Ottumwa tri-weekly courier., 1911-12-14
MISS NELLIE MAE BREWSTER -
1.-THE GIRL WHO LAUGHS."


| Miss Nellie Mae Brewster, appear
ing in Los Angeles at the Empress
! theater in the Amsterdam quartet, was
| termed "The. girl who laughs" by Es-
| telle Lawton Lindsey in an interview
given in the Los Angeles Record. Miss
Lindsey says: .,.s
when you see Nellie Brewster,
| she might .fittingly be termed the
official smile of the Amsterdam quar-
tet-which, by the way, is a quintette
unless you wish to omit the smile.
Nellie is the most radiant personal
ity 1t has been my good fortune to
meet, not glitteringly and glaringly ra-
diant like, the MONDAY sun on piece
Of new tin, but genuipely and refresh
ingly joyous, with spontaneous happi-
ness that surrounds her like halo.
She is the kind of person that is good
for sore eyes, sore hearts and sore
heads, using the terms in the broadest
meaning; and it is small wonder that,
Fin spite of her youth, which Is as evil
dent as her sweetness. she finds her
trim feet firmly planted on the ladder
that leads to success.
"'The stage has done me lots of
good she told me when I called on
her in her dressing room at the EN-
press. This was handsome of her, be-
cause you would think it is the stage
that has profited. T.,
"'You see, when l went on the stage
was just spoiled child. am the
only daughter of an Iowa newspaper
man, and went to New York to learn to
sing just as an accomplishment. My
people are Mortified to think I am an
actress: l am really the only black
sheep in the flock Isn't it dreadful?
"'But as was saying, was
spoiled something awful, and every
time things did not go to please
did not get me anywhere. Every
body was terribly sorry for me.
but they ran away just the same. You
know how we all run from gloom
She paused and beamed with such a
wonderful smile that had hard work
to keep from kissing her then and
there. and getting her makeup all over
me. To divert my mind looked about
the dressing room and thought how in
viting it was.
"Billikin sat in front Of the mirror:
and you know how it is when you look
at Billikin; photographs of friends
strewed the dressing table, and unique
dolls added to the general effect of
nominees that pervaded the room.
A bunch of carnations added note OF
artistic beauty.
| "'See the notices. Dimpling and
smiling, she pointed to the walls upon
which she had pinned a number of
helpful notices, all voicing her phil
osophy of life.
"'The world honors the sticker, but
never the quitter.' AN ounce of loyalty
is worth a pound of cleverness,' and
in the most conspicuous place, The
Girl Who Laughs
"1 put EN- all up when I decided
"weeps" did not pay: and then began
to win. When I found myself in a
dirty, smelly dressing room instead Of
raving and weeping. I went out and
bought a bunch of flowers so my
smeller could do the work it was made
for. and keep it's self-respect And I
studied my notices and sang to beat
sin Then one night when I was sing
ing in a little act in New York. one OF
the girls came up and pinched my arm
saying: "Just guess who's out front
to hear you sing?"
"'Of course I never on earth would
have guessed Richard Carle but there
he was-I saw his bald head-and he
had his manager with him. After the
performance they sent in their cards
and was engaged to take the lead in
"Mary's Lamb" You will say I owed
that engagement to my voice: but
say owed it to the fact that I made
cheerfulness the keynote Of my life
"1 think you owed it to both-but
why are you in vaudeville
"The girl raised her head and
touched deep scar beneath her chin.
"'There was one time when stuck
too hard to my work; that was when
I had an abscess forming at the root
of a tooth. This scar means three
months of agony She looked up
brightly Y needed my philosophy
then; when I was we'll again Mr. Carle
:had some one else. and I had a chance
!. to do this work. There are four boys in
il the auartet-and me. That makes a
lquintet. doesn't it? Well. am not ex.
.actlv in the quartet: I sing solos and
keen the boys cheerful. They like my
fludity of spirit, it ripples over the
hard places SO well: ripple is more
cheering than crash.
"T went back to Iowa last year
the first time since I went on the
stage. My. what homecoming. My
friends were simply lovely to me- How
could I help being happy and believing
in the smile as fixed philosophy
Her sweet face dimpled all up and
her big eyes shone with the gladness
of youth and hope and happy mem.
ories.
"T am going to work and work she
said, and am never. never. going to
marry-stop laughing: I mean it. |
can't stay on the stage and marry, too
and am just crazy to see if can act
as we'll as sing
"'My dear I said it would be a
itraeedy for a girl like YOU to STAY