Portrait of Sherry Britton at Leon and Eddie's, New York, N

Edith Zack (July 28, 1918 – April 1, 2008), better known by the stage name Sherry Britton, was an

American burlesque American burlesque is a genre of variety show derived from elements of Victorian burlesque, music hall and minstrel shows. Burlesque became popular in America in the late 1860s and slowly evolved to feature ribald comedy and female nudity. By th ...

performer of the 1930s and early 1940s. The Britton had an waist, and was once said to have a "figure to die for." Legend has it that she decided on her stage name when she saw a bottle of

Harvey's Bristol Cream John Harvey & Sons is a brand (trading name) of a wine and sherry blending and merchant business founded by William Perry in Bristol, England in 1796. The business within 60 years of John Harvey joining had blended the first dessert sherry, d ...

Sherry Sherry ( es, jerez ) is a fortified wine made from white grapes that are grown near the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versi ...

while passing through a liquor store.

Biography

Britton performed in many theaters and clubs during the Golden Age of burlesque. She once said, "I despised burlesque." However, she did enjoy stripping in nightclubs, like Leon & Eddie's where she was a regular for seven years. She stripped to classical music, wore lovely long gowns and tiaras and crowns. When burlesque went by the wayside due to the NYC ban in 1940, Britton turned to the stage, eventually appearing in almost forty plays. Britton also spent much time during World War II entertaining troops, for which she was made an honorary Brigadier General by President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

. Britton was performing 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, ...

clubs as late as 1958, the year she turned 40. She was barred from appearing at the

1964 New York World's Fair The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants, representing 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or ...

, because she was too risqué. She instead became a cabaret singer and appeared in many theater productions. In 1971, Britton, who had been married twice previously, and who once said she'd been engaged "14 times," married wealthy businessman Robert Gross (no relation to aviator Robert E. Gross). Gross urged her to attend

Fordham University Fordham University () is a Private university, private Jesuit universities, Jesuit research university in New York City. Established in 1841 and named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the The Bronx, Bronx in which its origina ...

. Although Britton had never attended high school, she was admitted to Fordham University where she majored in courses appropriate for pre-law students. Gifted with a very high IQ, she graduated magna cum laude in 1982, at the age of 63. After Gross died in 1990, Britton lived a life of retirement, but stepped back into the limelight in 1993, on her 75th birthday, performing at the Marriott Marquis Hotel on Broadway in NYC. Britton died of natural causes on April 1, 2008 in New York City.

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* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Britton, Sherry 1918 births 2008 deaths Artists from New Brunswick, New Jersey American burlesque performers American female dancers Fordham University alumni 20th-century American dancers 20th-century American women 21st-century American women