Sandburg's Hometown

June 15, 2015

Anna Held - The Original Ziegfeld Girl

Anna Held & John Drew

by Barbara Schock

Carl Sandburg remembered seeing, in the 1890s, a poster of two famous thespians by the names of Anna Held and John Drew. Some clever person created a depiction of a woman and a man each holding in their hand five playing cards. Under the two names were two sentences: “This is the hand Anna Held” and “This is the hand John Drew.” It passed for great wit in those days.

Anna Held was born in Warsaw, Poland, which was part of Russia at that time, on March 19, 1872. Her parents were Maurice and Yvonne Pierre Held. He was a glovemaker. Because of the anti-semitic pogroms, the family was forced to flee to Paris. Maurice worked as a janitor and Yvonne operated a kosher restaurant. Anna worked in a garment factory and began to sing in Jewish theaters.

Her outgoing personality was popular with the public. She sang risque songs and was willing to show a little of her ankles. Her flirtatious manner had an appeal for the public.

In 1896 she appeared in London. Florenz Ziegfeld, a prominent theatrical producer in the United States , saw her perform. He asked Anna to return to New York with him. He created a wave of publicity which caused much interest in Anna Held in this country. The critics dismissed her acting ability, but the public liked her. Ziegfeld helped her become a millionaire with his promotions.

Miss Held continued to perform in vaudeville for the rest of her career. She went to the front in France during World War I to perform for the troops. She was well regarded because of these appearances and for the money she raised for the war effort.

Anna Held died August 12, 1918, of multiple myeloma. Her funeral was conducted from St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. She was buried in Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Hawthorne, New York. She had converted to Catholicism as a young woman.

John Drew as Petruchio
John Drew as Petruchio

John Drew was born November 13, 1853, into one of the first families of the American theater. He was a brother to Louisa, Georgiana and Sidney Drew, all well known actors of the day. Therefore, he was the uncle of John, Ethel and Lionel Barrymore, famous actors of the twentieth century and the great great uncle of Drew Barrymore.

He started his acting career in the family's theater in Philadelphia. His ability was recognized early in his life. He performed in Shakespearean comedies, society dramas and farces, as well as contemporary works of the time. Unfortunately, he never appeared in films so there is no visual record of his career. John Drew was regarded as the leading matinee idol of his day.

John Drew died July 9, 1927, in San Francisco. His nephews, John and Lionel Barrymore, had visited him shortly before his death. His ashes were interred in Mount Vernon Cemetery, Philadelphia.

After the death of Anna Held, Carl Sandburg wrote a poem in memory of her. It was titled “An Electric Sign Goes Dark.” It was part of the collection in Smoke and Steel published in 1922. Perhaps he remembered the picture he had seen in pool halls and saloons in the 1890s.

 

Sandburg's Hometown
Date Title
June 22, 2015 Anna Held & John Drew
June 15, 2015 Hartel & Secker Meat Market
June 8, 2015 Girls
June 1, 2015 Old First Church - Part II
May 25, 2015 Old First Church - Part I
May 18, 2015 Marbles
May 11, 2015 Pawnee County, Kansas
May 4, 2015 Detective Stories and the Real Thing
April 27, 2015 Professor Isaac A. Parker
April 20, 2015 Celluloid Collars
April 13, 2015 Asparagus
April 6, 2015  Mayor John C. Stewart 
March 30, 2015 Basket Ball
March 23, 2015 The Courthouse of Knox County, IL
March 16, 2015

“Trifles make perfection...”

March 9, 2015 Uncle Tom's Cabin
March 2, 2015 Martha Sandburg Goldstone
February 23, 2015 Devotion
February 16, 2015  Gumbiner's Pawn Shop 
February 9, 2015 White Bread
February 2, 2015 The Monarch Club
January 26, 2015 The Silver Dollar
January 19, 2015 The Fulton County Narrow Gauge Railway
January 12, 2015 The Four Corners
December 22, 2014 Swedish Christmas
December 8, 2014 Christmas 1878
December 1, 2014 Bunker Boots & Shoes
November 24, 2014 Galesburg, Illinois
November 17, 2014 It was Buffalo Bill's Day
November 10, 2014 The Election of 1896 (A follow-up story)
November 3, 2014 The Election of 1896 (continued)
October 27, 2014 The Election of 1896
October  24, 2014 The Rissywarn
October 20, 2014 The Parlor Stove
October 13, 2014 Ashes to Ashes
October 6, 2014 Jesse James
Sept. 29, 2014 Lester T. Stone, Public Servant
Sept. 22, 2014 It's Who You Know
Sept 15, 2014 Mother of the Illinois Flag
Sept 8, 2014 The Scissors Grinder
Sept 1, 2014 Baseball
August 25, 2014 Howard K. Knowles, Capitalist
August 18, 2014  Alcoholic Beverages
August 11, 2014 Soda Water
August 4, 2014 Sweet Corn
July 28, 2014 Marching Through Georgia
July 21, 2014 The Knox County Fair
July 14, 2014 The Panic of 1893
July 7, 2014 The Rev. T. N. Hasselquist
June 30, 2014 The Knox County Courthouse
June 23, 2014 The Family Photograph Album
June 16, 2014 Parades
June 9, 2014 Lingonberries
June 2, 2014 Where We Live
May 26, 2014 Old Main
May 19, 2014 Rhythms of the Railroad
May 12, 2014 Spring Tonic
May 5, 2014 The Milkmen
April 28, 2014 Gray's "Elegy..."
April 21, 2014 Off to War
April 14, 2014 Swedish Easter
April 7, 2014 A Father's Face
March 31, 2014 Secret Societies
March 24, 2014 George A. Murdock, Merchant
March 10, 2014 Trade Cards
March 3, 2014 The Demorest Medal
February 24, 2014 Rip Van Winkle
February 17, 2014 Cabbage Soup
February 10, 2014 Lincoln's Birthday
February 3, 2014 4  The Colonel
January 27, 2014 The Lincoln Penny - A Little History
January 20, 2014 Walking to Work
January 13, 2014  A Small Abode
January 6, 2014 Birth of a Poet
December 30, 2013 Christmas 1880
December 23, 2013 Swedish Christmas
December 16, 2013 The Reporter Sees Santa
December 9, 2013 The Coming of Christmas
December 2, 2013 The Fire Boys Talk
November 25, 2013 Galesburg Will Feast on Turkeys and Cranberries - Thanksgiving 1893
November 18, 2013 Mary Sandburg Johnson
November 11, 2013 Carl Sandburg's Bicycle
November 4, 2013 Lace Curtains
October 28, 2013 The Front Room
October 21, 2013 A Warm Breakfast
October 14, 2013 Marion D. Shutter
October 7, 2013 Cigars and Consumption
September 30, 2013 Forrest F. Cooke & August Sandburg
September 16, 2013 Forrest F. Cooke, Mayor
September 9, 2013 Dusty Streets
September 2, 2013 Typhoid Fever
August 26, 2013 Coffee and Water
August 19, 2013 A Horse! A Horse!
August 12, 2013 Gaddial Scott
August 5, 2013 The Racetrack
July 29, 2013 John Peter Algeld - Part II
July 22, 2013 John Peter Altgeld - Part I
July 15, 2013 Tramps, Tramps, Tramps
July 8, 2013 Lady Liberty
July 1, 2013 Galesburg's Fourth
June 24, 2013 John H. Finley
June 17, 2013 The World's Columbian Exhibition
June 10, 2013 Fruit Short-Cake
June 3, 2013 Horatio Alger, Author
May 27, 2013 Memorial Day, 1887
May 20, 2013 Professor Jon W. Grubb
May 13, 2013 Beginnings of Lombard University
May 6, 2013 Young Sandburg’s View of Lombard College
April 29, 2013 Thinking
April 22, 2013 Robert Colville, Master Mechanic
April 15, 2013 The Galesburg Opera House
April 8, 2013 Grocery Stores and Sample Rooms
April 1, 2013  A Hearty  Breakfast 
March 25, 2013  The Lost Wallpaper Legend 
March 18, 2013 Martin G. Sandburg
March 4, 2013 The Edison Talking Machine
February 25, 2013 Joe Elser, Civil War Veteran
February 18, 2013 Remember the Maine...
February 11, 2013 Lincoln's Birthday
February 4, 2013 Curiosity
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