Frank Frazee ?

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Kent Blackmore
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Frank Frazee ?

Postby Kent Blackmore » January 13th, 2016, 5:24 am

This is a long shot, but it can't hurt to ask.
Does anyone have any details about a vaudeville performer, stage name FRANK FRAZEE, dating from around 1903 through to 1914 and later?

I have just confirmed that he was Franklin Eliason, brother of Oscar "Dante the Great" Eliason. Some other references here,would love to learn more.

http://sydneymagic.net/DANTE/OE8-ADDENDUM/oe8-addendum.html

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lybrary
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby lybrary » January 13th, 2016, 7:10 am

I only know a Bill Frazee (William Meyenberg) who you will find plenty of in the Sphinx (search the Magic Knowledge Base at Lybrary.com)
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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 13th, 2016, 7:38 am

Kent Blackmore wrote:This is a long shot, but it can't hurt to ask.
Does anyone have any details about a vaudeville performer, stage name FRANK FRAZEE, dating from around 1903 through to 1914 and later?

I have just confirmed that he was Franklin Eliason, brother of Oscar "Dante the Great" Eliason. Some other references here,would love to learn more.

http://sydneymagic.net/DANTE/OE8-ADDENDUM/oe8-addendum.html


Some info here:
http://geniimagazine.com/wiki/index.php ... nk_Eliason
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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 13th, 2016, 7:53 am

Looks like he was also know as "Silverlight" when assisting his brother:

The Magic Mirror (April 15, 1910) "Dante in Australia by Arthur Valli:
"Here with the assistance of Frank, known as Silverlight, Dante produced some startling effects."
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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 13th, 2016, 7:56 am

And he did shadowgraphy


The Sphinx (November 1913):
"Frank Dante, brother of Dante the Great (accidently shotin Australia some time ago), is doing shadowgraphy at several of the local theaters"
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Bill Mullins » January 13th, 2016, 10:20 am

Billboard 5/14/1921 p. 10

New York, May 7.—Frank Frazee, vaudeville actor, was taken from his home at 322 West Forty-second street last night to Bellevue Hospital suffering from a fractured skull, which he received when he struck his head against the floor of bis apartment while ill. His condition is said to be serious.

NY Dramatic Mirror 2/23/1901 p. 7

Mrs. Oscar Eliason, wife of the late Dante, the magician, who died in Australia, has herself entered the field of prestidigitation and is touring Australia under the management of J. C. H. Barnes. She is styled "Madame Dante, the Great."

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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 13th, 2016, 1:01 pm

I'm not finding any references to him after 1920.
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Kent Blackmore » January 13th, 2016, 4:18 pm

Hi Joe,
thanks as always for your help. I had located the 1921 "fall" reference, and a few scanty references from "Variety" suggesting a link to shadowgraphy and letters awaiting collection, but I don't have good access to a Variety database.

The article I found is this:-
Boston Herald Jan 9, 1913
Frank Eliason of Salt Lake City, U. who was discharged from the City Hospital yesterday after a siege of pneumonia, will today be asked by the police of station 5 to swear to a warrant asking for the arrest of a hospital orderly. This orderly is alleged to have appropriated $35 belonging to Eliason and to have decamped for parts unknown.
Eliason, who is a vaudeville performer and whose stage name is Frank Frazee, it was learned yesterday, went to the hospital on Dec. 23. The orderly assigned to assist him in undressing, he charges, took all but 15 cents of his money, saying he was going to deposit it in the office for safe keeping.
He then disappeared, it is alleged. The authorities at the hospital say the hospital will stand responsible for the loss.

I'll update my 'Dante' website (link above) shortly.

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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Bill Mullins » January 13th, 2016, 5:44 pm

Kent Blackmore wrote: but I don't have good access to a Variety database.



Tom Tryniski has digitized reels and reels of Variety from microfilm.

And the good folks at the Internet Archive have also done so. Here is a front-end search website.

ProQuest also has a bunch of them online, but they are behind a paywall.

And Variety also has its own archive. Also not free.

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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby observer » January 13th, 2016, 5:56 pm

That $35 works out to $839.07 in today's dollars, BTW.

Calculation methods vary of course, but one can safely say it was a whole heap o' money.

