The Rocky Twins
The Rocky Twins
The rocky twins Norway’s outrageous jazz age beauties
The Rocky Twins
Admired for being stunningly handsome, the Norwegian Rocky Twins were dancers who had a ten-year career in Europe and America appearing on stage and in film between 1927-1937. Their beauty, their androgynous looks and their outrageous antics made them legendary When the famous Dolly Sisters retired in 1927, the Rocky Twins took their place in drag and caused a sensation, especially during what has been called ‘The Pansy Craze’
see the blog post about the rocky twins at: http://www.jazzageclub.com/dancing-duos/the-outrageous-rocky-twins
The Rocky Twins by Gary Chapman
Publication: 3rd September 2018 £20 paperback, ISBN: 978-1-909230-28-6 £6.99 ebook (epub/apple) ISBN: 978-1-909230-29-3 £6.99 ebook (mobi/kindle) ISBN: 978-1-909230-30-9
www.eddittpublishing.com
The Rocky Twins
introduction to the book Admired for being stunningly handsome, the Norwegian Rocky Twins (born Leif and Paal Roschberg) made a name for themselves as dancers in the Paris music hall in the late 1920s at the tender age of eighteen and their unique performance led to a ten-year career in Europe and America appearing on stage and in film between 1927-1937. Their fame was secured immediately they performed at the Casino de Paris in late 1927 by their parody of the famous Dolly Sisters who had just retired. It was this impersonation that became their enduring swan song and what has defined them at the time and in recent years. They were once described as ‘just a pair of hoofers but they do look gorgeous’1 and this was largely true. They were just dancers, but they achieved fame not only for their dancing but because of their incredible good looks and the fact that they were reputed to be the snappiest and best-dressed male twins in the world.2 The Jazz Age represented great style and if you were stylish and beautiful you epitomised the era and the Rocky Twins did simply that. They were typical Jazz Age Beauties and as ‘Bright Young Things’ their good looks became highly sought after by connoisseurs of the body beautiful of either sex. Their beauty, their androgynous look and their outrageous antics made them legendary. They often talked about the Dolly Sisters, who they imitated on the stage and sought to be compared. But although the story of the Dollies was definitely one of rags to riches, the Rocky Twins were born into a comfortable middle-class Oslo family and endured no real hardships. The Dolly Sisters – Jenny and Rosie - were Hungarian twins who moved to America at an early age and began making their living as entertainers to help make ends meet. From their rather humble origins they swiftly danced their way to fame and fortune on Broadway before conquering London and Paris. Although they were not the first sister act to appear on the stage, they were certainly the most famous and paved the way for so many later duos and trios that proliferated in their wake. Earning incredible salaries and having the benefit of wealthy admirers, the Dollies invested in property and vast collections of jewellry and became recognised as the most extravagant gamblers in Europe.3 Both the Rocky Twins and the Dolly Sisters were identical twins but although there were huge differences between the two pairs of twins, there were also many notable comparisons. In an interview with Leif in 1963, a Norwegian journalist said that there were striking similarities between the Rocky Twins and the Dolly Sisters and that their fate would be about the same.4 Rosie married three times, so did Leif. Paal allegedly married once so did Jenny.
The Rocky Twins
Above: The Dolly Sisters in a pose that was replicated by the Rocky Twins below
The Rocky Twins
Like the Dolly Sisters, wherever they went the Rocky Twins became the centre of attention and barometers of style. Both sets of twins had wealthy admirers that showered them with gifts of valuable jewellery and more poignantly, tragedy struck Jenny at an early age and she took her own life and Paal died in mysterious circumstances. They both lived close to the rhythm of the time and their lives mirrored the incredibly luxurious existence of ‘society’ on both sides of the Atlantic and their lives provide a fascinating glimpse of this privileged world that was eventually swept away by the Second World War. After establishing their fame in Europe, they made two trips to America, the first to New York in 1929-1930 and then Hollywood in late 1931. Given their androgynous looks and predilection for female impersonation their arrival in both places was nothing short of auspicious since the so-called Pansy Craze first flowered in New York while they were there and then after being shut down, re-emerged in Hollywood in the early 1930s. They became part of this extraordinary flirtation with a camp, gay subculture by the smart Hollywood set alongside the flamboyant entertainer and female impersonator Jean Malin.
The Rocky Twins and Marion Davis in Blondie of the Follies (1932)
The Rocky Twins
At the same time, they flirted with Hollywood and a contract at MGM and appeared alongside Marion Davis in Blondie of the Follies (1932) but never really made the grade. Besides circulating with the elite of Hollywood and staying at William Randolf Hearst’s San Simeon retreat, they also embraced the secret gay social circles of tinsel town. In 1933 they moved back to New York and for several years became ‘prime favourites of the so-called sophisticates’5 and then returned to Europe and eventually separated as an act in 1937. They tried individual careers but World War 2 intervened and the Rocky Twins disappeared from the world of entertainment. They were out of history but Leif and Paal would live on and would use all their resources and money and live on their memories. Strangely, they were never feted in their home country in the same way that they had been elsewhere as first-class world artists. Perhaps this was because they made few appearances in Oslo during their career and although their foreign achievements were acknowledged to some extent by the local press, their fame was largely ignored and remains so today. However, when Leif died in 1967, the Oslo newspaper Dagbladet acknowledged that Norway had finally ‘lost two brilliant entertainers’ and that above their heads had shone the tremendously shining letters - The Rocky Twins - a world-famous act.6 In subsequent years their legacy continues to mesmerize. One image of them as the Dolly Sisters from the Schwules Museum in Berlin re-surfaces with regularity in books and blogs. In a recent production of Red Hot and Cole, a play about the life and music of Cole Porter staged by the University of Colorado in 2017, the Rocky Twins had cameo appearances.7 In 1973, the photographer and designer Cecil Beaton wrote in his diary that he overheard Diana Vreeland, the famous fashion editor, trying to convince Andy Warhol‘s business manager that a movie should be made about the Rocky Twins and that the end should feature a shot of them high-kicking up the stairs of the Élysée Palace in the arms of Adolf Hitler.8 This was a somewhat disturbing vision but arrived at because of Paal’s later flirtation in German movies in the late 1930s and exaggerated press reports of his connection with Hitler. Paal rejected these connections fully by fighting against the Nazis during World War 2 by joining the Free Norwegian Air force. When I uploaded a blog about the Rocky Twins many years ago,9 I was bombarded with comments and my images and content was effectively stolen and used by others without my consent or credit. Clearly, something about them resonated with people. Perhaps, because of the images of them as the Dolly Sisters in drag, it would appear that they have achieved some form of cult status and have become something of gay icons. I hope this book will enlighten everyone to the reality of their lives and their world.
The Rocky Twins
Contents Author’s Note Introduction Chapter One: The Early Years 1909-1927 Chapter Two: The Heavenlies’ or ‘The Black Orchids of the North‘ in London Chapter Three: Double Rendezvous, Paris 1927-1928 Chapter Four: European Tour 1928-1930 Chapter Five: First trip to New York and back to Europe 1930-1931 Chapter Six: Hollywood, MGM and the Pansy Craze 1931-1932 Chapter Seven: Larry Hart and Low and Behold 1932-1933 Chapter Eight: New York Cabaret 1933-1936 Chapter Nine: Europe and Separation 1936 - 1941 Chapter Ten: The War Years and Later Life Acknowlegements Picture Credits About the Author Chronology Footnotes
Mistinguett with the Rocky Twins, Paris, late 1920s
The Rocky Twins
highlights • The first illustrated biography of the dancing Norwegian Rocky Twins who were stars of film and stage in the Jazz Age on both sides of the Atlantic, • Based on extensive research over 30 years. • Covers the full career of the Rocky Twins. • Charts their early life in Oslo, their beginnings in Paris, their flirtation with Hollywood, their time in New York and their later life during and after World War Two. • Includes over 100 black and white (82) and colour (34) photographs. • Some unique and rare glimpses of the Rocky Twins in pictures, mostly from the author’s collection but also from other sources, especailly the Shubert Archive in New York.. • Insight and detail about nightlife and the entertainment world in London, Paris, New York, Vienna, Scandinavia, New York and Hollywood in the golden age of stage and screen. • Details their association with the two mega-divas of the Paris Music Hall - Mistinguett and Josephine Baker. • For the first time the story of how Mistinguett stole the Rocky Twins from Josesphine Baker in Budapest in 1929. • Exposes some of the secrets of pre-code Hollywood in the early 1930s. • Explores the secret gay world on both side of the Atlantic. • Describes the ‘Pansy Craze’ in America in the early 1930s. • The Rocky Twins were regarded as two of the best dressed and most handsome men in the world. • Their impersonation in drag of the Dolly Sisters became legendary. • A colourful life story that has made them ‘gay legends.’ • They were once called ‘The Black Orchids of the North.’
The Rocky Twins
over 100 wonderful photographs 34 colour and 82 black and white
The Rocky Twins
The majority of the images in the book are in the personal colection of Gary Chapman and are under license to the Mary Evans Picture Library and must not be re-used without prior consent. Some images are kindly provided by the Shubert Archive, New York and other sources
The Rocky Twins
About the Author Gary Chapman has always been fascinated by the 1920s and the Jazz Age, and his degree in archaeology left with a passion for uncovering the truth about his subjects. He lived and worked for many years in London where he was engaged in marketing and PR for major London publishing companies including. Pan Books, Merehurst, Charles Letts and Constable and Robinson. He has also been involved for over thirty years in the cake decorating industry and is world renowned for inventing the concept of Fabric Effects in Sugar and launched the first ever mass market cake decorating magazine. Over eight years ago he moved to the quieter countryside and now lives in Stroud, Gloucestershire. He has his own publishing company called Edditt Publishing and a website devoted to the Jazz Age. He has written the only biography about the famous Dolly Sisters, called The Dolly Sisters: Icons of the Jazz Age and The Dolly Sisters in Pictures. He also wrote and published London’s Hollywood: The Gainsborough Studio in the Silent Years and was the author of New Holland’s Retro Paris. More recently he wrote and published an illustrated biography about the British Jazz Age costume designer Dolly Tree: A Dream of Beauty. He is fortunate in being able to pursue his various passions – publishing, marketing books, writing, the Jazz Age and cake decorating. He is currently working on a variety of books including Stars of the British Silent Screen, a biography about the first star of ballroom - Maurice Mouvet and other books about the Jazz Age including the origins of cabaret and the dancing craze. www.eddittpublishing.com www.jazzageclub.com http://garychapman.wordpress.com https://garychapmancakes.com http://fynesharteharrington.wordpress.com On Facebook: Gary Chapman, Jazz Age Club, Gary Chapman Cakes and Edditt Publishing
The Rocky Twins
PRESS RELEASE
The Rocky Twins Norway’s Outrageous Jazz Age Beauties by Gary Chapman Publication: 3rd September 2018 PRESS EMBARGO UNTIL THIS DATE Paperback, £20, ISBN 978-1-909230-28-6
Ebook (epub), £6.99, ISBN 978-1-909230-29-3 Ebook (mobi), £6.99, ISBN 978-1-909230-30-9
Admired for being stunningly handsome, the Norwegian Rocky Twins were dancers who had a ten-year career in Europe and America appearing on stage and in film between 1927-1937. Their beauty, their androgynous look and their outrageous antics made them legendary The Norwegian Rocky Twins (born Leif and Paal Roschberg) were deliciously handsome, outrageous and lived life to the full. They made a name for themselves as dancers in the Paris music hall in the late 1920s at the tender age of eighteen. Their act took Paris by storm because in one of their numbers, they dressed up in drag and imitated the famous Dolly Sisters, who had just retired. Their unique performance enabled them to star on the stage and in film across Europe and America (Paris, London, Vienna, Budapest, Berlin, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, New York and Los Angeles) and at the same time their good looks became highly sought after by connoiseurs of the body beautiful of either sex. • The first illustrated biography of the dancing Norwegian Rocky Twins who were stars of film and stage in the Jazz Age on both sides of the Atlantic. • Based on extensive research over 30 years. • Includes 114 black and white photographs. • Insight and detail about nightlife and the entertainment world in London, Paris, New York, Vienna, Scandinavia, New York and Hollywood in the golden age of stage and screen. • Exposes some of the secrets of pre-code Hollywood in the early 1930s. • Explores the secret gay world on both side of the Atlantic and the ‘Pansy Craze’ in America in the early 1930s. • They were regarded as two of the best dressed and most handsome men in the world. • Their impersonation in drag of the Dolly Sisters became legendary. • A colourful life story that has made them ‘gay legends.’ • They were once called ‘The Black Orchids of the North.’ • Covers their career as the Rocky Twins and their later life during and after World War Two. Gary Chapman, Edditt Publishing, 01453 751817 / 07713348628 email: edditt@btinternet.com / www.eddittpublishing.com