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Red Hot Mama: The Life of Sophie Tucker
The “First Lady of Show Business” and the “Last of the Red Hot Mamas,” Sophie Tucker was a star in vaudeville, radio, film, and television. A gutsy, song-belting stage performer, she entertained audiences for sixty years and inspired a host of younger women, including Judy Garland, Carol Channing, and Bette Midler. Tucker was a woman who defied traditional expectations and achieved success on her own terms, becoming the first female president of the American Federation of Actors and winning many other honors usually bestowed on men. Dedicated to social justice, she advocated for African Americans in the entertainment industry and cultivated friendships with leading black activists and performers. Tucker was also one of the most generous philanthropists in show business, raising over four million dollars for the religious and racial causes she held dear. Drawing from the hundreds of scrapbooks Tucker compiled, Red Hot Mama presents a compelling biography of this larger-than-life performer. Lauren Rebecca Sklaroff tells an engrossing story of how a daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants set her sights on becoming one of the most formidable women in show business and achieved her version of the American dream. More than most of her contemporaries, Tucker understood how to keep her act fresh, to change branding when audiences grew tired and, most importantly, how to connect with her fans, the press, and entertainment moguls. Both deservedly famous and unjustly forgotten today, Tucker stands out as an exemplar of the immigrant experience and a trailblazer for women in the entertainment industry.
- GenresBiographyNonfiction
300 pages, Hardcover
Published April 15, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 13, 2018
I am old enough to remember Sophie Tucker as an ample, older woman talk/singing her greatest hits on the Ed Sullivan Show. My memory is of an ample woman swathed in her trademark furs and jewels and topped by a snow white bouffant hair style. Did I appreciate her? Not at all. Like Ethel Merman, her appeal escaped me at the time.
I also remember the 78 RPM record we had of "My Yiddishe Maman,: which guaranteed my mother a good cry whenever it was played.
If I came late to my appreciation of Sophie's groundbreaking career, I caught up fast. However, much pf my knowledge came from her highly sanitized autobiography which she sold, in a foreshadowing of modern merchandising, at her performances.
This book fleshes out (sic) the life of Tucker, a Jewish immigrant girl from Hartford, CT who felt too confined by her parents narrow life as restaurant owners. Tucker recognized that her girth and lack of facial beauty was not in her favor when it came to a theatrical career. However, she became "the girl with personality" and a belting voice so memorable that she developed an early following.
An early marriage and the birth of her only child did not stop Tucker from leaving her son in her younger sister's care and heading to New York for a career singing in beer gardens and, later, vaudeville. The book points out that, contrary to popular opinion, her parents lived comfortably and her reason for escape from their Orthodox Jewish expectations was not a financial necessity but her own need for fame and success.
The book emphasizes Tucker's work ethic, something she reflected on later when she compared her steady climb to flash-in-the-pan Hollywood stars. If Sophie wasn't performing, Sophie simply wasn't happy. While she cut herself off from her own family for long periods, she was known as a loyal and generous performer who was also an early proponent of Civil Rights for African American performers. Her "sister from another mother" was a Black dancer who, while represented as her maid (the only acceptable position for a woman of color in a white performer's life), was actually her best friend, confidant, and often, her conscience.
In fact, the book lists many "breakthroughs" for the performer. Not only did she work her way up to the pinnacle of the performance world when she appeared in the Ziegfield Follies. She was less successful on Broadway and in films because she needed the interaction and unscripted lines of her vaudeville and club performances to perform.
One time period I knew nothing about was Tucker's experience as the president of the actors' union, an appointment that almost ended her career. Demonstrating her unflagging loyalty to coworkers, Tucker defended a union administrator who embezzled from the union's coffers. A contentious fight with other unions and her near ouster from a Cole Porter show undermined her credibility in the business.
A great deal of the book is devoted to Tucker's philanthropic work, especially on behalf of the new State of Israel, but she was a non-denominational donor and gave away a substantial part of her fortune to charity.
The book is dry and is often repetitive, but learning about the life of a true show business revolutionary. It is not accidental that, when the Beatles were asked who their favorite group was, Paul McCartney responded, "Sophie Tucker."
The natural audience for this book is late Baby Boomers and beyond, those of us who still remember the bigger than life performer. However, young audiences would benefit from learning more about this woman who paved the way for so many women who came after her.
I also remember the 78 RPM record we had of "My Yiddishe Maman,: which guaranteed my mother a good cry whenever it was played.
If I came late to my appreciation of Sophie's groundbreaking career, I caught up fast. However, much pf my knowledge came from her highly sanitized autobiography which she sold, in a foreshadowing of modern merchandising, at her performances.
This book fleshes out (sic) the life of Tucker, a Jewish immigrant girl from Hartford, CT who felt too confined by her parents narrow life as restaurant owners. Tucker recognized that her girth and lack of facial beauty was not in her favor when it came to a theatrical career. However, she became "the girl with personality" and a belting voice so memorable that she developed an early following.
An early marriage and the birth of her only child did not stop Tucker from leaving her son in her younger sister's care and heading to New York for a career singing in beer gardens and, later, vaudeville. The book points out that, contrary to popular opinion, her parents lived comfortably and her reason for escape from their Orthodox Jewish expectations was not a financial necessity but her own need for fame and success.
The book emphasizes Tucker's work ethic, something she reflected on later when she compared her steady climb to flash-in-the-pan Hollywood stars. If Sophie wasn't performing, Sophie simply wasn't happy. While she cut herself off from her own family for long periods, she was known as a loyal and generous performer who was also an early proponent of Civil Rights for African American performers. Her "sister from another mother" was a Black dancer who, while represented as her maid (the only acceptable position for a woman of color in a white performer's life), was actually her best friend, confidant, and often, her conscience.
In fact, the book lists many "breakthroughs" for the performer. Not only did she work her way up to the pinnacle of the performance world when she appeared in the Ziegfield Follies. She was less successful on Broadway and in films because she needed the interaction and unscripted lines of her vaudeville and club performances to perform.
One time period I knew nothing about was Tucker's experience as the president of the actors' union, an appointment that almost ended her career. Demonstrating her unflagging loyalty to coworkers, Tucker defended a union administrator who embezzled from the union's coffers. A contentious fight with other unions and her near ouster from a Cole Porter show undermined her credibility in the business.
A great deal of the book is devoted to Tucker's philanthropic work, especially on behalf of the new State of Israel, but she was a non-denominational donor and gave away a substantial part of her fortune to charity.
The book is dry and is often repetitive, but learning about the life of a true show business revolutionary. It is not accidental that, when the Beatles were asked who their favorite group was, Paul McCartney responded, "Sophie Tucker."
The natural audience for this book is late Baby Boomers and beyond, those of us who still remember the bigger than life performer. However, young audiences would benefit from learning more about this woman who paved the way for so many women who came after her.
August 22, 2018
This was an interesting biography. I had a vague memory of Sophie Tucker from seeing her on TV in her later years – she was revered in my family and most likely every other Jewish-American family.
Her personal history shed a lot of light on the situation of immigrants, particularly Jewish immigrants, around the turn of the 20th century and in changes through the decades, but what was most fascinating was the account of the rise and fall of vaudeville theater, in which Tucker was a huge star. Unlike some others of her time, like Fanny Brice (memorialized in Funny Girl and then Funny Lady by Barbra Streisand), and Al Jolson who retained some fame as the star of the original "talkie", The Jazz Singer, Tucker has mainly faded into obscurity. It seems as though portraying Tucker would be a natural for Bette Midler who is apparently a huge admirer.
The book was well-researched and documented, and presents a balanced portrait of Tucker. We read all about her successes, renown and generosity, but also about her disappointing personal relationships with several failed marriages, her son and others. Like anyone else, she was far from perfect, though much loved by her fans and the public in general.
It was astonishing to read that she personally documented her entire career in complete detail by compiling enormous scrapbooks of memorabilia from her performances, reviews, letters, cards and more. These scrapbooks were donated mainly to the New York Public Library, and some later ones to Brandeis University. What a treasure trove of her times they must be...
Author Sklaroff presents Tucker's life with sensitivity but does not suppress her failings. Very well done.
Her personal history shed a lot of light on the situation of immigrants, particularly Jewish immigrants, around the turn of the 20th century and in changes through the decades, but what was most fascinating was the account of the rise and fall of vaudeville theater, in which Tucker was a huge star. Unlike some others of her time, like Fanny Brice (memorialized in Funny Girl and then Funny Lady by Barbra Streisand), and Al Jolson who retained some fame as the star of the original "talkie", The Jazz Singer, Tucker has mainly faded into obscurity. It seems as though portraying Tucker would be a natural for Bette Midler who is apparently a huge admirer.
