so maybe
she did!
One final note: There was another actress named Jane Mae Blair (sometimes credited only as Jane Blair) who appeared in Miss Bob White and The Messenger Boy around this time. But she is known to be elsewhere during the Chicago run of The Wizard of Oz and is thus a different Jane Blair.
Copyright © 2019 David Maxine. All rights reserved.
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