Arsenic & Old lAce - Center Stage

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Glossary Compiled by Gavin Witt, Production Dramaturg Alice Roosevelt: Teddy, convinced that he is Theodore Roosevelt, imagines that Elaine is his eldest daughter Alice (1884–1980). Alice was nicknamed “Princess Alice” during her father’s tenure in the White House, and became an instant celebrity. She was a strong-willed, outspoken, unconventional, and beautiful young woman, America’s darling. She smoked in public, hung around with young men, gambled, and owned a pet snake named Emily Spinach—hence, Teddy’s admonishment that she not be a rough-housing tomboy. Alice married a Congressman in 1906, and went on to lead a fascinating life. [see also: Teddy Roosevelt] Allez oop: In 1932, cartoonist V.T. Hamlin created a comic strip about a cave man named Alley Oop. He’d picked up the phrase “allez-oup” as a WWI ambulance driver in France. French circus acrobats cue each other with “allez-oup!” (“let’s go”). The awesome offensive play in basketball is named after the comic strip. Arsenic: When ingested in large doses, the symptoms of arsenic poisoning include vomiting, bloody diarrhea, burning pain in the esophagus, cold and clammy skin, weakness, a sweet metallic taste in the mouth, convulsions, delirium, and coma. If the victim is left untreated, circulatory failure leads to death. Used extensively in glass-making, mining, smelting, and other industrial processes, arsenic is a naturally occurring mineral found in water, soil, or rock; in its pure form it is a white, tasteless, odorless element. Behrman: Samuel N. Behrman (1893–1973) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and journalist. He was considered one of Broadway’s leading authors of “high comedy” in the 1930s and ‘40s: his plays dealt with tolerance in the face of fanaticism and violence. Great Broadway successes: Second Man (1928), Biography (1932), End of Summer (1936), and No Time for Comedy (1939). The “Behrman play” that prompted Mortimer to compliment Elaine’s “authentic beauty” was probably No Time for Comedy, in which a successful comic playwright feels driven to write a serious play in response to the Spanish Civil War, and ends up deciding to go and fight in Spain himself. Bleeck’s: Mortimer and Elaine’s thwarted after-theater plans include Jack Bleeck’s Artist & Writers Restaurant, at 213 W. 40 th Street. Once a speakeasy, this popular hangout in Manhattan was the favored haunt of the staff of The Herald Tribune. It’s still open, and still a favorite with the press. Blockhouse: Teddy exhorts his troops to storm the blockhouse at the top of San Juan Hill (i.e., the staircase). He means a small, single-building fortification, more than a trench and less than a bunker. [see also: San Juan Hill, Teddy Roosevelt] Bombazine: Aunt Martha intends to wear bombazine for the funeral services of her victims. It’s a very Victorian choice: the heavy black cloth was used mainly for mourning garb, but had gone out of fashion by the early 20 th Century. Cardinal Gibbons: James Cardinal Gibbons (1834–1921), a Baltimore native, grew up in County Mayo, Ireland, and New Orleans. He rose through the ranks of the Catholic Church and was made Archbishop of Baltimore in 1877, a position he held until his death. He championed the labor movement, welfare, civil rights, education, and dialogue with other religions. Several presidents sought his counsel, and he was the public face of Roman Catholicism in the early 20 th Century. In 1917, Teddy Roosevelt hailed him as the most venerated, respected, and useful citizen in America. [see also: Teddy Roosevelt] Chicago World’s Fair: Chicago has hosted two World’s Fairs: the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893 and the Century of Progress Exposition in 1933. Aunt Abby and Aunt Martha could conceivably have visited either, but they are probably remembering the Fair of 1933. The Fair’s theme was technological innovation. It opened on May 27, 1933, on the shore on Lake Michigan. Popular and strange exhibits included the performances of fan dancer Sally Rand, an exhibition of incubators containing real babies, the “dream cars” of various auto manufacturers, the arrival of the German airship Graf Zeppelin on October 26 th , the Homes of Tomorrow, and clubs on the Midway featuring future star Judy Garland. Crazy like a fox: The phrase was first recorded in 1935. Foxes are considered cunning, sly animals, so a person who is “crazy like a fox” might be cleverly pretending to be crazy in order to deceive others (much like Hamlet in Shakespeare’s play, for instance). Culebra Cut: Renamed the Gaillard Cut in 1915, this is a manmade valley that forms part of the Panama Canal. The cut, the result of a monumental engineering effort, is nearly eight Next Stage: Arsenic & Old Lace | 12
