"...and the band plays the polka while she strips!"

I heard the Andrew Sisters singing "Strip Polka" long before I ever even dreamed I'd be the modern version of the song's subject "Queenie". Once I'd found myself part of the new burlesque in 1998, I was dying to put together an act to it, but could never quite get it together. This Saturday night at the Rover on Broadway, the dream will be realized as punk polka outfit the Polkanauts will be backing me up- playing the polka while I strip. Be there at 9 pm and watch (my personal) history be made. It'll look something like this:

In way less fun news, the great Eddie Dane (aka Eric Christensen) passed away today. He started Danes Dames around the same time I started Burlesque As It Was. We met at Tease-o-rama in New Orleans where we connected as we commiserated about how we'd each brought at least one crazy unmanagable broad with us to the show and ended up bonding as we shared stories and secrets about producing burlesque. When I interviewed him for my book a few years later I realized he was really the only guy trying to bring back the vintage comedy along with the vintage strip- and doing it in a way that was actually funny (head over to your library and read old burlesque skits- they are beyond groaners). Just like the ladies of the new burlesque, he was taking the male roles, the 'men in the baggy pants' and giving them new life. He was a sweetheart of a man, and would do anything to hear the audience roar with laughter. I'm glad I got to spend a few minutes with him in the fall at Sparkly Devil's wedding and I hope he knew I was thinking about him at the end. I'm sure that wherever he is now, there are plenty of gorgeous be-pastied ladies, he's got a full glass of whiskey and he's telling dirty jokes to a room full of people clutching their sides.