Lillian Herlein (March 11, 1895 – April 13, 1971) was an actress and singer in theater and

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

in the early 20th century. In vaudeville, she was sometimes known more for display of her figure than for the quality of her performances. Herlein had the role of Zoradie in ''The Rose of Algeria'' produced by the

Herald Square Theatre The Herald Square Theatre was a Broadway theatre in Manhattan, New York City, built in 1883 and closed in 1914. The site is now a highrise designed by H. Craig Severance. History The Park Theatre opened in 1883 (also known as the New Park The ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in September 1909. The audience demanded an encore of her rendition of "The Rose of the World", part of the

Victor Herbert Victor August Herbert (February 1, 1859 – May 26, 1924) was an American composer, cellist and conductor of English and Irish ancestry and German training. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is be ...

music. Her other Broadway credits included ''The Never Homes'' (1911) and ''Man Bites Dog'' (1933). She played the 5th Avenue Theatre in New York City with Keith & Proctor in vaudeville afterward. Herlein performed at the

Brighton Beach Brighton Beach is a List of Brooklyn neighborhoods, neighborhood in the southern portion of the New York City Borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn, within the greater Coney Island area along the Atlantic Ocean coastline. Brighton Beach i ...

Music Hall in July 1911. She was in a charity benefit at the

New York Hippodrome The Hippodrome Theatre, also called the New York Hippodrome, was a theater in New York City from 1905 to 1939, located on Sixth Avenue between West 43rd and West 44th Streets in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan. It was called the worl ...

, for the Christmas Fund of the ''

New York American :''Includes coverage of New York Journal-American and its predecessors New York Journal, The Journal, New York American and New York Evening Journal'' The ''New York Journal-American'' was a daily newspaper published in New York City from 1937 t ...

'' and ''Evening Journal'', in December 1911. Proceeds were donated to the poor of

. The Orpheum Theatre in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

presented ''A Hungarian Rhapsody'' and the

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

, ''Sweeties'', in June 1919 with Herlein among the players. In July she was a member of the Alla Maslova Ballet. The

troupe Troupe may refer to: General *Comedy troupe, a group of comedians *Dance troupe, a group of dancers **Fire troupe, a group of fire dancers *Troupe system, a method of playing role-playing games *Theatrical troupe, a group of theatrical performers ...

presented ''Kiss Me'' in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, at the

B.F. Keith Benjamin Franklin Keith (January 26, 1846 – March 26, 1914) was an American vaudeville theater owner, highly influential in the evolution of variety theater into vaudeville. Biography Early years Keith was born in Hillsborough, New Hamp ...

Theatre, 675 15th Street NW. Herlein also appeared at the Palace Theater and

Winter Garden Theater The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It opened in 1911 under designs by architect William Albert Swasey. The Winter Garden's current design dates to 1922, when ...

on Broadway and in Europe. In her later years she was on radio and television and was a

character actor A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to b ...

in films. Her movie credits are for a role as ''Mrs. Levy'' in ''Solomon In Society'' (1922) and an uncredited part in ''Thanks For The Memory'' (1938). On April 13, 1971, Herlein died at French Hospital, 8th Avenue and West 30th Street, at age 76. She was the widow of Charles G. Strakosch, who died in June 1965. They had a son, Charles Jr.

References

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Herlein, Lillian American stage actresses American musical theatre actresses American film actresses American silent film actresses Vaudeville performers American radio actresses 1895 births 1971 deaths 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers