Research Catalog

Ada "Bricktop" Smith audio collection.

Title
Ada "Bricktop" Smith audio collection.
Author
Bricktop, 1894-1984.

Details

Subjects
Genre/Form
  • Interviews.
  • Sound recordings.
Note
  • Ada Beatrice Queen Victoria Louise Virginia Smith, (August 14, 1894 - February 1, 1984), was an American dancer, jazz singer, vaudevillian, and club owner, who was known as "Bricktop" for her red hair. An expatriate and contemporary of Josephine Baker, she owned the nightclub Chez Bricktop in Paris (1920s and 30s), as well as clubs in Mexico City (1940s) and Rome (1950s). Bricktop closed her nightclub in 1961 and afterwards returned to the United States. Towards the end of her career she made appearances on radio broadcasts, performed at various establishments such as The Club Tango in Chicago, and introduced Josephine Baker for her "come-back" engagement at Carnegie Hall in 1973. She co-authored "Bricktop" (1983), her autobiography, with James Haskins.
  • The collection consists of 41 audio recordings primarily of interviews conducted in the 1960s for various radio programs in which she tells the story of her life and career. The holdings are available in the Moving Image and Recorded Sound (MIRS) Division.
Linking Entry (note)
  • Forms part of the Ada "Bricktop" Smith papers, 1926-1983. Papers are transferred to the Manuscript & Rare Books Division (Sc MG 247). Photographs are transferred to Photograph & Prints Division (Sc Photo Ada Bricktop Smith Collection). Drawing and plaque transferred to Art and Artifacts Division.
OCLC
1151643660
Author
Bricktop, 1894-1984.
Title
Ada "Bricktop" Smith audio collection.
Linking Entry
Forms part of the Ada "Bricktop" Smith papers, 1926-1983. Papers are transferred to the Manuscript & Rare Books Division (Sc MG 247). Photographs are transferred to Photograph & Prints Division (Sc Photo Ada Bricktop Smith Collection). Drawing and plaque transferred to Art and Artifacts Division.
Connect to:
Request Access to Schomburg Moving Images and Recorded Sound
View in Legacy Catalog