Alta King
A young white woman with a dimpled chin, wearing a light-colored costume with lacing across the bodice.
Alta King, from a 1921 publication
BornMarch 21, 1899
DiedMarch 1981 (aged 8182)
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Dancer, singer
Spouse
James Edward Royce
(m. 1925)

Alta L. King (March 21, 1899 – March 1981) was an American dancer, singer, and Ziegfeld girl in musical theatre.

Early life

King was born in Barnesville, Minnesota,[1] the daughter of John F. King (18661939) and Alta Mae Kimpton King (18761956), who had both been born in Wisconsin. She had a younger brother named Kenneth.[2] She left school after completing 10th grade.[3]

Career

King's stage career began in a stock company in Minneapolis.[4] Her Broadway credits included appearances in Ziegfeld Follies of 1919, Ziegfeld Follies of 1920, Sally (19201922), Orange Blossoms (1922), and Cinders (1923).[5] She was also in the Ziegfeld Midnight Frolic,[6] and performed on the roof of the New Amsterdam Theatre.[7] She was considered to have the "stage's most beautiful legs", along with Ann Pennington and Mistinguett.[8] She was in the same sextet of Ziegfeld dancers as Elizabeth Meehan and Billie Dove.[9]

After her marriage, she gave recitals as a soprano singer.[10]

Personal life

King married English-born theatrical producer and director James Edward Royce (1870-1964)[11] in 1925.[12] In 1940, her occupation was listed as model.[13]

References

  1. "Ziegfeld Follies". New-York Tribune. June 20, 1920. p. 50. Retrieved August 23, 2019 via Newspapers.com.
  2. "Join Ancestry®". Ancestry.com.
  3. "Ancestry - Sign up". Ancestry.com.
  4. "Flowers in Broadway's Beauty Garden" Theatre Magazine (September 1921): 160.
  5. Dietz, Dan (2019-04-10). The Complete Book of 1920s Broadway Musicals. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 45, 122, 157. ISBN 9781538112823.
  6. Mantle, Burns (December 1919). "Play-Time". The Green Book Magazine. 22: 56.
  7. "The Stage". Munsey's Magazine. 71: 508. December 1920.
  8. "Who Has Stage's Most Beautiful Legs?". El Paso Herald. September 6, 1919. p. 31. Retrieved August 23, 2019 via Newspapers.com.
  9. "Extra-Girl Writes Way to Fame". Bismarck Tribune. December 14, 1928. p. 29. Retrieved August 23, 2019 via NewspaperArchive.
  10. "Mrs. Royce in Recital". Times Union. March 8, 1927. p. 74. Retrieved August 23, 2019 via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Edward Royce". The Greenwich Village Bookshop Door. Retrieved 2019-08-24.
  12. "Legitimate: Edward Royce Marries Alta King, of 'Follies'". Variety. 81: 20. December 16, 1925.
  13. "Ancestry - Sign up". Ancestry.com.
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