Edith Louise Rosenbaum Russell (June 12, 1879 – April 4, 1975) was an American fashion buyer, stylist and correspondent for ''
Women's Wear Daily
''Women's Wear Daily'' (also known as ''WWD'') is a fashion-industry trade journal often referred to as the "Bible of fashion". Horyn, Cathy"Breaking Fashion News With a Provocative Edge" ''The New York Times''. (August 20, 1999). It provides inf ...
'', best remembered for surviving the 1912 sinking of the
RMS ''Titanic'' with a music box in the shape of a pig. The papier-mâché toy, covered in pigskin and playing a tune known as "The Maxixe" when its tail was twisted, was used by Edith Russell to calm frightened children in the lifeboat in which she escaped. Her story became widely known in the press at the time and was later included in the best-selling account of the disaster ''
A Night to Remember'' by
Walter Lord
John Walter Lord Jr. (October 8, 1917 – May 19, 2002) was an American author, lawyer, copywriter and popular historian best known for his 1955 account of the sinking of the RMS ''Titanic'', '' A Night to Remember''.
Biography Early life
Lor ...
. Russell was also portrayed in the award-winning British docudrama produced by
William MacQuitty that was based on Lord's book.
Biography
Early life
Edith Louise Rosenbaum was born in
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
,
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
, into a wealthy
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family in 1879. Her father was Harry Rosenbaum, who rose to prominence in the dry goods field as a director of Louis Stix & Co. in Cincinnati. He was later influential as a cloak and suit manufacturer in his own right and an investor in garment industry real estate in New York, where he moved with his wife, the former Sophia Hollstein, and daughter Edith in 1902. Edith was educated in Cincinnati public schools and a succession of finishing schools, including the Mt. Auburn Young Ladies Institute (later called the H. Thane Miller School) in Cincinnati and Miss Annabel's in Philadelphia. At age 16 in 1895 she attended the Misses Shipley's at Bryn Mawr and later Bryn Mawr College.
Career
Edith's career in fashion began in 1908, when she moved to
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
to become a saleswoman for the
haute couture house of
Chéruit in the
Place Vendôme
The Place Vendôme (), earlier known as Place Louis-le-Grand, and also as Place Internationale, is a square in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France, located to the north of the Tuileries Gardens and east of the Église de la Madeleine. It i ...
. Shortly thereafter, she joined the Paris office of ''La dernière heure à Paris'', an in-house fashion journal for the Philadelphia department store
Wanamaker's
John Wanamaker Department Store was one of the first department stores in the United States. Founded by John Wanamaker in Philadelphia, it was influential in the development of the retail industry including as the first store to use price tags. ...
. She also provided fashion sketches for the Butterick Pattern Service and to a number of American clothing stores and textile suppliers.
In 1910 Rosenbaum was hired as a Paris correspondent for the newly established New York garment trade publication ''
Women's Wear Daily
''Women's Wear Daily'' (also known as ''WWD'') is a fashion-industry trade journal often referred to as the "Bible of fashion". Horyn, Cathy"Breaking Fashion News With a Provocative Edge" ''The New York Times''. (August 20, 1999). It provides inf ...
''. In this role, she reported regularly on the seasonal collections of the leading couture salons
Paquin,
Lucile,
Poiret Poiret is a French language surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Jean Poiret, French author
* Jean Louis Georges Poiret, former Lieutenant-Governor of Guinea
*Jean Louis Marie Poiret, French clergyman, botanist, and explorer
* Jeanne ...
,
Doucet
Doucet is a French language surname, especially popular in Canada, the former area of Acadia in particular (now Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and parts of Quebec and New England).
As a result of the Great Expulsion in 1755 ...
and her former employer Chéruit. At around this time, she became friends with the upcoming young couturier Jenny (Jeanne Sacerdote) and was one of her first customers, wearing her designs in a series of publicity photos for the house. In addition to covering the couture openings, Edith wrote a front page column that appeared almost daily in which she shared analyses of current trends, insider tips on new fabrics and styles, and impressions of the events and personalities of the French fashion world.
Rosenbaum was involved in a serious automobile accident in 1911 in which her wealthy fiance, Ludwig Loewe, whose family owned a noted German arms manufacturing firm, was killed. She was traveling with friends to the races at
Deauville
Deauville () is a commune in the Calvados department, Normandy, northwestern France. Major attractions include its harbour, race course, marinas, conference centre, villas, Grand Casino, and sumptuous hotels. The first Deauville Asian Film F ...
when the car, driven by Loewe, crashed near
Rouen. Edith suffered a concussion which caused some memory loss but no other significant injuries.
By 1912, along with writing and reporting for ''Women's Wear Daily'', Rosenbaum worked as a buyer and purchasing agent in Paris for a number of American firms. She also advised several well-known entertainment personalities on their wardrobes such as Broadway actress
Ina Claire
Ina Claire (born Ina Fagan; October 15, 1893February 21, 1985) was an American stage and film actress.
