Karen Abbott

“A Republican is a man who wants you to go t'church every Sunday. A Democrat says if a man wants to have…

— Karen Abbott

I think Gypsy [Rose Lee] would be appalled at today's rawer, more blatant displays of the female form. She was, in her…

— Karen Abbott

I spent three years researching American Rose, research that included connecting with Gypsy's sister, the late actress June Havoc (I was the…

— Karen Abbott

Gypsy [Rose Lee ] was a masterful storyteller, and her memoir and by extension, the musical weren't only Gypsy's monument; they were…

— Karen Abbott

Vaudeville was characterized by sunny optimism, acts that were uplifting, cheerful, and clean. It provided a fanciful, magical escape, but after Black…

— Karen Abbott

An amusing city, Chicago, any way you look at it. I'm afraid we are in for the time of our lives.

— Karen Abbott

The cousin said that Gypsy [Rose Lee] took a full fifteen minutes to peel off a single glove, and that she was…

— Karen Abbott

“He was just a taker. She was a taker in her way too. They were taking each other, and they loved each…

— Karen Abbott

In the beginning of the war, Southern women wanted their men to leave - in droves, and as quickly as possible. They…

— Karen Abbott

I thought both she [Gypsy Rose Lee] and her story would be ill-served by a conventional, birth-to-death narrative, and so I structured…

— Karen Abbott

“And truth is malleable, something to be bent or stretched or made to disappear, but direct lies always find the path back…

— Karen Abbott

“Mother was,' June thought, 'a beautiful little ornament that was damaged.' Her broken edges cut her daughters in ways both emotional and…

— Karen Abbott

Gypsy [Rose Lee] is as unique as she is timeless. Her story is classic Americana, and the strangest rags-to-riches saga you'll ever…

— Karen Abbott

Female spies typically represented one of two extremes: the seductress who employed her wiles to manipulate men, and the cross-dresser who blended…

— Karen Abbott

“A Republican is a man who wants you to go t’church every Sunday,” Bathhouse John pointed out. “A Democrat says if a…

— Karen Abbott

I think the most important thing journalism taught me is to mine for details. The details are key. You can't try to…

— Karen Abbott

When Gypsy was older, after she became Gypsy Rose Lee, I think she was both proud and slightly ashamed of her Seattle…

— Karen Abbott

At least in cities where the Confederate Army established a base of operations, young women were overwhelmed by the number of prospective…

— Karen Abbott

Before the Great Chicago Fire, no one took notice of Patrick and Catherine O'Leary, two Irish immigrants who lived with their five…

— Karen Abbott

As a kid, I liked to write, but I didn't think that was a viable career choice. My dream, actually, was to…

— Karen Abbott

In the sudden absence of husbands, fathers, brothers and beaus, white Southern women discovered a newfound freedom - one that simultaneously granted…

— Karen Abbott

She [Gypsy Rose Lee] was a sophisticated self-satirist with a contagious delight in the comedy of sex. She was coy; she was…

— Karen Abbott

Leave the fireworks for those who cast no spark of their own.

— Karen Abbott

The real Rose Hovick was seriously mentally disturbed; June Havoc called her a beautiful little ornament that was damaged.

— Karen Abbott

“Her mother was by turns tender and pathetic and terrifying, broken in a way that no one, in that time or place,…

— Karen Abbott