American Burlesque Collection

American Burlesque Collection The American Burlesque Collection is a new museum dedicated to the history, preservation, and promotion of the art of Burlesque.

Based in Salem, MA the museum has an on-line component which is accessible to fans around the globe.

We went to to see the current exhibit, "Let's Get Loud! The Heritage of Latin Burlesque". The exhibit runs through Oct...
06/08/2024

We went to to see the current exhibit, "Let's Get Loud! The Heritage of Latin Burlesque". The exhibit runs through October. Go see it! We were humbled and delighted to loan one of Kitten Natividad's costumes.

Fuimos a para ver la exposición actual, "Let's Get Loud! The Heritage of Latin Burlesque". La exposición estará abierta hasta octubre. ¡Ve a verlo! Nos sentimos honrados y encantados de poder prestar un disfrace de Kitten Natividad.

Thank you to Darby Fox (Curator at the Burlesque Hall of Fame, Project Lead), Emmie Pappa Eddy @truebluemmie (Lead Researcher, Translation);
Bella Sin Bella Sin (Community Liaison, Translation); Dustin Wax (Executive Director at the Burlesque Hall of Fame); Kari Korazón (Translation);
Sarah Vamp (Exhibition Design); Looking Glass Gems , Nona Narcisse, & Jaye (Exhibit Beautifier); and everyone else who worked so hard to make this exhibition possible.

Happy birthday to dancer, performer, movie actress, entrepreneur, and icon born today in 1918. This self-created lege...
06/03/2024

Happy birthday to dancer, performer, movie actress, entrepreneur, and icon born today in 1918. This self-created legend was known for her opulent stage sets, elaborate numbers, lavish costumes, attention to detail, and stunning beauty. "The Fabulous Female" created her own line of lingerie (and even pasties) designed to bring some elegance and eroticism to the "everyday woman". Towards the end of her life, "The Fabulous Female" supported herself by selling signed 8x10 photographs of herself. She sold 50 different images; we own 47 of them. Here's one of our favorites, with a special bonus if your name is .

[A black and white photograph of Lili St. Cyr in an ornate bathtub set piece. There are curtains behind her. The tub is decorated in a baroque style, with curlicues and gilding. There is a frosted glass window in the center of the tub, through which her obscured lower body can be seen. Her left arm is extended and she holds a sponge in her right hand to her left shoulder. The photograph is hand-signed "to my old friedn, Eddie, with love – Lili St. Cyr"].

We're delighted to chronicle burlesque's more recent history as well as its origins. A very to neo-burlesque pioneer,...
01/12/2024

We're delighted to chronicle burlesque's more recent history as well as its origins. A very to neo-burlesque pioneer, . Lili has been the motive force behind a number of significant burlesque projects, including L.A.'s long-running , the and its companion, . Lili also created the annual # game at Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend, the Burlesque Podcast, and was the founder and original producer of the . During the pandemic she took her creativity into the kitchen to create "Dinner & A Showgirl", and this year she is the Mentors' Mentor at the

Photo of Lili vonSchtupp by C..B. Summers ()

Happy (possible) birthday, ! Born "Rose Louise Hovick", Gypsy's mother (who was also named 'Rose') carried forged birth...
01/12/2024

Happy (possible) birthday, ! Born "Rose Louise Hovick", Gypsy's mother (who was also named 'Rose') carried forged birth certificates for all occasions, depending on whether or not she needed her daughters to be younger or older.

'Gypsy' went on to become one of the most famous performers -- in or out of burlesque -- of the 20th century. She appeared in dozens of stage shows, acted in 21 films, and hosted popular radio and TV talk shows. She also wrote the mystery "The G-String Murders" which was later turned in "Lady of Burlesque".

This autographed 4"x6" photo is a recent museum acquisition. Photographed by Bruno of Hollywood, the undated photo was taken sometime in the 1940s.

Address

211 Bridge Street
Salem, MA
01970

Opening Hours

Friday 4pm - 8pm
Saturday 12pm - 8pm
Sunday 11am - 4pm

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We acquired a collection of photos from the Palace Theatre in Buffalo, NY. Many had been cencored with magic marker. We did a test restoration with one we had a duplicate of -- and are delighted with the results!

The museum acquired a collection of photos from the Palace Theatre in Buffalo, NY. Many of them had been censored with black magic marker. We did a test restoration of one of the images we had duplicates of and are delighted with the results!

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