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unknown. Bauman also determined that Bloom, who also painted his own works, had likely altered the original portrait himself. Bauman also believed Bloom painted over the original portrait, forged
Carpenter's name and created the fake affidavit. Bloom's claim that the portrait was given to his sister Susan by Jacob G. Neafie's daughter in appreciation of her care for the ailing Anna Neafie was proven to be false. Susan Bloom was born in 1855 and was only five years old when Anna Neafie died in 1860. James M. Cornelius, the curator of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, believes that Bloom was able to pull off the hoax because all the participants in his story were dead. Cornelius also believes that Bloom sought the Lincolns out to not only make money from the sale of the portrait but to legitimatize its authenticity. Bloom was likely aware that the surviving Lincolns were eager to portray Mary and her son Robert Todd Lincoln in a more sympathetic light after the family had received a great deal of negative publicity after Robert had his mother forcibly institutionalized in 1875.
443:) to paint a portrait of her as gift to her husband. After the President's death, Bloom claimed that Mary Lincoln was unable to pay Carpenter for the painting and asked him to destroy it. According to Bloom, Carpenter kept the painting and eventually sold it to a wealthy Philadelphia shipbuilder named Jacob G. Neafie who was a great fan of President Lincoln's. After Neafie died, Bloom said that Neafie's daughter inherited the portrait who then gave it to Bloom's sister Susan as gift for taking care of her mother, Anna "Annie" Neafie, who died in 1860. Upon Susan's death in 1910, Bloom inherited her art collection which he said included the portrait of Mary Lincoln.
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505:. As the painting had been owned by the Lincoln family, the authenticity of the painting was not immediately questioned. The conservators that worked on the initial restoration reasoned that the added paint was likely the result of "heavy handed" retouches by other conservators or by Francis Bicknell Carpenter who was known to "fiddle with" his finished paintings. The lack of resemblance to the woman in the portrait to the real Mary Lincoln was rationalized as "artistic idealization". For the next 32 years, the portrait hung at the
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497:, it was discovered that the facial area of the subject had been altered. The woman in the portrait was noted to have coloring that was brighter than the original 1929 portrait and that the face of the woman was "different, plainer" than Mary Todd Lincoln's. The conservators also discovered that the subject was wearing a
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bearing the face of
Abraham Lincoln worn by the subject covered a floral brooch. Bauman also inspected the signature of Francis Bicknell Carpenter and the date, both of which were added on top of the varnish layer. After comparing the signature to Carpenter's other paintings, the signature was deemed
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After the portrait was completely restored, Bauman determined that while it had been painted in the 1860s (likely around 1864), the woman in the portrait was not Mary Todd
Lincoln and the painting was not the work of Francis Bicknell Carpenter. The real subject of the portrait and the artist remain
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Bloom's "Society Tramp" character was a philosophical, shabbily dressed homeless man who drank frequently and was generally treated poorly by other characters. Despite his lowly status, the tramp would make light of his predicament and maintained a positive and comicial outlook. Typically, tramp
355:. After leaving Hoyt in 1892, Bloom and his wife (whom he married in 1892), known as "Miss Jane Cooper", toured the vaudeville circuit with their comedy act "A Picture of Life". Bloom played his usual tramp role while his wife played the comic foil - a "New England spinster" or a "city maiden."
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sat on top of the paint indicating that someone had altered the original. After removing the varnish, Bauman discovered that the woman Bloom claimed was Mary Todd
Lincoln was an unknown woman who bore no resemblance to the former First Lady. It was noted that the woman's coloring was "...much
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In April 2010, art conservator Barry Bauman was hired to clean the portrait as it had accumulated dirt and grime after years of being displayed. Bauman also hoped to restore the portrait to its previous 1929 appearance. During the restoration, Bauman soon discovered that a layer of
458:. The exact sale price is unknown, but is believed to be between $ 2,000 to $ 3,000 (approximately $ 35,000 to $ 53,000 today). The portrait was the subject of considerable media attention and was written about in the February 12, 1929 edition of the
374:. Upon his sister Susan's death in 1910, he inherited her art collection. In April 1907, Bloom exhibited seven pieces of his original works at the Reinhard Rieger Gallery in Mount Penn. The exhibition also included a copy of
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also established long and successful stage and film careers portraying their version of the tramp persona. Bloom would later insist he originated the character and that he was "the first stage tramp in the business".
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378:, by Herman Rheudesela that Bloom painted (the original painting was also exhibited). Bloom later moved to New York and occasionally returned to his hometown of Reading to spend time with his family and attend
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in the Shelby, Pullman & Hamilton Circus. After a year, Bloom returned to
Reading where formed a partnership with vaudevillian Howard Monroe. The duo performed song and dance numbers and comedy skits in
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By 1909, Bloom's tramp persona had run its course and his career began to wane. At least one critic during that time said that Bloom had become "the worst act on the bill" of vaudeville shows.
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Moyer) Pflum. His parents, who immigrated from
Germany, had six other children: Susannah, Susan Deborah, Louisa, Charles, Edward and Adolph (who died as a child). Bloom's father worked as a
402:. He died there two days later of "complication of diseases" at the age of 70. Bloom's funeral was held at the Seidel Funeral Chapel in Reading on December 16. He was buried at
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to it and displayed the portrait at Milch
Galleries in Manhattan. Shortly before his death in December 1929, he sold the portrait to president and Mary Lincoln's granddaughter
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noted that the portrait had been "heavily retouched" and contained significant elements that were added after the original painting had been completed. After a partial
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Biographical Annals of Berks County, Pennsylvania, Embracing a Concise History of the County and a Genealogical Record of Representative Families
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Bloom's tramp character became a big hit with audiences and was quickly copied by hundreds of other performers of the era including
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fresher, a much warmer, a much redder toned, flesh toned..." than the original painting depicted. Bauman also discovered that a
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Bloom's stage career peaked in the 1890s. Throughout the decade, he continued to portray tramps in various stage productions by
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In early 1929, Bloom made news when he announced that he had acquired a previously unknown oil portrait of former
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meetings. He also trained horses for
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for his friend's second establishment, The
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Bloom spent several years touring in variety shows with his jockey act before relocating to
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to Reading. Bloom performed song and dance acts at the hotel and also began competing as a
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in 1888. It was his role in the latter production where he first conceived of the
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To validate his claim of the portrait's authenticity, Bloom attached a notarized
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characters like Bloom's included slapstick comedy routines as well as dancing or
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he Unknown Night: The Genius and Madness of R. A. Blakelock, an American Painter
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until Bloom left the duo and went to New York to perform comedy as a solo act.
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character. After retiring from the stage in the 1910s, he became a prolific
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Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum Collection file LR 938.
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Bauman, Barry. (Written 2011. Published February 10, 2012) Case Study:
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for six months during Lincoln's presidency and had previously painted
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First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln
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After retiring from performing in the late 1910s, Bloom lived in
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Down and Out, on the Road: The Homeless in American History
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Citizen Hobo: How a Century of Homelessness Shaped America
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which Mary Lincoln would not have worn as she was not a
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Vaudeville performer, art collector, art dealer, painter
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performer and stage actor who popularized the comical
169:; August 8, 1859 â December 12, 1929) was an American
884:. Reading, Pennsylvania. December 15, 1929. p. 2
592:. Reading, Pennsylvania. December 13, 1929. p. 2
425:. Bloom claimed shortly before President Lincoln was
918:"Mrs. Lincoln, I Presume? Well, as It Turns Out ..."
796:. Reading, Pennsylvania. January 15, 1899. p. 9
1010:"Fake Mary Todd painting makes it even more famous"
987:"Fake Mary Todd painting makes it even more famous"
943:"Fake Mary Todd painting makes it even more famous"
819:. Salt Lake City, Utah. August 28, 1909. p. 8.
192:involving an oil portrait that he claimed depicted
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1059:The Demise of Mary Lincoln: An Artistic Conspiracy
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840:. Reading, Pennsylvania. April 6, 1907. p. 4
740:. University Press of Mississippi. p. 56.
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790:"Bud Bloom, Reading, The Original Tramp"
709:. Oxford University Press. p. 186.
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624:. University of Chicago Press. p.
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1008:Wetterich, Chris (February 14, 2012).
985:Wetterich, Chris (February 14, 2012).
941:Wetterich, Chris (February 14, 2012).
862:Brudereck, Jason (February 18, 2012).
586:"Death Claims Originator Of Tramp Act"
916:Cohen, Patricia (February 11, 2012).
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1141:American male musical theatre actors
864:"Berks man bilked Honest Abe's kin?"
553:. J.H. Beers & Company. p.
429:, Mary Lincoln commissioned painter
292:In 1885, Bloom was cast in the play
967:Hageman, William (April 16, 2012).
1236:20th-century American male artists
1221:20th-century American male singers
1196:19th-century American male singers
834:"Paintings Of Lew Bloom Exhibited"
547:Montgomery, Morton Luther (1909).
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1186:Actors from Reading, Pennsylvania
1171:Burials at Charles Evans Cemetery
1156:American people of German descent
1091:20th-century American male actors
1086:19th-century American male actors
681:. Faber & Faber. p. 49.
223:. The family eventually moved to
1146:American male silent film actors
1231:19th-century American comedians
1216:20th-century American comedians
421:, the widow of slain president
231:where Bloom began working as a
207:Bloom was born Ludwig Pflum in
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1191:American vaudeville performers
1096:20th-century American painters
764:Vincent, Glyn Vincent (2003).
738:The Encyclopedia of Vaudeville
427:assassinated on April 14, 1865
37:Bloom as his "tramp" character
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1226:20th-century American singers
1201:19th-century American singers
1181:Male actors from Pennsylvania
1166:Blackface minstrel performers
1012:. galesburg.com. pp. 1â2
878:"Lew Bloom To Be Buried Here"
256:, where he competed in horse
768:. Grove Press. p. 200.
679:Chaplin: The Tramp's Odyssey
483:Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith
476:Mary Lincoln: Wife and Widow
1211:Comedians from Philadelphia
969:"Anatomy of a fake Lincoln"
705:Kusmer, Kenneth L. (2002).
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1151:American male stage actors
1116:American circus performers
1038:Internet Broadway Database
989:. galesburg.com. p. 3
945:. galesburg.com. p. 2
653:. A.A. Knopf. p. 46.
507:Illinois Executive Mansion
431:Francis Bicknell Carpenter
376:The Brooklet In the Meadow
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651:W.C. Fields: A Biography
616:DePastino, Todd (2003).
491:Art Institute of Chicago
400:Manhattan, New York City
368:Mount Penn, Pennsylvania
296:, followed by a role in
215:, to Ludwig and Louisa (
1136:American male comedians
1126:American horse trainers
1106:American art collectors
406:the following morning.
271:Bloom later became the
1101:American male painters
649:Curtis, James (2003).
433:(who had lived at the
410:Mary Todd Lincoln hoax
404:Charles Evans Cemetery
372:Ralph Albert Blakelock
319:and Charles R. Sweet.
100:Charles Evans Cemetery
971:. chicagotribune.com.
511:Springfield, Illinois
452:Jessie Harlan Lincoln
225:Reading, Pennsylvania
1206:American male boxers
1111:American art dealers
288:Stage and vaudeville
125:Poplar Street School
866:. readingeagle.com.
456:Robert Todd Lincoln
1176:Lightweight boxers
922:The New York Times
815:"Orpheum review".
474:'s 1932 biography
747:978-1-61703-249-3
688:978-0-571-23768-5
419:Mary Todd Lincoln
396:Bellevue Hospital
349:A Day and a Night
345:A Milk White Flag
333:Charles Hale Hoyt
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78:(1929-12-12)
65:Pennsylvania
61:Philadelphia
47:Ludwig Pflum
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1161:Art forgery
1081:1929 deaths
1076:1859 births
527:a forgery.
495:restoration
435:White House
362:Later years
258:match races
248:Early years
190:art forgery
143:Jane Cooper
106:Nationality
1070:Categories
535:References
416:First Lady
335:including
237:acrobatics
203:Early life
194:First Lady
171:vaudeville
53:1859-08-08
1048:Lew Bloom
1034:Lew Bloom
481:In 1976,
448:affidavit
380:Elks Club
310:pantomime
304:persona.
282:blackface
163:Lew Bloom
122:Education
117:Bud Bloom
84:Manhattan
25:Lew Bloom
1016:March 1,
993:March 1,
949:March 1,
888:March 1,
800:March 1,
736:(2012).
677:(2009).
596:March 1,
464:and the
109:American
1036:at the
519:varnish
262:cabaret
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524:brooch
243:Career
233:jockey
221:cooper
183:dealer
165:(born
138:Spouse
90:, U.S.
67:, U.S.
390:Death
302:tramp
277:clown
175:tramp
149:(
145:
1018:2015
995:2015
951:2015
890:2015
846:2015
802:2015
770:ISBN
742:ISBN
711:ISBN
683:ISBN
655:ISBN
630:ISBN
598:2015
384:Cuba
351:and
323:and
181:and
73:Died
43:Born
1050:at
626:157
555:874
509:in
398:in
217:nÊe
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