Early years
Ina Fagan was born October 15, 1893 in Washington, D.C. After the death of her father, Claire began doing imitations of fellow b ...
and opera singer
Geraldine Farrar
Alice Geraldine Farrar (February 28, 1882 – March 11, 1967) was an American lyric soprano who could also sing dramatic roles. She was noted for her beauty, acting ability, and "the intimate timbre of her voice." She had a large following a ...
, becoming one of the first known celebrity stylists.
[''The National Examiner'', August 27, 1973] At the same time she branched into designing, producing a clothing line called "Elrose" for the New York department store
Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor was the oldest brick and mortar department store in the United States, in business from 1826 to 2020. The brand was purchased during former owner Le Tote's 2020 liquidation bankruptcy and relaunched by new owner, Saadia Group, as ...
.
Among her Elrose clients were actresses
Martha Hedman and
Eleanor Painter
Eleanor Painter Strong (September 12, 1885 – November 3, 1947) was an American opera singer and actress.
Early years and education
Strong was born in Waterville, Iowa, as Eleanor Painter on September 12, 1885, to Mary Ellen and John Paint ...
.
Between 1914 and 1919 Edith Rosenbaum was American press attaché for the governing body of the French fashion industry, the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, now called Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture and a division of the
Fédération française de la couture
The Fédération française de la couture, du prêt-à-porter des couturiers et des créateurs de mode ( en, French Federation of Fashion and of Ready-to-Wear Couturiers and Fashion Designers) is the governing body for the French fashion industr ...
. She was a highly critical observer of the fashion industry, both in New York and Paris, and her opinions were frequently quoted in the press. In 1915 she served as an advisor on the American Fashion Exhibit at the
Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco. Edith continued as a correspondent for ''Women's Wear Daily'' until about 1917, although she contributed occasional articles thereafter. In 1916 Edith designed a collection of sportswear for Sidney Blumenthal & Co., including golf skirts and jackets. One of her coats for Blumenthal she officially copyrighted.
For about three months during the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Rosenbaum took a break from reporting on fashion by accepting a journalistic post with the
American Red Cross, dispatching news from the frontlines to the organization and the press. In this capacity, Edith was one of the first female
war correspondents, sharing that distinction with the ''New York Evening Journals
Nellie Bly
Elizabeth Cochran Seaman (born Elizabeth Jane Cochran; May 5, 1864 – January 27, 1922), better known by her pen name Nellie Bly, was an American journalist, industrialist, inventor, and charity worker who was widely known for her record-breaki ...
. Other letters she wrote, detailing her experiences in the trenches, where she was embedded with French and British troops in 1917, were published sporadically, and independent accounts of her work appeared in the ''
New York World
The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under pub ...
'', the ''
New York Herald'' and several syndicated newspapers. Edith's wartime correspondence was poignant and extensive but was unfortunately never published in full, although a number of original letters exist today in private collections. Edith was in the trenches four times, according to the ''New York Herald'', and in April 1917, while serving in a Red Cross hospital set up in a convent, was caught in the bombardment of the
Chemin des Dames
In France, the Chemin des Dames (; literally, the "ladies' path") is part of the route départementale (local road) D18 and runs east and west in the Aisne department, between in the west, the Route Nationale 2 (Laon to Soissons), and in the eas ...
during the famous
Second Battle of the Aisne.
By 1916, through connections in the garment trade, Edith launched a secondary vocation as dog fancier, specializing in the
Pekingese
The Pekingese (also spelled Pekinese) is a breed of toy dog, originating in China. The breed was favored by royalty of the Chinese Imperial court as a companion dog, and its name refers to the city of Peking (Beijing) where the Forbidden City i ...
breed. A member of the Pekingese Club of America, Edith displayed her "Pekes" nationally until the mid 1920s and frequently traveled with them overseas. She also bred dogs for a number of famous clients, including
Maurice Chevalier.
Her operation was called Wee Wong Kennels and was located in Freeport, Long Island, known for its champion brood, including Edith's own award-winning "Tiny Toy." The kennels' popularity with theatrical celebrities inspired a spate of newsreel coverage in 1919.
By 1920, due to rampant
anti-German sentiment
Anti-German sentiment (also known as Anti-Germanism, Germanophobia or Teutophobia) is opposition to or fear of Germany, its inhabitants, its culture, or its language. Its opposite is Germanophilia.
Anti-German sentiment largely began wit ...
in Paris during and just after the war, Edith Anglicized her surname to "Russell." The French fashion industry in particular was rife with discrimination; couture houses were banning journalists, and in some cases former clients, who had German names.
