Libby Holman
Encyclopedia
Libby Holman was an American
torch singer
and stage actress
who also achieved notoriety for her complex and unconventional personal life.
to a Jewish lawyer and stockbroker, Alfred Holzman (August 20, 1867 - June 14, 1947) and his wife, Rachel Florence Workum Holzman (October 17, 1873 - April 22, 1966). Their other children were daughter Marion H. Holzman (January 25, 1901 - December 13, 1963) and son Alfred Paul Holzman (March 9, 1909 - April 19, 1992). In 1904, the wealthy family grew destitute after Holman's uncle Ross Holzman embezzled nearly $1 million of their stock brokerage business. At some point, Alfred changed the family name from Holzman to Holman. She graduated from Hughes High School
on June 11, 1920, at the age of 16. She graduated from the University of Cincinnati
on June 16, 1923, with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Libby Holman later subtracted two years from her age. insisting she was born in 1906. She gave the Social Security Administration 1906 as the year of her birth.
, where she first lived at the Studio Club. Her first theater job in New York was in the road company of The Fool. Channing Pollock
, the writer of The Fool, recognized Holman's talents immediately and advised her to pursue a theatrical career. She followed Pollock's advice and soon became a star. An early stage colleague who became a longtime close friend was future film star Clifton Webb
, then a dancer. He gave her the nickname, "The Statue of Libby." Her Broadway theatre
debut was in the play The Sapphire Ring in 1925 at the Selwyn Theatre
, which closed after thirteen performances. She was billed as Elizabeth Holman. Her big break came while she was appearing with Clifton Webb and Fred Allen in the 1929 Broadway revue The Little Show, in which she first sang the blues number, "Moanin' Low" by Ralph Rainger
), which earned her a dozen curtain calls on opening night, drew raves from the critics and became her signature song. Also in that show she sang the Kay Swift
and Paul James
song, "Can't We Be Friends?" The following year, Holman introduced the Howard Dietz
and Arthur Schwartz
standard "Something to Remember You By" in the show Three's a Crowd, which also starred Allen and Webb. Other Broadway appearances included The Garrick Gaieties (1925), Merry-Go-Round (1927), Rainbow (1928), Ned Wayburn's Gambols (1929), Revenge with Music (1934), You Never Know (1938, score by Cole Porter), and the self-produced one-woman revue Blues, Ballads and Sin-Songs (1954).
lovers included the DuPont heiress Louisa d'Andelot Carpenter
, actress Jeanne Eagels
and modernist writer Jane Bowles
. Carpenter was to play a significant part throughout Holman's lifetime. They raised their children and lived together and were openly accepted by their theater companions. She scandalized some by dating much younger men, such as fellow American actor Montgomery Clift
, whom she mentored.
Holman took an interest in one fan, Zachary Smith Reynolds
, the heir to the R. J. Reynolds's tobacco company. He was smitten with her from the start, despite their seven-year age difference. They met in Baltimore, Maryland in April 1930 after Reynolds saw Holman's performance in a road company staging of the play The Little Show. Reynolds begged friend Dwight Deere Wiman
, who was the show's producer, for an introduction to Holman. Reynolds pursued her all around the world in his plane. With the persuasion of her former lover, Louisa d'Andelot Carpenter, Holman and Reynolds, who went by his middle name, married on Sunday, November 29, 1931 in the parlor of Monroe, Michigan
. Reynolds wanted Holman to abandon her acting career, she consented by taking a one-year leave of absence. During this time, however, his conservative family was unable to bear Holman and her group of theater friends, who at her invitation often visited Reynolda, the family estate near Winston-Salem, North Carolina
. Accusations and arguments among them were common.
for his friend and flying buddy Charles Gideon Hill, Jr., a first cousin to Reynolds's first wife Anne Ludlow Cannon Reynolds, Holman revealed to her husband that she was pregnant. A tense argument ensued. Moments later, a shot was heard. Friends soon discovered Reynolds bleeding and unconscious with a gunshot wound to the head. Authorities initially ruled the shooting a suicide
, but a coroner's inquiry ruled it a murder. Holman and Albert Bailey "Ab" Walker, a friend of Reynolds's and a supposed lover of Holman's, were indicted for murder.
Louisa Carpenter paid Holman's $25,000 bail in Wentworth, North Carolina
, appearing in such mannish clothes that bystanders and reporters thought she was a man. The Reynolds family contacted the local authorities and had the charges dropped for fear of scandal. Holman gave birth to the couple's child, Christopher Smith "Topper" Reynolds, on January 10, 1933.
Journalist Milt Machlin investigated the death of Smith Reynolds and argued that Reynolds committed suicide. In his account Holman was a victim of the anti-Semitism of local authorities, and the district attorney involved with the case later told Machlin that she was innocent.
In 1934, Broadway producer Vinton Freedley offered Holman the starring role in the Cole Porter
musical Anything Goes
, but she declined.
A 1933 film, Sing, Sinner, Sing
, was loosely based upon the allegations surrounding Reynolds' death.
. In 1940, both brothers, who were half-Canadian, joined the Royal Canadian Air Force
. Phillips was killed in a collision of two military planes in August 1942. When Ralph returned home in August 1945, the marriage quickly soured and they soon separated. On November 15, 1945, Ralph Holmes was found in his Manhattan
apartment, dead of a barbiturate
overdose at age 29.
Holman adopted two sons, Timmy (born October 18, 1945), and Tony (born May 19, 1947). Her natural son Christopher ("Topper") died on August 7, 1950 after falling while mountain climbing. Holman had given him permission to go mountain climbing with a friend on California
's highest peak, Mount Whitney
, not knowing that the boys were ill-prepared for the adventure. Both died. Those close to Holman claim she never forgave herself. In 1952 she created the Christopher Reynolds Foundation in his memory.
In the 1950s, Holman worked with her accompanist, Gerold Cook, on researching and rearranging what they called earth music. It was primarily blues
and spirituals
that were linked to the African American
community. Holman had always been involved in what later became known as the Civil rights movement
. During World War II, she tried to book shows for the servicemen with her friend, Josh White
, but they were turned down on the grounds that "we don’t book mixed company."
In 1959, through the Christopher Reynolds Foundation, she underwrote a trip to India
by Martin Luther King, Jr.
and his wife, Coretta Scott King
, both of whom became close friends with Holman and her husband, Louis Schanker. Holman also contributed to the defense of Dr. Benjamin Spock
, the pediatrician and writer arrested for taking part in antiwar demonstrations.
Her third and last husband was well known artist/sculptor Louis Schanker
. They married on December 27, 1960. Although Holman did not have to work after her marriage to Reynolds, she never completely gave up her career, making records and giving recitals. One of her last performances was at the United Nations
in New York in 1966. She performed her trademark song, "Moanin' Low."
, and the illness and deterioration of her friend Jane Bowles
. She also was considered never the same after the death of Montgomery Clift
in 1966. Friends said that she lost some of her vitality.
On June 18, 1971, Holman was found nearly dead in the front seat of her Rolls Royce
by her household staff. She was taken to the hospital where she died hours later. Holman's death was officially ruled a suicide due to acute carbon monoxide poisoning
.
Few of Holman's friends believed the coroner's report that she had committed suicide. They questioned how the slight, aging Holman could open and close the heavy, manually-operated garage door.
Holman's papers are at the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center of Boston University. In 2001, a successful effort was made by local citizens to save her Connecticut estate, Treetops
, from development. It straddles the border of Stamford and Greenwich. As a result, the pristine grounds were preserved. Many rooms in the mansion have been restored. Treetops is part of the Mianus River State Park, which is overseen by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection
. Treetops is located just south of the Mianus River Park. In 2006, the Treetops Chamber Music Society’s annual concert series made Louis Schanker's studio its home.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
torch singer
Torch song
A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affected the relationship...
and stage actress
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
who also achieved notoriety for her complex and unconventional personal life.
