Gladyslived at address, Kentucky. His mother was the daughter of a cotton farmer and she met his father at church. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. Its a woman.. But theres something very disturbing about this story. Gladys Alberta Bentley (August 12, 1907 January 18, 1960)[1] was an American blues singer, pianist, and entertainer during the Harlem Renaissance. Get it, Gladys. She was one of the most well-known and financially successful black women in the United States in the 1920s and 1930s. This happened even at her star-studded Hollywood shows, which would have the likes of Mary Astor and Barbara Stanwyck watching from the audience. Though the cause was a heart attack, it was later found that one of the contributing factors was liver failure due to alcohol poisoning. Miss Bentley was an amazing exhibition of musical energy a large, dark, masculine lady, whose feet pounded the floor while her fingers pounded the keyboard a perfect piece of African sculpture, animated by her own rhythm.[15]. In her music, she called out men and openly sang about sexual relationships which was seen as risqu behavior at the time. Are you sure that you want to report this flower to administrators as offensive or abusive? Try again. Inside these hidden, smoky rooms, Bentley astounded and scandalized audiences with her booming voice, her impeccably tailored suits, and her raunchy lyrics. Gladys Bentley died suddenly from the flu in Los Angeles in 1960 at the age of 52. In 1933, Bentley found herself in the middle of a Supreme Court battle with Harry Hansberry and Nat Palein. A large, masculine, Black womana "bulldagger," in the language of her dayshe was known for wearing a. Are you sure that you want to delete this photo? I knew that she was going to take it badly, but I had no idea about the insane lengths she would go to just to get revenge and mess with my life. Cookie Policy Table showing information for name claims, including the name itself . While Bentley was in California, the halcyon days of the liberal Roaring Twenties transformed into conservatism almost overnight, and she didnt find as many friendly faces in her crowds. On the decline of the Harlem speakeasies with the repeal of Prohibition, she relocated to southern California, where she was billed as "America's Greatest Sepia Piano Player" and the "Brown Bomber of Sophisticated Songs". Please enter your email and password to sign in. She was larger in size and preferred to wear her brother's suits instead of dresses or blouses. "[5] She believed that growing up feeling rejected shaped her behavior; she never wanted a man to touch her, hated her brothers, wore boys' clothes, and had a crush on one of her female teachers in elementary school. She moved from Philadelphia to Harlem, a neighborhood in New York City in 1925[7] at the age of 16. It only got worse from there. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. Bentley claimed that she and her white female lover went through a civil union in New Jersey. [22] Gibson denied ever marrying her.[23]. Bentley began singing at rent parties and buffet flats. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. Gipson shortly after arriving on the West coast. The performer had survived a harsh life up until this point, but she was about to spiral out of control. This browser does not support getting your location. In the end, the booming, bodacious, and vivacious singer succumbed to the relatively common ailment of pneumonia, which came on quickly and didnt let her go. I wore immaculate full white dress shirts with stiff collars, small bow ties and shirts, oxfords, short Eton jackets and hair cut straight back.. The Great Blues Singer Gladys Bentley Broke All the Rules Some pearl-clutching patrons complained, and the citys response was swift and brutal. When Gladys died in 1958, newspapers around the world gave her age as 42, when she was really 46. Scholars who have studied Bentleys life said that the story Bentley told about being cured in the Ebony article was likely a response to the McCarthy Era and its hostile claims that homosexuality and communism were threats to the country. Elvis had an emergency opportunity to visit her, but she did not make it. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Elvis Presley's mother, Gladys Presley, died on August 14, 1958, of a heart attack. She started to perform at prohibition-era rent parties, soirees that charged guests a fee to come enjoy a house party with booze and entertainment. In it, she not only repudiates her homosexuality, but also her entire identity before that moment, revealing that she now only wears dresses and other acceptable housewife attire in order to please her husband and herself. Bentley died of pneumonia unexpectedly at her home in Los Angeles on January 18, 1960, aged 52. The teenage Bentley was in way over her head when she moved to Harlem, and she needed to find work, stat. It only got worse from there. and experiment both sexually and socially.. The unknown cause explained a tragic death that had occurred decades earlier. Well, it backfired. While Wilson says there is no record of that union taking place, the story is still a glimpse into Bentleys unapologetic openness about her sexual orientation, and her acute understanding of the power of shock value.
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