Born this day: Mary Florence Cecila “Babe” Egan (1897-1966). A California native, Egan moved to Hollywood in 1919, playing her violin on silent film sets as a professional mood-setter, as was common at the time. In 1924 she established Babe Egan and her Hollywood Redheads, one of the first of the all-girl jazz bands. The group was a staple flash act of big time vaudeville and toured Europe twice until they first disbanded in 1933, although the group reformed for a couple of additional tours as late at the mid 40s.
To find out more about vaudeville past and present, consult No Applause, Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous
