AND THIS BIRD CAN'T SING
Born Narcissa Florence Foster, July 19th 1886 in Wilkes-Barre Pennsylvania, she was the elder daughter of wealthy attorney Charles Dorrance Foster, and society matron / painter Mary Jane Hoagland. "Little Miss Foster" loved playing piano and performed in recitals, even performing for President Rutherford B. Hayes. After Florence graduated high school she planned study music in Europe. Her father refused to fund her music education. In 1883 Florence lost a younger sister to diphtheria. Eight days before her 15th birthday she fled to Philadelphia with a doctor 16 years her senior. After one year of marriage Florence was diagnosed with syphilis. She returned to Wilkes-Barre and never spoke to the doctor again. In the 1890s Florence taught piano, but during that time some sort of damage harmed her hands and she was forced to give up playing piano.
In the early 1900s Florence and her mother moved to New York City and joined many social clubs. Florence usually assumed the title of "chairman of music." Florence took singing lessons and in 1912 formed a music appreciation society, called the Verdi Club. Popular opera stars Geraldine Farrar and Enrico Caruso counted amongst the Verdi Clubs' 400 members. Florence sought any opportunity to appreciate music, but wanted badly to perform herself.
In 1909 Florence's father died, leaving her a large trust. He ensured if Florence did remarry, any future husband could not access her money. In 1909 Florence met British former Shakespearean actor St. Clair Bayfield. The two shared a love of music and performance. Bayfield became her manager. He called her "Bunny" ; she called him "Whitey." While they felt love and respect for each other, a sexual component to their relationship was not possible, due to Florence's syphilis.
Florence and Baysfield held Tableau Vivants - living pictures, real life demonstrations of works of art. Florence designed her own elaborate costumes and head pieces, usually encrusted with diamonds, pearls, and precious gems. Florence, at her home in New York City's Hotel Seymour, held "Salons de Musique - private music performances for her friends. "Lady Florence" as she liked to be called, would perform to the "praise" of her friends. No one dared to tell Florence the truth about her vocal abilities; not just to spare her feelings, but because she wouldn't have listened and stopped.
In 1941 at age 73 Florence made recordings of her singing and distributed them to friends. Those records are the only proof of her unique vocal stylings. Without them Florence Foster Jenkins would have been forgotten. On October 25th 1944 at 76, Florence Foster Jenkins rented out Carnegie Hall for her first public performance open to the press and a regular paying audience. The concert was a failure. Jeered and harshly critiqued by the press, Florence was devastated by the audience's reaction. Her friends in attendance included Cole Porter, Marge Champion, Lily Pons, Giancarlo Menotti, and Kitty Carlisle (before she dominated To Tell the Truth Kitty Carlisle sang opera.) One New York Sun critic summed up the concert : "she can sing anything but notes." Five days later while out shopping Florence Foster Jenkins suffered heart attack. She died November 26th, 1944 at her apartment in the Hotel Seymour.
Florence Foster Jenkins sparked much debate during her singing career. Her friends argued she was in on the joke, others said she remained blissfully unaware of her criticism. Syphilis, when left untreated, causes severe deterioration of the central nervous system. Before penicillin sufferers of syphilis took mercury treatments that could cause auditory difficulties. The question remains : could Florence Foster Jenkins not hear how poorly she sang, or did she simply not want to.
SOURCES :
Florence Foster Jenkins. History vs Hollywood.
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