Edith Spencer

Edith Spencer was an international singer and dancer who appeared in vaudeville, the theatre and in nightclubs during the 1920s and 1930s. She appeared in the Broadway productions of "Runnin' Wild," "Rarin' to Go," and succeeded the great Florence Mills in "Shuffle Along." Her performances included club engagements and appearances from New York to Los Angeles, London, Paris, and the Far East. After "Shuffle Along" closed, Lottie Gee and Spencer became partners and formed a sister act that was followed by the addition of Allegretti Anderson. The trio was alternately billed as the Harmony Trio, the Creole Beauties, and the Three Dark Sisters. The Edith Spencer Scrapbook documents Spencer's entertainment career and her subsequent employment as a real estate agent. The contents include newspaper clippings, flyers and a photograph of Spencer, Gee and Anderson.

Before she obtained recognition on Broadway, Spencer had accompanied T. Lloyd Hickman and her brother, C. Spencer Tocus, in a concert recital in 1916. In 1940 Spencer married Cecil P. Brooks and they were divorced in 1946. Sometime after her divorce Spencer relocated to Los Angeles, California from the Philippines where she had resided with her husband, and subsequently became a real estate agent.

Sources: Studio portrait of entertainer Edith Spencer circa 1920s. Adolph R. Sussman, photographer The New York Public Library/Archives & Manuscripts.