THE GREATEST STAR

The real-life Fanny Brice (aka Fania Borach) was born in 1891 on the Lower East Side in Manhattan, New York. Her parents were Jewish Hungarian immigrants who achieved middle class status. They separated when she was a child, and Fanny moved with her mother and siblings to Brooklyn and later to Harlem. As a young teenager, Fanny knew she wanted to be a professional performer, so she quit school and dedicated her time and energy to realizing her dream.

Fanny began her career in burlesque and vaudeville. At age 18, she garnered praise for her rendition of the song, “Sadie Salome, Go Home,” written by her friend Irving Berlin. Broad physical comedy, parody, and exaggerated accents became her signature performance style. Eventually, Fanny gained fame through her singing and comedic roles in the Ziegfeld Follies.

Although she would never experience the same success in more dramatic roles or in motion pictures, Fanny attained national radio stardom later in life with her original character, “Baby Snooks.” Many recognize her as one of the greatest comediennes to have graced the American stage.

con artist and swindler

The real-life Nick Arnstein was born Julius Arndstein in Berlin, Germany in 1879 and grew up in New Jersey. Throughout his life, he went by several aliases. During their relationship, Fanny saw “Nicky” through rose-tinted glasses. He had begun his criminal activities before he and Fanny met and continued them after they married.

He conned people out of their money and owned and operated an illegal gambling house. At one point, he even became the FBI’s most wanted man and was convicted of masterminding a series of robberies.

As a father, Nick Arnstein displayed little interest in his young children. He spent Fanny’s hard-earned money on horses, legal fees, and other women. Fanny’s mother was never fond of Nick, yet Fanny remained by his side until their divorce in 1927.

BEHIND-THE-SCENES

Unfortunately, Fanny’s life offstage did not mirror the triumphs of her life onstage. Her first marriage lasted just three years. In 1912, she met Nick Arnstein—who was married at the time—and fell madly in love with him.  Nick and Fanny had a six-year affair before he divorced, and they married in 1918. They went on to have two children, and Fanny remained loyal to Nick despite his ongoing criminal activities and infidelity. In 1927, soon after Nick completed a three-year sentence in prison, Fanny divorced him. She married songwriter Billy Rose in 1929 and later divorced in 1938. She died in Los Angeles in 1951.

broadway impressario

Today, Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. is widely known as the most influential producer in the history of Broadway musicals. He was born in Chicago in 1867. As a teenager, he began working on variety shows and went to Europe to scout classical musicians for his father, the founder of the Chicago Music College. It was in France that he picked up the idea for what would later become known as his historic contribution to the American stage: the Ziegfeld Follies.

Stars such as Fanny Brice and Bert Williams rose to fame after appearing in his spectacular theatrical revues. In 1927, Florenz produced the original Broadway production of Show Boat, which became a huge success and a milestone of American musical theater. He lost most of his money in the stock market crash of 1929 and died in 1932.

In real life, Fanny and Florenz treated each other professionally and respectfully, and she adhered to his creative decisions.