The book was well-researched and documented, and presents a balanced portrait of Tucker. We read all about her successes, renown and generosity, but also about her disappointing personal relationships with several failed marriages, her son and others. Like anyone else, she was far from perfect, though much loved by her fans and the public in general.
It was astonishing to read that she personally documented her entire career in complete detail by compiling enormous scrapbooks of memorabilia from her performances, reviews, letters, cards and more. These scrapbooks were donated mainly to the New York Public Library, and some later ones to Brandeis University. What a treasure trove of her times they must be...
Author Sklaroff presents Tucker's life with sensitivity but does not suppress her failings. Very well done.
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August 14, 2019Sophie Tucker's life was long and had much to offer many different people. She aided so many through funds and her overall philanthropic nature. She fought in the Civil Rights movement and lived through both World Wars with which she used different means in aiding both and many different people who had some part in these wars. Going through many different managers and places through her career, she never stopped changing and adapting in ways she had to to stay prevalent in her field of work. Making many contacts and friends along the way, she rose to stardom and stayed there for her life, always finding ways to make more of herself. Always working and putting her career above almost anything else in her life, she kept her dream come true alive. As someone in such spotlight as her, she had her share of controversy and disapproval, but never gave in or up. The theme of her life and this text would be to never give up on your dreams and never give up on yourself in times of hardship. Sophie always pushed through her hardships and found ways to get through almost everything that came at her, and she was working at her dream all the way up to her final days. I would recommend this text, although it is very different than the novels I usually read. For a change of pace in your reading and to get an insight on someone you might not have heard of before, I would recommend this text.
September 26, 2018
Sophie Tucker was an amazing woman. In a time when divorce was almost unheard of, she split with a husband who lacked a vision of something bigger. She left her young son with family to go to the big city, chasing a dream of fame. In a time when waifs were in and she was told she was "too fat and ugly," she broke into show business. In a time when women weren't allowed to wear pants or even show their legs, she developed a stage show full of double entendres and wiggles that accentuated her curves. She was a ground breaker for over 50 years, inspiring the likes of Judy Garland, Carol Channing, and Bette Midler, and without her, we probably wouldn't have Madonna, Brittney, or Lady Gaga. In a time when it could harmful to be anything but white in show business, she supported her colored counterparts and donated to various charities including Jewish ones. She kept going until she went up in smoke, and now that I know her story, I want to live my life with that gusto.
This book is awesome for shedding some light on a figure that is almost forgotten in today's world.
This book is awesome for shedding some light on a figure that is almost forgotten in today's world.
April 6, 2021
Sophie Tucker's career ran from just after the turn of the 20th century all the way into the 1960s. She performed in movies and television, but she was better known for her live performances on stage, in clubs, in restaurants, in theaters. She was a charismatic blend of Bette Midler, Mae West, and Bob Hope. She belted out songs like a blues singer and would burst into Yiddish at the drop of a hat.
Early in her career, she had to perform in blackface. She would later dismiss this as typical for the day, but it clearly bothered her and she stopped doing it as soon as she had enough clout to refuse to without losing her job. She donated to and did shows to benefit Black rights as well as Jewish organizations. She did shows for service members during both world wars.
Tucker felt like an outsider in some ways, and she was always ready to help out other outsiders. Reading about her unconventional life was quite entertaining and even unexpectedly uplifting. She was a real mensch!
Early in her career, she had to perform in blackface. She would later dismiss this as typical for the day, but it clearly bothered her and she stopped doing it as soon as she had enough clout to refuse to without losing her job. She donated to and did shows to benefit Black rights as well as Jewish organizations. She did shows for service members during both world wars.
Tucker felt like an outsider in some ways, and she was always ready to help out other outsiders. Reading about her unconventional life was quite entertaining and even unexpectedly uplifting. She was a real mensch!
March 28, 2019
Not the best...lots of info about her times, but somewhat lacking about her life, especially the early years. The book could also benefit from a proofreader as there were numerous typos. But the reader still gets a good perception of the Tucker phenomenon.
August 10, 2018
3.5. A good & worthwhile look at the career of a Mightily Significant Broad.
April 12, 2019
A bit repetitive, and never got a sense of what Sophie felt, beyond the masks she wore as an entertainer.
July 30, 2019
Interesting, sometimes dull, account of the original red hot mama.
June 15, 2024
Such a fascinating woman!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews