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People think I don't like those impersonators who do me. Well, they're wrong. I like it very much, as long as they are very good. The only time I don't like it is if they aren't good, or, worse, if they're better than I am. I watch them to learn about myself. Until I saw Arthur Blake, I never knew I
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era to achieve success in both gay and mainstream entertainment. In the 1940s and 1950s he was a popular nightclub entertainer in London and other cities in the United
Kingdom, as well as in the United States. He was one of the headlining acts at the Rio Casino at
139:. He performed in nightclubs in cities throughout the United States and United Kingdom in the 1940s and the 1950s. Although he achieved fame for playing women, he impersonated men as well in his act.
166:(1952, as Max Ralli). In the latter film, his impersonations of Davis and Miranda were featured. In the 1960s and 1970s he was the headliner at the LGBTQ nightclub Crown & Anchor in
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in 1942. For twenty years he was the leading entertainer of the Crown & Anchor nightclub, serving the LGBTQ community, in
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428:(1952, as Max Ralli). In the latter film, his character Max does impersonations of Carmen Miranda, F.D.R., and Bette Davis.
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Although he achieved fame for playing women, his nightclub act also included impersonations of male celebrities such as
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Turner
Classic Movies Presents Leonard Maltin's Classic Movie Guide: From the Silent Era Through 1965, Third Edition
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123:(February 24, 1914 – March 24, 1985) was an American actor and nightclub entertainer who was famous for his
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Blake's nightclub act included impersonations of multiple famous women; including
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He died in 1985 of a heart attack in Fort
Lauderdale, Florida, at the age of 70.
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The
American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures: Film Beginnings, Part 3
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238:. Of all the women he portrayed, he was most celebrated for his portrayals of
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while they were in office. Bette Davis stated the following in an interview,
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708:. Vol. 1. Studio Casting Directory Publishing Company. p. 173.
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443:. The show was built around Blake's impersonations of celebrities like
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Columbia
Pictures Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films, 1928-1982
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Within Our Gates: Ethnicity in
American Feature Films, 1911-1960
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Universal
Horrors: The Studio's Classic Films, 1931–1946, 2d Ed
574:
Creating Carmen
Miranda: Race, Camp, and Transnational Stardom
182:, Blake was one of the few female impersonators of the post-
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Studio
Casting and Independent Call Bureau Service (1936).
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Blake appeared in mostly minor character roles in several
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Off
Broadway Musicals, 1910-2007: Casts, Credits, Songs
305:
Curtain Time: The Satirical Impressions of Arthur Blake
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Also a film actor, he is best remembered for the films
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American actor and nightclub entertainer (1914–1985)
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93:
74:
48:
23:
536:Spoken Word: Postwar American Phonograph Culture
189:Cocoanut Grove on the night of the infamous fire
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949:Jay Robert Nash, Stanley Ralph Ross (1986).
753:Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
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646:"Nightclubs—Vaudeville: Thrown Out of Work"
489:. Vol. 318. April 3, 1985. p. 87.
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404:(1950). He had more substantial parts in
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1113:People from Altoona, Pennsylvania
971:Bazin on Global Cinema, 1948-1958
326:(1936, as Jonathan's Syndicate),
823:Tom Weaver, John Brunas (2011).
654:. December 12, 1942. p. 11.
571:Kathryn Bishop-Sanchez (2021).
439:at the Plaza 9 Music Hall with
392:(1947, as Nathaniel Somerset),
926:University of California Press
863:. R. R. Bowker. p. 1906.
541:University of California Press
1:
1108:Male actors from Pennsylvania
918:(1997). Alan Gevinson (ed.).
431:In 1972 Blake starred in the
422:(1952, as Abdul Nassib), and
178:Born Arthur Blakely Clark in
160:(1952, as Abdul Nassib), and
614:. July 25, 1985. p. 21.
362:(1943, as British General),
579:Vanderbilt University Press
377:The Man in Half Moon Street
338:(1937, as Prime Minister),
254:to perform for them in the
193:Provincetown, Massachusetts
168:Provincetown, Massachusetts
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1039:. McFarland. p. 449.
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884:Michael R. Pitts (2010).
410:(1949, as Dolly Carney),
312:classical Hollywood films
148:(1949, as Dolly Carney),
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951:The Motion Picture Guide
612:Obituaries: Arthur Blake
487:OBITUARIES: Arthur Blake
320:(1936, as Party Guest),
303:with Starcrest Records,
267:moved my elbows so much.
127:; particularly those of
86:Fort Lauderdale, Florida
999:Leonard Maltin (2015).
892:McFarland & Company
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368:(1944, as the Butler),
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795:George Raft: The Films
792:Everett Aaker (2013).
705:Little Lord Fauntleroy
317:Little Lord Fauntleroy
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299:. He recorded a 1957
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252:Franklin D. Roosevelt
180:Altoona, Pennsylvania
125:female impersonations
103:Nightclub entertainer
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1098:Female impersonators
968:André Bazin (2014).
543:. pp. 126–129.
533:Jacob Smith (2011).
350:(1942, as Crosbie),
53:Arthur Blakely Clark
1033:Dan Dietz (2010).
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63:February 24, 1914
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314:; including
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285:Frank Morgan
277:Raymond Burr
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184:World War II
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80:(1985-03-24)
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25:Arthur Blake
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1088:1985 deaths
1083:1914 births
775:|work=
722:|work=
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449:Noël Coward
395:Unconquered
281:Peter Lorre
260:White House
240:Bette Davis
129:Bette Davis
94:Occupations
1077:Categories
458:References
419:Harem Girl
224:Zazu Pitts
157:Harem Girl
59:1914-02-24
955:Cinebooks
777:ignored (
767:cite book
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687:ignored (
677:cite book
651:Billboard
630:ignored (
620:cite book
505:ignored (
495:cite book
441:Luba Lisa
256:East Room
114:1942–1972
37:Blake in
857:(1943).
755:(1947).
386:(1944),
380:(1945),
374:(1944),
365:Gaslight
356:(1941),
341:Madame X
332:(1936),
258:of the
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69:, U.S.
43:(1949)
100:Actor
1068:IMDb
1041:ISBN
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896:ISBN
865:ISBN
835:ISBN
804:ISBN
779:help
726:help
689:help
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545:ISBN
507:help
447:and
234:and
75:Died
49:Born
1066:at
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