In 1923 she was recognized by the Associated Dress Industries of America for her achievements and honored two years later by the
International Ladies' Garment Workers Union
The International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU), whose members were employed in the Clothing#Gender differentiation, women's clothing industry, was once one of the largest trade union, labor unions in the United States, one of the firs ...
for her work during the war. In the 1920s, Rosenbaum wrote for the magazines ''Cassell's'' in London and ''Moda'' in Rome. From 1934, she slowly withdrew from the fashion industry.
''Titanic'' and later life
On April 5, 1912, Edith Rosenbaum, in her capacity as Paris correspondent for ''Women's Wear Daily'', filed a report on the fashions worn at the Auteuil races. Eager to get back to New York with her purchases for the season, she booked passage on the
'' George Washington'' to sail two days later, Easter Sunday. But a wire from her editor, asking her to cover the Paris-Roubaix races on Sunday, caused her to delay her crossing until April 10 when she boarded the
RMS ''Titanic'', en route from Southampton to New York. In addition to her own First Class stateroom, A-11, she is believed to have reserved another for the accommodation of her 19 pieces of baggage; this extra room was possibly E-63. Before boarding at
Cherbourg, Edith asked about insuring her luggage but was reportedly told it was unnecessary since the ship was "unsinkable." After the ''Titanics collision with an iceberg on the night of April 14, Edith claimed to have locked all her trunks, containing the valuable couture merchandise she was importing, before going out on the deck. While sitting in the lounge, watching the general evacuation, she spied her room steward, Robert Wareham, and called to him. She told him she had heard the ''Titanic'' was going to be towed to Halifax while passengers were transferred to another ship, and she was worried about her luggage. But when she handed Wareham her trunk keys so he could check her bags through Customs for her, he told her to "kiss your trunks good-bye."
The steward did return to Edith's cabin to fetch her "mascot," a small papier-mache music box in the shape of a pig, complete with black and white spotted fur. It played "The Maxixe," a popular song when its tail was wound. Discovering that in France the pig was regarded as a good luck symbol, her mother had given the toy to Edith after the car wreck she survived the year before. Edith had promised her mother she would keep it with her always. When Wareham came back with the little trifle, wrapped in a blanket, Edith headed for the boat deck, ending up on the starboard side of the ship. There she was noticed by
J. Bruce Ismay, chairman of the
White Star Line
The White Star Line was a British shipping company. Founded out of the remains of a defunct packet company, it gradually rose up to become one of the most prominent shipping lines in the world, providing passenger and cargo services between t ...
, the steamship company that owned the ''Titanic''. He admonished her for not having gotten into a lifeboat yet and directed her down a stairwell to the deck below where one was being loaded. There she was helped into
Lifeboat No. 11 by a male passenger, after a crewman had seized her toy pig, perhaps thinking it was a live pet and tossed it in ahead of her. Boat 11 was lowered with an estimated 68 to 70 people aboard, including many children. Boat 11, overloaded by about five passengers, is believed to have carried the largest number of occupants of any launched that night.
As Boat 11 rowed away from the sinking ship, Edith found herself surrounded by crying and fidgety youngsters, and to calm and amuse them she played her little musical pig, twisting its tail to emit the strains of "The Maxixe." One of the children was 10-month-old Frank Aks with whom she was reunited many years later, and she showed him the pig that had once entertained him.
Rosenbaum later sued the
White Star Line
The White Star Line was a British shipping company. Founded out of the remains of a defunct packet company, it gradually rose up to become one of the most prominent shipping lines in the world, providing passenger and cargo services between t ...
, for the loss of her luggage. It was one of the largest claims filed against the shipping company in the aftermath of the disaster.
Although retired from her work as a fashion buyer in Paris from about 1937, Edith Russell continued traveling extensively. She remained active socially, befriending many celebrities during her stays in the south of France, Majorca, Lucerne and Rome, including the
Duke of Windsor
Duke of Windsor was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch Edward VIII, following his abdication on 11 December 1936. The dukedom takes its name from the town where Windsor Castle, ...
,
Benito Mussolini and
Anna Magnani
Anna Maria Magnani (; 7 March 1908 – 26 September 1973) was an Italian actress.Obituary ''Variety'', 3 October 1973, pg. 47 She was known for her explosive acting and earthy, realistic portrayals of characters.
Born in Rome, she worked her ...
. In addition, Edith maintained a close friendship with the couturier Jenny and actor
Peter Lawford
Peter Sydney Ernest Lawford ( Aylen; 7 September 1923 – 24 December 1984) was an English-American actor.Obituary '' Variety'', 26 December 1984.
He was a member of the " Rat Pack" and the brother-in-law of US president John F. Kennedy and se ...
and his wife
Patricia Kennedy Lawford
Patricia Helen Kennedy Lawford (May 6, 1924 – September 17, 2006) was an American socialite, and the sixth of nine children of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. She was a sister of President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and Senat ...
, who made her a godmother to their children.
Edith lived at London's
Claridge's Hotel
Claridge's is a 5-star hotel at the corner of Brook Street and Davies Street in Mayfair, London. It has long-standing connections with royalty that have led to it sometimes being referred to as an "annexe to Buckingham Palace". Claridge's Hote ...
in the 1940s, moving eventually to a suite at the Embassy House Hotel in Queens Gate, London. She seems to have been expatriated by the early 1950s. At this time she became increasingly in demand as a pundit on the ''Titanic'' tragedy which had reentered public consciousness due to recently released films and books about the event. She attended a special media preview of the movie ''
Titanic
RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, Unit ...
'' in 1953, afterward giving interviews to ''
Life
Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...
'' magazine and the New York daily press. She posed for photos carrying her famous toy pig and standing beside the dress she had worn on a fateful night. In 1955 historian
Walter Lord
John Walter Lord Jr. (October 8, 1917 – May 19, 2002) was an American author, lawyer, copywriter and popular historian best known for his 1955 account of the sinking of the RMS ''Titanic'', '' A Night to Remember''.
Biography Early life
Lor ...
published his best-seller ''
A Night to Remember'' which featured Edith's story. She later served as an advisor on the 1958 British film adaptation of Lord’s book, produced by
William MacQuitty. She and her lucky pig were also portrayed in the film.
Although now elderly, Edith became a regular guest on television and radio programs. Most of these aired on BBC-1 and BBC-2 channels but she was also interviewed on television in France and Germany. For her first TV interview in 1956 she brought along her trusty pig and retold the famous story of their escape from the ''Titanic''. The pig's musical apparatus had broken by this time, however, and she was not able to play the tune. In 1963, when the
Titanic Historical Society
The ''Titanic'' Historical Society, Inc. (THS) is a non-profit organization founded on whose purpose is the preservation of the history of the famous ocean liner RMS ''Titanic'', which sank in 1912, in one of the greatest maritime disasters i ...
was formed in the United States, Edith was made an honorary member. During these years, Edith also wrote a number of articles about her ''Titanic'' experiences for the popular press, among which were pieces appearing in ''Pageant'' (1953), ''Woman's Own'' (1962), and the ''Ladies Home Companion'' (1964).
Edith Rosenbaum Russell died at the Mary Abbott Hospital in London on April 4, 1975, at the age of 95. Most of Edith's belongings were dispersed piecemeal among relatives and friends, including Walter Lord who inherited her legendary pig. On Lord's death in 2002, the toy was bequeathed to the
National Maritime Museum
The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unite ...
in Greenwich, London, which also received the floral-printed boudoir slippers Edith had worn when she boarded Lifeboat 11.
Legacy
In his 2001 expedition to the wreck of the ''Titanic'', filmmaker
James Cameron and his team discovered Edith's cabin with its dressing table mirror still upright and intact. Photos of the room and an account of its exploration were published in the 2003 book ''Ghosts of the Abyss'' by Don Lynch and Ken Marschall. Edith was also portrayed in the accompanying documentary, released by Walt Disney Pictures.
''Pig on the Titanic'' by
Gary Crew, an illustrated children's book about Edith and her lucky mascot, was published in 2005 by HarperCollins ().
During the 2012 centennial commemoration of the sinking of the ''Titanic'', Edith's story resurfaced in newspaper and magazine articles as well as in museum exhibitions, notably at the National Maritime Museum, where her pig and slippers were displayed. The museum has since restored the mechanism within the music box which has allowed its tune to be heard for the first time in over 60 years. The song the toy played was confirmed to be that of "The Maxixe," otherwise known as "La Sorella march," a Brazilian tango ditty, originally written by Charles Borel-Clerc and Louis Gallini.
Edith's story was extensively revisited that year in two well-received books about the ''Titanic'': Hugh Brewster's ''Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage'' and Andrew Wilson's ''Shadow of the Titanic.'' She was also featured in a further 2012 title, ''The Osborne Titanic Sticker Book'', geared to children.
In 2014 an illustrated biographical account of Edith was included in the digital book that accompanied ''Titanic'' by Sean Callery, part of Scholastic's "Discover More" children's series.
Notes
General references
Edith Louise Rosenbaumat
Encyclopedia Titanica
''Encyclopedia Titanica'' is an online reference work containing extensive and constantly updated information on the . The website, a nonprofit endeavor, is a database of passenger and crew biographies, deck plans, and articles submitted by histor ...
*
Further reading
*
*
External links
* — Includes story of her 'lucky pig', an addition to the collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosenbaum, Edith
1879 births
1975 deaths
Women war correspondents
RMS Titanic's crew and passengers
RMS Titanic survivors
American fashion journalists
American war correspondents
American women in World War I
American expatriates in France
American expatriates in the United Kingdom
Jewish American journalists
American women journalists
20th-century American people