miles long and links Lake Gatun (and the Atlantic Ocean) to the Gulf of Panama at the Pacific Ocean. General Washington Goethals was the leader of the Panama Canal project, taking over work started by the French. [see also: General Goethals, Panama Canal, Teddy Roosevelt] Cyanide: This volatile poison can be detected by its distinctive odor of bitter almonds. It is a naturally occurring chemical found (in trace quantities) in many ordinary foods; in compounds, it is used in manufacturing. When a large dose is taken, symptoms—including giddiness, headache, palpitation, and unconsciousness—may occur immediately, and an untreated victim usually dies within the hour. “I’d have time to lead you beside distilled waters.” Mortimer makes a pun! He’s quoting from Psalm 23, one of David’s songs and one of the most widely known Bible verses. “He leadeth me beside the still waters,” becomes, whimsically (and a bit sacrilegiously) a reference to alcoholic consumption. Psalm 23: The Lord [is] my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of Death, I will fear no evil: for thou [art] with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. —King James Bible General Goethals: George Washington Goethals (1858–1928, pronounced Go-tuhles), was an officer and engineer in the U.S. Army who supervised the construction of the Panama Canal. Teddy Roosevelt appointed him to that post in 1907, and the canal was completed in 1914, one year ahead of the target date. [see also: Culebra Cut, Teddy Roosevelt] General Miles: Lieutenant General Nelson Miles (1839–1925), who appears in Arsenic and Old Lace as one of Teddy’s toy soldiers, began his military career in the Civil War fighting for the Union. In the 1870s and 1880s, he led campaigns against Geronimo, Sitting Bull, and Chief Joseph. He was appointed Commanding General of the U.S. Army in 1895 and served throughout the Spanish-American War. Teddy Roosevelt called him a “brave peacock.” [see also: Teddy Roosevelt] Hellzapoppin’: When it closed after 1,404 performances in December of 1941, Hellzapoppin’ was the longest-running Broadway musical ever. Populated by dancers, comics, acrobats, and sideshow entertainers, and barely distinguishable from the circus or vaudeville, the production was rewritten throughout the run in order to remain topical. The bane of critics, the show was enormously popular. Hunting trip to Africa: A month after leaving office in 1908, Teddy Roosevelt went on safari in British East Africa, or what is now the Republic of Kenya. He and his son Kermit shot 512 animals of 296 separate species. He donated the specimens to the Smithsonian Institution. [see also: Teddy Roosevelt] Japan: The real President Teddy Roosevelt was always concerned about the competition he perceived Japan represented for the U.S. He was perhaps vindicated when, soon after Arsenic opened, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. [see also: Teddy Roosevelt] Judith Anderson: Mortimer orders Martha and Abby to get out of their mourning clothes, because he thinks they look like Judith Anderson. In 1941, the renowned Australian actress had just starred in Hitchcock’s Rebecca as Mrs. Danvers, a frightening, obsessive housekeeper who kept her former mistress’ room as a shrine and tortured the second Mrs. de Winter with her memory. Mrs. Danvers dressed all in black. Anderson also became known for her grim turns as Lady Macbeth and Medea. Lady Baltimore cake: A white cake topped with a boiled 7-minute frosting filled with chopped nuts and candied and dried fruits. Despite its name, Lady Baltimore cake was not invented in Baltimore, Maryland, and it is unlikely that it was named for Ann Arundel, wife of the Irish Lord Baltimore who inherited Maryland in the 17 th Century. Some maintain that it was the signature cake of the 19 th -century Lady Baltimore Next Stage: Arsenic & Old Lace | 13
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Arsenic & Old lAce - Center Stage

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