You Can’t Take It With You – Glossary
You Can’t Take It With You – Glossary
From the George S. Kaufman Archive
You Can’t Take It With You – Glossary
El Morocco: Glamorous nightclub and former speakeasy on E. 54th Street
Porgy and Bess: Groundbreaking opera by George and Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward about the black denizens of Catfish Row in South Carolina, 1935.
Trotsky: Soviet leader, instrumental in the Bolshevik Revolution; exiled to Mexico in 1929 and assassinated in 1940.
Kay Francis: Stage and screen star noted for her elegant couture; she played a supporting role in the film version of The Cocoanuts and the lead in First Lady, both based on Kaufman plays.
Second Four-Year Plan: The second of three ambitious economic and industrial plans initiated by Stalin; this one was in effect from 1932-1937.
Bakst: Leon Bakst (1866-1924) a Russian set designer worked exclusively with Sergei Diaghilieff (1872-1929), master ballet director and producer, who ran the Ballets Russes from 1920 –1929.
Singer midgets: A vaudeville team who would achieve fame two years later as key Munchkins in The Wizard of Oz.
The Good Earth: Pearl S. Buck’s 1931 novel about the travails of a Chinese peasant family; it was a major best seller and won the Pulitzer Prize.
Sex Takes a Holiday: In 1929, a popular Broadway play by Walter Ferris opened, called Death Takes a Holiday.
Peg o’ My Heart: Popular sentimental play by J. Hartley Manners; opening in 1912, it ran for 602 performances and countless engagements in stock and touring productions.
Pavlova: Anna Pavlova (1885-1901); legendary Russian ballerina.
Relief: The Federal Emergency Relief Administration was one of the first agencies to distribute financial assistance during the Depression, beginning in 1933.
WPA: Works Progress Administration, formed in 1935 to, among other tasks, use government funds to employ actors, writers, musicians, and artists in major projects across the nation.
Scheherezade: Ballet based on the music of Russian composer Rimsky-Korsakov.
Spiritualism: A belief in the ability to communicate with the spirits of the deceased; enjoyed a mild revival in the 1920s until successfully debunked by Harry Houdini.
Union Club: One of New York’s oldest and most exclusive clubs; founded in 1836 for descendants of original Dutch settlers.
Bar Harbour: Popular vacation spot on the Southeastern Maine coast.
Childs’: Restaurant chain founded in 1889 that promoted cleanliness, good service and simple food at popular prices.
Hattie Carnegie (1886-1956): America’s best-known dress designer of the ‘30s and ‘40s: her couture house was located on East 49th Street.
Schrafft’s: A chain of ice-cream and refreshment parlors opened in 1898; catered to a genteel clientele.
Cleveland and Blaine: In the 1884 presidential election, Democrat Grover Cleveland defeated Republican James Blaine. This would have been Grandpa’s first presidential election in which he could voted.
El Morocco: Glamorous nightclub and former speakeasy on E. 54th Street
Porgy and Bess: Groundbreaking opera by George and Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward about the black denizens of Catfish Row in South Carolina, 1935.
Trotsky: Soviet leader, instrumental in the Bolshevik Revolution; exiled to Mexico in 1929 and assassinated in 1940.
Kay Francis: Stage and screen star noted for her elegant couture; she played a supporting role in the film version of The Cocoanuts and the lead in First Lady, both based on Kaufman plays.
Second Four-Year Plan: The second of three ambitious economic and industrial plans initiated by Stalin; this one was in effect from 1932-1937.
Bakst: Leon Bakst (1866-1924) a Russian set designer worked exclusively with Sergei Diaghilieff (1872-1929), master ballet director and producer, who ran the Ballets Russes from 1920 –1929.
Singer midgets: A vaudeville team who would achieve fame two years later as key Munchkins in The Wizard of Oz.
The Good Earth: Pearl S. Buck’s 1931 novel about the travails of a Chinese peasant family; it was a major best seller and won the Pulitzer Prize.
Sex Takes a Holiday: In 1929, a popular Broadway play by Walter Ferris opened, called Death Takes a Holiday.
Peg o’ My Heart: Popular sentimental play by J. Hartley Manners; opening in 1912, it ran for 602 performances and countless engagements in stock and touring productions.
Pavlova: Anna Pavlova (1885-1901); legendary Russian ballerina.
Relief: The Federal Emergency Relief Administration was one of the first agencies to distribute financial assistance during the Depression, beginning in 1933.
WPA: Works Progress Administration, formed in 1935 to, among other tasks, use government funds to employ actors, writers, musicians, and artists in major projects across the nation.
Scheherezade: Ballet based on the music of Russian composer Rimsky-Korsakov.
Spiritualism: A belief in the ability to communicate with the spirits of the deceased; enjoyed a mild revival in the 1920s until successfully debunked by Harry Houdini.
Union Club: One of New York’s oldest and most exclusive clubs; founded in 1836 for descendants of original Dutch settlers.
Bar Harbour: Popular vacation spot on the Southeastern Maine coast.
Childs’: Restaurant chain founded in 1889 that promoted cleanliness, good service and simple food at popular prices.
Hattie Carnegie (1886-1956): America’s best-known dress designer of the ‘30s and ‘40s: her couture house was located on East 49th Street.
Schrafft’s: A chain of ice-cream and refreshment parlors opened in 1898; catered to a genteel clientele.
Cleveland and Blaine: In the 1884 presidential election, Democrat Grover Cleveland defeated Republican James Blaine. This would have been Grandpa’s first presidential election in which he could voted.
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Literary Trustee, George S. Kaufman Estate
