Duncan Sisters Very Rare Very Early Autographed Oversize Photo 10/13 Photo 1910s

Description

Here is an extremely rare very early vintage original autographed 10 by 13" photo of Rosetta and Vivian Duncan, The Duncan Sisters, from the late 1910s signed by hand by one of them as The Duncan Sisters (not their first names); comparing the inscription to another one I have listed which has their individual signatures, it is clear this is written and signed by them. The Duncan Sisters were a famous American vaudeville duo who became popular in the 1920s with their act Topsy and Eva.
Rosetta (1894-1959) and Vivian Duncan (1897-1986) were born in Los Angeles, California, the daughters of a violinist turned salesman. They began their stage careers in 1911 as part of the cast of Gus Edwards' Kiddies' Revue.
During the next few years they perfected their act with Rosetta as a foghorn-voiced comedian and Vivian as the pretty-but-dumb blonde type. Within a few years they "matured into first-rate vaudeville troupers who wrote much of their music in dialogue." They subsequently played not only in vaudeville, but also in night clubs and on stage in both New York and London. They made their first important Broadway appearance in 1917 at the Winter Garden Theatre in a show with Ed Wynn and Frank Tinney entitled Doing Our Bit.
In 1923 the Duncans created their signature roles in Topsy and Eva (Rosetta as the former, in blackface, Vivian as the latter), a musical comedy derived from the novel Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. For this production they wrote and introduced the songs "I Never Had a Mammy" and "Rememb'ring". A huge hit in its day, Topsy and Eva was subsequently adapted into a 1927 silent movie, directed by Del Lord with some additional scenes by D. W. Griffith.
In 1929 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer released their early sound musical The Broadway Melody, starring Bessie Love and Anita Page as the fictional Mahoney sisters. The film proved to be highly successful so MGM decided to follow it up with a similar film, this time starring the real-life Duncan Sisters in the leads. The result was It's a Great Life (MGM, 1929), directed by Sam Wood and featuring three sequences filmed in Technicolor. In the film the Duncan Sisters performed two of their most popular songs, "I'm Following You" and "Hoosier Hop."
Vivian and Rosetta Duncan have made a snappy, hilarious comedy of the life of a vaudeville sister team in this elaborate picture. It is crammed to the gunwales with Duncan comedy, and they do a lot of the vocalizing that made them famous. Listen for "Following You" – you'll care for it.
Unfortunately, the film "faltered at the box office and helped to cut short the Duncans' movie career." The movie, seldom seen for decades in part due to the color footage being missing, resurfaced in 2010 in a restored print released by Warner Bros. Archive.
MGM did cast the Duncans in their all-star 1930 extravaganza The March of Time, but that film was never completed. In 1935 the Duncans returned to the screen in the short musical Surprise! which featured footage of them reprising their Topsy and Eva characters. Paper loss upper right corner, small tear upper border, corner and edge wear. Extremely rare, especially this early.
Will ship worldwide. I always combine shipping on multiple orders.
Rosetta Duncan Filmography:
1958Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok (TV Series)
Ma Malone
- The Angel of Cedar Mountain (1958) ... Ma Malone
1935Surprise! (Short)
Rosie / 'Topsy' (as Duncan Sisters)
1929It's a Great Life
Casey Hogan
1927Two Flaming Youths
Rosetta Duncam (uncredited)
1927/ITopsy and Eva
Topsy
Soundtrack (4 credits)
The Liberace Show (TV Series) (performer - 1 episode, 1954) (writer - 1 episode, 1954)
- Great Ladies in Theatre Tribute (1954) ... (performer: "Rememb'ring") / (writer: "Rememb'ring")
1935Surprise! (Short) (performer: "Dixie Is Calling", "I'm Don Bolero Vasquero Bolero", "If the Volga Flowed Through Dixie", "Sweet Music", "Chi mi frena in tal momento?" - uncredited)
1933Central Airport (writer: "Rememb'ring" - uncredited)
1929It's a Great Life (performer: "I'm Following You", "I'm Sailing on a Sunbeam!", "Hoosier Hop", "It's An Old Spanish Custom", "Tell Me Dirty Maiden" (comic version of "Tell Me Pretty Maiden"), "Ach, du lieber Augustin" - uncredited)
Hide HideSelf (8 credits)
1957This Is Your Life (TV Series)
Self
- Thelma White (1957) ... Self
1954The Liberace Show (TV Series)
Self - Singer
- Great Ladies in Theatre Tribute (1954) ... Self - Singer
1941Meet the Stars #4: Variety Reel #2 (Documentary short)
Self (as The Duncan Sisters)
1930The March of Time
Self (as The Duncan Sisters)
1930Screen Snapshots Series 9, No. 20 (Short)
Self
1930The Voice of Hollywood No. 7 (Documentary short)
Self (uncredited)
1930Screen Snapshots Series 9, No. 11 (Short)
Self
1929Hollywood Snapshots #11 (Documentary short)
Self
Hide HideArchive footage (2 credits)
1997American Masters (TV Series documentary)
Self
- Vaudeville (1997) ... Self
1994That's Entertainment! III (Documentary)
Performer in Clip from 'It's a Great Life' (uncredited)
Vivian Duncan Filmography:
1935Surprise! (Short)
Vivian / 'Eva' (as Duncan Sisters)
1929It's a Great Life
Babe Hogan
1927Two Flaming Youths
Vivian Duncan
1927/ITopsy and Eva
Eva
Hide HideSoundtrack (4 credits)
The Liberace Show (TV Series) (performer - 1 episode, 1954) (writer - 1 episode, 1954)
- Great Ladies in Theatre Tribute (1954) ... (performer: "Rememb'ring") / (writer: "Rememb'ring")
1935Surprise! (Short) (performer: "Dixie Is Calling", "Canta las Flores", "If the Volga Flowed Through Dixie", "Sweet Music", "Chi mi frena in tal momento?" - uncredited)
1933Central Airport (writer: "Rememb'ring" - uncredited)
1929It's a Great Life (performer: "I'm Following You", "I'm Sailing on a Sunbeam!", "Hoosier Hop", "It's An Old Spanish Custom", "Tell Me Dirty Maiden" (comic version of "Tell Me Pretty Maiden") - uncredited)
Hide HideSelf (9 credits)
1971The Merv Griffin Show (TV Series)
Self
- A Special Salute to the Silent Screen with guests Richard Arlen, Buddy Rogers, Jackie Coogan, Babe London, Chester Conklin, Ken Maynard, Neil Hamilton and many other silent screen stars. (1971) ... Self
1957This Is Your Life (TV Series)
Self
- Thelma White (1957) ... Self
1954The Liberace Show (TV Series)
Self - Singer
- Great Ladies in Theatre Tribute (1954) ... Self - Singer
1941Meet the Stars #4: Variety Reel #2 (Documentary short)
Self (as The Duncan Sisters)
1930The March of Time
Self (as The Duncan Sisters)
1930Screen Snapshots Series 9, No. 20 (Short)
Self
1930The Voice of Hollywood No. 7 (Documentary short)
Self (uncredited)
1930Screen Snapshots Series 9, No. 11 (Short)
Self
1929Hollywood Snapshots #11 (Documentary short)
Self
Hide HideArchive footage (2 credits)
1997American Masters (TV Series documentary)
Self
- Vaudeville (1997) ... Self
1994That's Entertainment! III (Documentary)
Performer in Clip from 'It's a Great Life' (uncredited)