Helen Gould Beck (April 3, 1904 – August 31, 1979) was an American burlesque dancer, vedette, and actress best known for her ostrich feather fan dance and balloon bubble dance. She also went by the stage name Billie Beck.
Quick Facts
Real Name | Helen Gould Beck |
Nickname | Sally Rand |
Profession | Actress |
Husband | Not Known |
Age | 75 Years |
Height | 5’1” Inches |
Weight | In Kilograms- 60 kg |
Eye Colour | Brown |
Hair Colour | Light Brown |
Shoe Size | 6 US |
Date Of Birth | 3 April 1904 |
Date Of Death | 31 August 1979 |
Birth Place | Elkton, Hickory County, Missouri, USA |
Date Of Death | Foothill Presbyterian Hospital, in Glendora, California |
Zodiac sign | Not Known |
Nationality | USA |
School Name | Not Known |
College Name | Not Known |
Qualifications | Graduate |
Mobile Number | Not Known Yet |
Father Name | William Beck |
Mother Name | Nettie Beck |
Siblings | Not Known |
Children | Not Known |
Source of Income | Actress |
Net Worth, Salary | $1 Million – $5 Million |
Emma Lovewell Biography
Helen Gould Beck was an American burlesque dancer, vedette, and actress best known for her ostrich feather fan dance and balloon bubble dance. She was born on December 29, 1983. She also went by the stage name Billie Beck. In 2016, she co-hosted Robot Wars with Dara Briain, her first role on a major British show. She appeared on The One Show as a reporter and presented in Alex Jones’ absence. Wikimedia Commons Sally Rand.
Emma Lovewell Childhood
Rand was born in the Missouri village of Elkton in Hickory County. While she was still in elementary school, her family relocated to Jackson County, Missouri. Her father, William Beck, was a West Point graduate and retired United States Army colonel, and her mother, Nettie Beck, was a school teacher and part-time newspaper correspondent.
Helen decided to pursue a career in Hollywood after studying ballet and drama in Kansas City. For a brief period as she made her way to the west coast. Helen began her career on the stage as a chorus girl at Kansas City’s Empress Theater. She also worked in summer stock and traveling theater, where she met a then-unknown Humphrey Bogart. Goodman Ace, the drama critic for the Kansas City Journal, saw her perform in a Kansas City nightclub and wrote glowing reviews about her talent.
Professional Career
She performed on stage and in silent films. In 1927, she was chosen as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars. Cecil B. DeMille named her Sally Rand after a Rand McNally atlas.
She became a dancer after introducing sound films, and she is best known for the fan dance. She would manipulate her front and back fans to play peek-a-boo with her body. Her most famous performance was at the Century of Progress World’s Fair in 1933, accompanied by her backing orchestra and directed by Art Frasik. She also created and perfected the bubble dance, which she used to deal with the wind when performing outside.
In Bolero, she performed the fan dance on film. She was arrested four times in a single day during the fair for alleged indecent exposure following a fan dance performance and while riding a white horse through the streets of Chicago, and again after being body painted by Max Factor Sr. with his new Hollywood makeup. In the film Sunset Murder Case, she performed the bubble dance.
Emma Lovewell Death
Rand died of congestive heart failure on August 31, 1979, at the age of 75, at Foothill Presbyterian Hospital in Glendora, California. Rand’s adopted son told a reporter that Sammy Davis Jr. stepped in and wrote a $10,000 check to cover Rand’s expenses. At the time of her death, she was deeply in debt.