Finding the graves of Jane and Erwin Connelly

Yesterday I visited the graves of Jane and Erwin Connelly at Hollywood Forever cemetery in Hollywood. Jane and Erwin were vaudevillians who co-starred in Houdini's The Man From Beyond. They were also personal friends with Harry and Bess. While their crypts are not together, they are in the same mausoleum and only a few steps from each another. You might recall Hollywood Forever also holds the unmarked remains of Edward Saint.

Jane and Erwin are inside Building A, Crypts 209 & 417. Don't be put off by the fact that you are walking into a brand new mausoleum. If you continue all the way to the back you will discover there is an older mausoleum within.

For me, this felt like the culmination of a journey I've been on with Jane. In 2012 I did a series on "Houdini's Leading Ladies." Most of his co-stars were established actresses whose backgrounds were easy to uncover. But Jane Connelly, who had the most significant role in any Houdini movie, was largely a mystery. She only appeared in one other film, and at age 38 was significantly older than most silent movie ingenues. The Man From Beyond pressbook claimed, bizarrely, that Connelly was discovered by building a composite photo of "psychic types" which she matched perfectly. Yes, psychic casting!

A few years later I found a clipping that showed a Jane Connolly (different spelling) sharing a vaudeville bill with Houdini. I formulated a theory that Houdini may have known Jane from his vaudeville days and may have even been friends with the performer. Earlier this year I found more evidence of Houdini sharing the bill with Jane and her husband Erwin, who is also in the movie. I told their story in THIS POST.

Finally, while at the Harry Ransom Center last summer, I confirmed the final piece of my theory that Jane was a personal friend. The HRC has three very fetching 8x10 photos of Jane all signed to the Houdinis. On one she writes: "In memory of many happy moments under your roof. With Love, Jane."

While I knew Jane died in Hollywood in 1925, I never thought to look up where she was buried. I did so this weekend and discovered she and Erwin were in Hollywood Forever. So off I went! She was a little tricky to locate (that's a whole story), but I eventually did find The Girl From Beyond.

Want to see those fetching signed photos of Jane from the Harry Ransom Center? You can do so as a member of my Patreon by clicking the image below.

Thanks to Athena Stamos for the on-site assistance finding the Connellys.

Related:

• Before Beyond
• USD, Needles, and a future co-star?
• Houdini's leading ladies: Jane Connelly

Before Beyond

Recently I stumbled on an advertisement showing Houdini on the same vaudeville bill as his future co-star in The Man From Beyond, Jane Connelly. Jane had never appeared in a movie before, and I've often speculated that Houdini may have known her and her husband, Erwin, who also appears in the movie as Dr. Gregory Sinclair, from vaudeville. This clipping seemed to confirm that.

This led me to do a little investigation into Jane's career before she went Beyond. Here's what I found.

Jane and Erwin Connelly appear to have started their vaudeville careers around 1907. Their act was a presentation of the popular english sketch, "Sweethearts," written by W.S. Gilbert. Here's a review from the January 26, 1907 Birmingham News:

"Sweethearts," as presented by Mr. and Mrs. Connelly, seems really more than a vaudeville turn, for the audience feels, as the curtain slowly descends upon the reunion of sweethearts of long ago, true to each other for forty years, as though a drama of several acts was just closing. It is called a "dramatic contrast," for it shows not only the bashful lover filled with the vigor of youth pleading his cause with a maiden, for after forty years waiting they are united, showing a pretty picture, old as love itself. The sketch was written by W.S. Gilbert famous for his composition of "H.M.S. Pinafore."

The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, Dec. 15, 1912.

Unlike Houdini, most vaudevillians did not change their act. That was certainly the case with the Connellys who toured with "Sweethearts" for over 10 years. The first time I find them sharing the bill with Houdini is at Shea's Theater in Buffalo in October 1911. They appeared together again at the Maryland in Baltimore in 1912 and at Keith's Theater in Rhode Island in 1915.

The Connellys on the bill with Houdini....

But it wasn't just Houdini who shared the bill with the Connellys. Check out this appearance by Hardeen at the Columbia Theater in Davenport in April 1916.

...and Hardeen...

You'll notice the act is now billed as Jane Connelly & Co. Ewrin was still part of the act, but Jane was now featured more prominently in advertising. (I can't help but be reminded here of Bess Houdini's belief that billing an act as husband and wife was a bad idea.) The photo at the top of this post is from San Fransisco in 1915 and is a good example of this. Interestingly, that engagement saw the Connellys on the same bill as the Marx Brothers.

...and the Marx Brothers!

Despite a story in The Man From Beyond press book that says Houdini cast Connelly because she perfectly matched a composite photo of famous "psychic types" (you can read about that here), I think it's pretty clear Houdini knew the Connellys from vaudeville and felt comfortable casting the experienced actors in these important supporting roles. It's even possible the Connellys would have been familiar to audiences of the time and that offered some additional appeal. This was their first appearance in a film, and the movie does provide them with a nice scene together.

Erwin and Jane in The Man From Beyond.

The Connellys continued to perform in vaudeville into the 1920s, broadening their repertoire with new comedic sketches written by Erwin such as "A Tale of a Shirt" and "A Strong Cup of Tea". The only other film Jane would appear in was Buster Keaton's classic Sherlock Jr. (1924), again with Erwin.

In 1925 Jane died at her home in Los Angeles. She was only 42. The below is from Variety. I'm not sure what to make of the cause of death being "a nervous breakdown."

After Jane's death, Erwin continued to appear in films, including an uncredited appearance as The Zouave in Rudolph Valentino's final film, The Son of the Sheik (1926). He died from injuries suffered in a car accident in 1931.

Chicago Tribune, Feb. 12, 1931.

Clippings: Newspapers.com

UPDATE: Finding the graves of Jane and Erwin Connelly

Related:

• Houdini's leading ladies: Jane Connelly
• Houdini catches Belle Baker's "clacque"
• USD, Needles, and a future co-star?

Houdini catches Belle Baker's "clacque"

Last week I posted the story of Houdini and Don the Talking Dog. Today I have a new tale of Houdini and a rascally fellow vaudevillian. This time its singer Belle Baker who shared the bill with Houdini at the Maryland Theater in Baltimore during the week of February 5, 1912.

Baker was known to employe the practice of "clacque." This means hiring audience members to provide an inordinate amount of enthusiasm and applause during your act. During her run at Hammerstein's in 1911, Variety called this out, writing: "Miss Baker did nothing with her voice, expression or gestures to merit this kind of applause. She became exceedingly painful in her labored efforts during the Italian selection. Miss Baker was one of the first in New York vaudeville to use a "clacque", and she soared for a while until vaudeville "got on.""

Here Variety is once again calling her out for the practice, but this time the situation ensnared Houdini.

Variety, Feb. 10, 1912

This was certainly embarrassing for all, but it does sound like Houdini took it in stride. I do love the idea of him standing "still for two minutes until the noise subsided." And despite her sneaky ways (or maybe because of them), Baker would go on to have a long and successful stage, film, and radio career. She died in 1957 at age 63.

Here's another fun detail about this engagement. Notice that "Mr. and Mrs. Erwin Connelly" are also on the bill this week. This is actually Jane Connelly, Houdini's future co-star in The Man From Beyond, and her husband Erwin who also appeared in the film. Do you think when they were on set they reminisced about the time Belle Baker gave Harry the clacque?

Related:

• Houdini and Don the Talking Dog
• The girl who beat Houdini
• USD, Needles, and a future co-star?

USD, Needles, and a future co-star?

This ad from a 1915 Rhode Island newspaper not only nicely features Houdini's Needles and the Water Torture Cell, but there's something else here that escaped my notice until now. Can you spot it?

Notice the name of Jane Connolly, "The Dainty Comedianne", just below Houdini. I'm wondering if this is Jane Connelly, Houdini's co-star in The Man From Beyond? As I noted in my Leading Ladies profile, Connelly and her husband were vaudeville performers, and it's likely Houdini's friendship with the Connellys was behind the casting. (Mr. Connelly was also in The Man From Beyond.)

Of course, the name on this ad is spelled Connolly, not Connelly, so this could be a completely different Jane. But misspellings in newspaper ads are not unheard of, even for the most famous of headliners:

UPDATE: I'm now certain this is Jane Connelly from The Man From Beyond. "A Strong Cup of Tea" was written by her husband Erwin who also appeared in the cast. But this wasn't the first time Houdini and the Connellys shared a bill. I will have more about that in an upcoming post.

Related:

• Houdini's leading ladies: Jane Connelly
• Houdini's big mouth