The Ziegfeld Girls were Le Crazy Horse with skills (photos)
AS Le Crazy Horse nude cabaret arrives in London, we hark back to the Ziegfeld Girls, the ladies from Florenz Ziegfeld’s Ziegfeld Follies, an act based on the Folies Bergère of Paris. Established in 1869, the original French show propelled Josephine Baker and her “Danse sauvage” to fame. The black dancer epitomised the club’s desire to the exotic. She dressed in a string of artificial bananas and a bra top. Could that happen now? Back then, it was the place to be. In 1900, Charles Bennett, aka the ‘Shapwick Express’, the first British track and field athlete to win Olympic gold, celebrated his victory by going to the Folies. Naked ladies never go out of fashion, so Ziegfeld created his dancer show. Sophie Tucker, Fanny Brice, Cyd Charrise and Bob Hope all appeared. Women unwrapping had never looked so glamorous…