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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 13th, 2016, 6:33 pm

I've found lots of little snippets in old magic mags on where he was appearing between the years 1903 and 1013. You interesting in those?
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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 13th, 2016, 6:37 pm

Like this one in Mahatma, April 1900

"Frank Eliason is running the show of his late brother Oscar, being assisted by his sister-in-law, Mile. Edmunda, they are at the time of writing in New Zealand"
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Kent Blackmore » January 13th, 2016, 9:05 pm

That "Lantern" search site looks excellent ... thanks! I'll add anything I find into my website page (link above). Basically, anything from about 1905 onwards, if it isn't mentioned on my site, would be very welcome. It would be nice to fill in his details.

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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 14th, 2016, 9:57 am

Kent Blackmore wrote:That "Lantern" search site looks excellent ... thanks! I'll add anything I find into my website page (link above). Basically, anything from about 1905 onwards, if it isn't mentioned on my site, would be very welcome. It would be nice to fill in his details.


Ok. I'll post them here as I find them (unless you want them directly).
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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 14th, 2016, 10:00 am

Mahatma July 1901

"Madame Dante is not doing well with her show. Frank Dante (brother of Dante the Great) is touring for himself in Australia. Unfortunately, he has encountered many reverses."
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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 14th, 2016, 1:10 pm

Conjurers' Monthly Magazine, April, 1903

"Frank Dante, brother of the late Dante the Great, is still in the East, and doing exceedingly well. Dante's great forte is"making good" in every place, and the public does the rest."
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Joe Pecore
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Joe Pecore » January 14th, 2016, 2:17 pm

Edwards Monthly, September, 1909

"Before this appears in print, Frank Dante will have jumped from the East to the West, having left Yokohoma, Japan, for Seattle, Wash., U. S. A., en route to Alaska, where he is engaged to present the remarkable performances he has been giving for this long time in the East. Frank must indeed be quite an Oriental scholar by this time."
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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Kent Blackmore » January 14th, 2016, 4:45 pm

Thanks again Joe! I'll add them to the website soon. I've found a few other brief newspaper references, but only in relation to his shadowgraphy; which makes me wonder if he performed under another name in the earlier years, doing the Seance routine in which he originally assisted Oscar Eliason.

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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Kent Blackmore » January 15th, 2016, 5:18 am

Site update done, incorporating Joe's finds and mine.
http://sydneymagic.net/DANTE/OE8-ADDENDUM/oe8-addendum.html

Within a few days, I will be putting up a major story featuring magic, charges of kidnapping, the great San Francisco fires, drowning, freak exhibits, land squatters and the brutal murder of a magician in 1876!

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Re: Frank Frazee ?

Postby Kent Blackmore » January 15th, 2016, 6:37 am

Jackpot!

In 1942, Eugene Laurant told the Sphinx magazine that "years later, I met his brother Frank again; he was performing the Spirit Séance in vaudeville. It was a beautiful act, thoroughly mystifying. Even today I can say I have never seen the Séance more artistically presented."

Here's the link from Oscar "Dante" Eliason to his brother, Franklin, performing the spirit cabinet routine in U.S. vaudeville. Apparently Frank and his wife appeared as "The Dantes" until his wife became ill and returned to Australia. Frank would then appear to have adopted the stage name "Frazee".
So, a whole new line of enquiry is open, and I'll finish off this thread with thanks.

March 21 1911 - Winston-Salem Journal, North Carolina
Last night the Pickwick was packed to the doors at each show and many went away on account of not being able to gain admission.
The mavelous and mysterious work of the Dantes is already the talk of the town, in spite of the fact that they have only given three performances.
"If this is not spiritualism you will cetainly give me credit for being mighty quick", remarked Dante at the the close of the performance yesterday afternoon. And his was the general opinion of the audience, for he certainly gave a more entertaining exhibition of mysterious work than was ever before witnessed in this city.
He enters a cabinet standing in the middle of the stage and raised but one foot from the floor, with a rope tied in many knots which had been previously examined by a committee from the audience. In less time than it takes to tell it the the curtain of the cabinet is pulled back by the lady attendante and Dante is seated in a chair bound hand and foot. Each time the curtain is drawn cow and sleigh bells are rung, horns are blown and all sorts of tricks performed, but the committee on the stage closely watching the cabinet and being permitted to draw the curtain back the instant the least noise was heard, was unable to detect the least effort on the part of Dante as being the cause for the ringing of the bells and the blowing of the horn. To make his work more mysterious he has the committee seals his hands with court plast and while the horn was being sounded he had a mouthful of water.
Dante will be at the Pickwick Tuesday and Wednesday.


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