Jue Quon Tai

Jue Quon Tai in 1915

Jue Quon Tai (December 21, 1898 - September 24, 1991) was a Chinese-American vaudeville performer.[1]

She was born in California on December 21, 1896, or December 21, 1898, and sometimes used the Americanized name Rose Eleanor Jue[2] or Rose Eleanor Jewel.[3] Her mother was Bertha "Bertie" Eng Jue (1876-1955) and her father was Jue Sue a prominent figure in Portland's Chinatown.[4] [5] Her younger sister, So Tai Jue (November 18, 1899 - August 5, 1998) was also a vaudeville performer. So Tai Jue, also called Alice Jue or Alice Jewell, was known as the "voice of the orient".[1] Jue Quon Tai also had two brothers, Charles and Herbert Jue, and an older sister, Leona Mary Jue.[6]

She worked in vaudeville in Portland, Oregon, and at the Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco.[1] She began performing at the Pantages Theatre in April 1915, receiving positive reviews.[7] She attended the Panama–Pacific International Exposition later that year and then went to New York City.[8]

She performed in Silks and Satins on Broadway from July 15, 1920, to September 4, 1920.[9] She was billed as performing at the New York Hippodrome in 1925.[10]

In 1927 she married Harry Lachman. Her husband died in 1975.[11]

She died on September 24, 1991, under the name "Quon T. Lachman" and "Quon Tai Lachman" in Beverly Hills, California.

References

  1. ^ a b c Jenny Cho (2013). Chinese in Hollywood. Chinese Historical Society of Southern California. ISBN 9780738599731.
  2. ^ In an interview with the New York Times she said she was born as a princess in Beijing. This appears to have been a publicity stunt. The Social Security Death Index uses December 21, 1901 for her birth and the California Death Index uses December 21, 1905 and lists her birthplace as California. However the Chinese Exclusion Act paperwork uses the year 1898, which would be the most accurate. A 1918 ship manifest uses the year "1896".
  3. ^ "She Won't Wear Pants, So There!". The Tacoma Times. February 3, 1912. p. 8. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  4. ^ "Chinese Maid on Stage Wears American Dress; Sings Chinese". Fort Wayne Weekly Sentinel. June 28, 1915. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
  5. ^ "Mother and Son In Conflict Over Chinese Estate". The Oregon Daily Journal. December 27, 1920. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
  6. ^ "Obituary for Jue Sue". The Oregon Daily Journal. February 28, 1919. p. 6. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  7. ^ "Pantages: Miss Jue Quon Tai". Contra Costa Times. April 22, 1915. p. 3. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  8. ^ "Chinese Princess Here. She Says 'Gee' to Reporters and Smokes Sixty Cigarette a Day". New York Times. December 9, 1915. Retrieved 2013-11-29.
  9. ^ "'Silks And Satins' Pleasing At Times ... Introducing Jue Luon Tai, in One of the Enjoyable Numbers". New York Times. July 16, 1920.
  10. ^ "Keith-Albee's New York Hippodrome". Daily News. November 8, 1925. p. 214. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  11. ^ "Harry Lachman, A Film Director. Former Painter Dead at 88 Decorated by French". New York Times. March 21, 1975. Retrieved 2013-12-30.
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