Hello lovelies! Dottie’s intern, Jennifer, here! At Dottie’s Delights we usually focus on mid-century design but we are really full vintage lovers at heart. Recently, we have been positively titillated with Jazz-age hometown Chicago and we would love to share some fascinating tidbits with you.
Many of you have seen the 2002 musical film Chicago starring Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renee Zellweger, and Richard Gere (if you haven’t you definitely should). Or maybe you’ve seen the Broadway musical of the same name. The story centers around the trials of two spotlight-loving, jazz-hand-waving murderesses who found themselves imprisoned in the Cook County jail in the 1920s.
The show is a non-stop spectacle full of infectious song and dance numbers and dozens of fabulous costume changes. The whole production is simply loaded with attitude and sex-appeal. And that’s where the true story comes into play. All of this sex appeal was inspired by two very real 1920s Chicagoans. Oh yes, the characters of Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart were based on the true life stories of Belva Gaertner and Beulah Annan. Written by Maurine Watkins, the story and characters are derived from her experiences as a young reporter for the Chicago Tribune. Belva Gaertner herself even came to see the show when it opened in 1927.
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| Catherine Zeta-Jones as Velma Kelly and Renee Zellweger as Roxie Hart. |
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| The real Belva Gaertner and Beulah Annan. |
Belva Gaertner, the inspiration for Velma Kelly, was a three time divorced cabaret singer who performed under the stage name Belle Brown. In 1924 Belva shot and killed Walter Law, her lover, in the front seat of her car. The police found blood-soaked clothes at her apartment but Belva claimed she was drunk and didn’t remember what had happened. She even told Maurine Watkins “Gin and guns – either one is bad enough, but together they get you in a dickens of a mess, don’t they?” Her lawyer got her acquitted by claiming that Law might have killed himself with the gun. And so Belva was free to grace the stage again.
Beulah Annan, the real woman behind Roxie Hart, was born and raised in Kentucky then moved to Chicago with her car mechanic husband Al Annan. Al found a job and Beulah found a lover. Her affair with Harry Kalstedt ended tragically one night when, after a heated argument, she shot him in the back. She is then said to have sat drinking cocktails and listening to “Hula Lou” on a loop for several hours until Al came home. Beulah changed her story numerous times, first confessing to the murder, then claiming self defense. Her husband stood by her, paying for the best lawyer possible. Upon her acquittal, she rewarded his loyalty by leaving him.
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| Velma and Roxie stealing the show |
Belva and Beulah were America’s first real celebrity criminals with their names and photos all over the press. These villainous vixens were acquitted largely because of their public appeal and the mass amounts of corruption of the times. Not all of the film is true. Contrary to the character of Roxie Hart, Beulah never became a vaudeville star (she did, however, feign pregnancy during her trial to gain sympathy from the jury). Belva never killed her sister as Velma did in the film. We don’t even know if the two women ever met each other! And something tells me the real Cook County jail didn’t offer so many costume changes for poor Belva and Beulah. But these ladies really were some lucky free wheelin’ flappers and the dark glamour of their stories lends itself perfectly to the vaudeville stage in the gritty music halls and speakeasies of the day.
Most importantly, these ladies were the fearless faces of a new generation. “In the 1920s, a new woman was born. She smoked, drank, danced, and voted. She cut her hair, wore make-up, and went to petting parties. She was giddy and took risks. She was a flapper” (Jennifer Rosenberg)
So let’s pay tribute to Belva and Beulah. Put on your sassiest threads and go crazy! Just don’t let the gin go to your head.
Want more? Read all the salacious details of this true story in The Girls of Murder City: Fame, Lust, and the Beautiful Killers who Inspired Chicago
Photo credits: Chicago musical header from Through the Looking Glass; Chicago album cover art from Discogs; Velma Kelly from All Movie Photo; Roxie Hart from RedBankGreen; Belva Gartner and Beulah Annan from Popped Density; Velma and Roxie from A Red Lipstick.
