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Duncan Sisters
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Duncan Sisters, Vivian Duncan (June 17, 1897 - September 19, 1986) and Rosetta Duncan (November 23, 1894 - December 4, 1959) were a popular twin sister duo that became famous with their Topsy & Eva routine during the 1920s.
During the following couple of years they culminated their demonstration with Rosetta as a foghorn-voiced comic and Vivian as the pretty-yet stupid blonde sort. Inside a couple of years they "matured into first-rate vaudeville troupers who wrote much of their music in dialogue." They in this manner played in vaudeville, yet in addition in night clubs and in front of an audience in both New York and London. In 1930 Vivian wedded entertainer Nils Asther, who had co-featured with her and Rosetta in the film adaptation of Topsy and Eva.
Rosetta (who was lesbian) endeavored a performance vocation for a couple of years, however was re-joined with Vivian in 1932 after Vivian's separation from Asther. In spite of the fact that at this point past their prime, the Duncan Sisters proceeded as a well known night club performers represent a few additional decades.
They additionally showed up in a few "Soundies" and furthermore on TV's You Asked For It. In the late 1940s the Duncans composed and recorded four Christmas choices for the Hollywood Recording Guild Inc.
In 1956 both Rosetta and Vivian showed up on Liberace's network show. They sang a portion of their melodies and did their Topsy and Eva schedule. Their demonstration finished in 1959 when Rosetta died from wounds supported in a car crash in Cicero, Illinois. Vivian accordingly kept executing as a solitary follow up on the club circuit. She died of Alzheimer's in 1986.
The sisters were mentioned in the "$250,000 Infringement Lawsuit" as the original baby-talk vocalists, along with Irene Franklin, Nan Halperin, Peggy Bernier, and Hannah Williams.
Fleischer Studios (2021)
Duncan Sisters are one of the several "scat singing" performers to be given tribute by the Fleischer Studios and official Betty Boop page in 2021. You can find out more by clicking "The Battle Over Booping" and following the link to the Fleischer Studios article.
Baby Sister Blues (1923)
"Baby Sister Blues" is an early baby-talk song by the Duncan Sisters that was released in 1923, which also features scat singing. During the Betty Boop $250,000 lawsuit, the Duncan Sisters release of "Um-Um-Da-Da" was brought up in court when Helen Kane claimed that her singing style, look and mannerisms were original. Kane later lost her suit when it was proven that her act was not original and had been performed by a galaxy of performers, most notably by Florence Mills impersonator Baby Esther Jones.
Trivia
- The sisters made their Broadway debut in 1917 at the Winter Garden Theatre.
- Their Topsy & Eva routine featured blackface.
- Rosetta was a lesbian who had problems with alcohol, and Vivian was married to a closet homosexual.
- In an early magazine review for the new Victor Orthophonic Victrola, the sisters were featured in an article with Billy Murray (the original voice of Bimbo) and Aileen Stanley.