Elsie Janis

Elsie Janis (March 16, 1889 – February 26, 1956), American singer, songwriter, actress, and screenwriter, original vintage real photo postcard (RPPC), Published by Kraus Mfg. Co., New York. 

Acclaimed by American and British critics, Janis was a headliner on Broadway and London. On Broadway, she starred in a number of successful shows, including The Vanderbilt Cup (1906), The Hoyden (1907), The Slim Princess (1911), and The Century Girl (1916). Elsie performed at the grand opening of the Brown Theatre in Louisville, Kentucky on October 5, 1925.

Janis also enjoyed a career as a Hollywood screenwriter, actor, and composer. She was credited with the original story for Close Harmony (1929) and as composer and production manager for Paramount on Parade (1930). 

Janis was a tireless advocate for British and American soldiers fighting in World War I. She raised funds for Liberty Bonds. Janis also took her act on the road, entertaining troops stationed near the front lines - one of the first popular American artists to do so in a war fought on foreign soil. Ten days after the armistice she recorded for HMV several numbers from her revue Hullo, America, including Give Me the Moonlight, Give Me the Girl. She wrote about her wartime experiences in The Big Show: My Six Months with the American Expeditionary Forces (published in 1919), and recreated them in a 1926 Vitaphone musical short, Behind the Lines.

This vintage real photo postcard, measuring 3.5 x 5.5 inches is in fine condition showing light signs of age and toning. Verso bears original printed post card graphics and slight mounting traces.