Jane Quirk (c. 1878 – 13 July 1949) was a cornetist, vaudeville performer, and orchestra conductor.
Early life
Jane Quirk was born Patsy Jane Holcomb, around 1878 in Keytesville, Missouri, the daughter of Ethan Holcomb and Martha Price.[1] She was raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa,[2] where from a young age she performed as a singer, dancer and cornetist, along with her brother and sister at social occasions and church events.[3][4] During her teens she lost most of her family, with her sister,[5] brother[6] and mother[7] dying within a five year period. Jane's father died in 1901.[8]
Life and career
Patsy Jane Holcomb playing the cornet
After the death of her mother in 1898,[7] Jane went on the road performing as a cornet player for traveling orchestras, including the Kirchner's Famous Lady Orchestra,[9] and the Boston Ladies' Symphony Orchestra.[10] In 1903 Jane married fellow performer Billy Quirk in New York.[1] Jane and her husband bred and showed champion French bulldogs.[11] In 1907 Jane appeared on Broadway in "The Top O' Th' World," [12] a musical extravaganza in which Jane and five other dancers appeared in a "collie ballet," dancing with six collie dogs.[13]
As Jane Quirk
Around 1909, Jane stopped going by "Patsy" and became professionally known as Jane Quirk.[14] She kept working and traveling, appearing in various plays, and eventually moved to conducting the orchestra for musical plays, including Jesse Lasky productions The Trained Nurses in 1912,[15] and Red Heads in 1913.[16] During the next few years, Jane continued to play the cornet, and was the conductor or musical director for various productions.[17][18] In 1916 Jane appeared in a stage act with her husband Billy Quirk.[19]
As Jane Frayne
Around 1921 (possibly after her divorce from husband Billy Quirk), Jane's professional name became "Jane Frayne".[20][21] In 1924 she was the director of a jazz band, the "Knights of Harmony",[22] following which she presented "Jane Frayne's Toyland"[23] with the Shand family.
Later life
According to Billy Quirk's death certificate,[24] the couple were divorced at the time of his death in 1926. In 1928, Jane married musician William Greene,[25] and retired from the stage in 1930.[26] Jane and William settled in Battle Creek, Michigan, where she ran a tea-room for a time,[27] and then for several years worked for Kellogg's.[26] Jane died on 13 July 1949 after a long illness.[26]
