The Washington times., 1937-03-13
Red Hot Mama
Still Wants
To BeGood

80 years in vaudeville, night clubs
and radio by becoming a motion
picture actress.
But in spite Of her varied ex-
perience, Sophie wants to be we'll
prepared when she steps in front
of the cameras for her feature
role in Broadway Melody Of 1887"
co-starring Eleanor we'll and
Robert Taylor. And for that rea-
son she's hired dramatic teacher.
Sure, I'm taking three lessons
week from Laura Hope Crews"
says the songstress, who has gained
international fame as the Red
Hot Mama" II know how to act
and sing, but in this new role,
that of a picture star. I'm going
legitimate and your gal Sophie
wants to be perfect in her tech
nique."
That's typical of Sophie Tuck
er's life. Nothing was handed to
her on a silver platter, so she's
used to working for everything
she gets. And she's come all the
way from kitchen helper to q
kings favorite by that method.
Literally, the Red Hot Mama"
is a woman without a country, in
that she was born on ship some
five hundred miles at sea from
Odessa, Russia, where her par
entS made their home.
Besides being woman without
a country, she's also without a
real name, although her family
adopted the name Of Abuza. The
manner in which they adopted it
reads like chapter from a
thrilling novel.
Her father, a peace-loving man,
gave shelter in his home to an
Italian deserter, whose name was
AbuZa.
He was ill when they took him
in their home, and a few weeks
later, in spite of all the medical
aid that the family could afford,
the Italian deserter died. In or
der to get out of Russia, Sophie's
father took the dead mans name
so they would be unmolested in
their flight.
The family settled in Hartford,
Conn, and the next memory that
Sophie has is working in her
fathers hole-in-the-wall restau-
rant, as waitress, cook and handy
man. Sixteen at the time, she
was a big, stout girl, with voice
that could be heard for blocks.
Her voice lessons consisted of
calling out orders Of "gefulte
fish" and noodle soup from the
front of the restaurant so her
mother could hear them in the
kitchen.
"One day the Howard Brothers
of vaudeville fame came into
dads place, and hearing me yell
out the orders, said that could
really sing. They were only kid
ding, but I believed every word
when they told me that I had
wonderful voice." says Sophie.
From that time on I became
obsessed with the desire to be-
come an actress and a singer"
One day. with five dollars in
her purse, and a million dollars
worth of confidence and hope in
her heart, Sophie started out
for New York to become famous!
Her first job-and Sophie says
it was job and not an engage
ment-was in the old German Vii
lage Cafe on Fortieth Street and
Broadway. She was paid salary
of SIS a week and a bonus. The
bonus was the pennies that were
thrown at her by the customers
while she sang. Thus, by lodging
pennies and singing, she was able
to make living wage.
Next she worked at Tony Pas
tors, on the Bowery. Then came
her chance in big time vaudeville.
While doing her act in Holyoke.
Mass, she was seen by the late
Florenz Ziegfeld, who signed her
for one of his early Follies.
While the show was in Cincin-
natl, a woman brought her son to
see Sophie about a job as piano
player. Sophie wanted to hire the
lad, but she was afraid the juve-
nile society would get after her.
She told his mother to bring him
back when he wore long pants.
The boys name was Harry Rich
mani
While she was in Orpheum
vaudeville she met the boys who
kidded her about being singer.
And she played on the same bill
with the Howard Brothers, much
to their surprise. 1t was then
that they admitted that they were
kidding-but they must have been
kidding themselves.
In 1911 she introduced the song
that made her famous, the beloved
Some Of These Days" The first
time she worked for Balaban and
Katz, in Chicago at the Circle
Theater, she received $3.50 a week.
Later this was raised to $8,500.
incidentally, she is working for
Sam KatZ, of Balaban & Katz, at
Metro Goldwyn-Mayer.
In 1925 she made a short sub
ject, one of the first talking pic
lures, called "Honky Tonk"-and
the less said about it, the better
Sophie feels.
Sophie Tucker can be called a
true Sophisticate, for her friends
range from chorus girls on Broad
way to the royal family in Great
Britain.
The Sinnar u,hn is nna nR the