Early life
Elizabeth Lloyd Holzman was born May 23, 1904, in Cincinnati, OhioCincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
to a Jewish lawyer and stockbroker, Alfred Holzman (August 20, 1867 - June 14, 1947) and his wife, Rachel Florence Workum Holzman (October 17, 1873 - April 22, 1966). Their other children were daughter Marion H. Holzman (January 25, 1901 - December 13, 1963) and son Alfred Paul Holzman (March 9, 1909 - April 19, 1992). In 1904, the wealthy family grew destitute after Holman's uncle Ross Holzman embezzled nearly $1 million of their stock brokerage business. At some point, Alfred changed the family name from Holzman to Holman. She graduated from Hughes High School
Hughes Center High School (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Hughes Center High School is a public high school located in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is part of the Cincinnati Public Schools.The school is a team-based magnet school dedicated to the Paideia philosophy...
on June 11, 1920, at the age of 16. She graduated from the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
on June 16, 1923, with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Libby Holman later subtracted two years from her age. insisting she was born in 1906. She gave the Social Security Administration 1906 as the year of her birth.
Theatrical career
In the summer of 1924, Holman left for New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where she first lived at the Studio Club. Her first theater job in New York was in the road company of The Fool. Channing Pollock
Channing Pollock (writer)
Channing Pollock was an American playwright, critic and writer of film scenarios.-External links:* from Howard University*...
, the writer of The Fool, recognized Holman's talents immediately and advised her to pursue a theatrical career. She followed Pollock's advice and soon became a star. An early stage colleague who became a longtime close friend was future film star Clifton Webb
Clifton Webb
Clifton Webb was an American actor, dancer, and singer known for his Oscar-nominated roles in such films as Laura, The Razor's Edge, and Sitting Pretty...
, then a dancer. He gave her the nickname, "The Statue of Libby." Her Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut was in the play The Sapphire Ring in 1925 at the Selwyn Theatre
American Airlines Theatre
The American Airlines Theatre is a Broadway theatre, located at 227 West 42nd Street, New York City.-Design:Originally named the Selwyn Theatre, it was constructed by the Selwyn brothers, Edgar and Archie, in 1918. It was one of three theatres they built and controlled on 42nd Street, along with...
, which closed after thirteen performances. She was billed as Elizabeth Holman. Her big break came while she was appearing with Clifton Webb and Fred Allen in the 1929 Broadway revue The Little Show, in which she first sang the blues number, "Moanin' Low" by Ralph Rainger
Ralph Rainger
Ralph Rainger was an American composer of popular music principally for films.-Biography:Born Ralph Reichenthal in New York City, Rainger embarked on a legal career before escaping to Broadway where he became Clifton Webb's accompanist...
), which earned her a dozen curtain calls on opening night, drew raves from the critics and became her signature song. Also in that show she sang the Kay Swift
Kay Swift
Kay Swift was an American composer of popular and classical music, the first woman to score a complete musical. Written in 1930, Fine and Dandy includes some of her best known songs; the title song has become a jazz standard. "Can't We Be Friends?" was another important hit...
and Paul James
James Warburg
James Paul Warburg was an American banker and financial adviser to Franklin D. Roosevelt. His father was Paul Warburg.- Biography :...
song, "Can't We Be Friends?" The following year, Holman introduced the Howard Dietz
Howard Dietz
Howard Dietz was an American publicist, lyricist, and librettist.-Biography:Dietz was born in New York City and studied journalism at Columbia University...
and Arthur Schwartz
Arthur Schwartz
Arthur Schwartz was an American composer and film producer.Schwartz supported his legal studies at New York University and postgraduate studies at Columbia University by playing piano before concentrating his talents on vaudeville, Broadway theatre and Hollywood.Among his Broadway musicals are The...
standard "Something to Remember You By" in the show Three's a Crowd, which also starred Allen and Webb. Other Broadway appearances included The Garrick Gaieties (1925), Merry-Go-Round (1927), Rainbow (1928), Ned Wayburn's Gambols (1929), Revenge with Music (1934), You Never Know (1938, score by Cole Porter), and the self-produced one-woman revue Blues, Ballads and Sin-Songs (1954).
Personal life
Holman enjoyed a variety of intimate relationships with both men and women throughout her lifetime. Her famous lesbianLesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
lovers included the DuPont heiress Louisa d'Andelot Carpenter
Louisa d'Andelot Carpenter
Louisa D'Andelot Carpenter was a du Pont heiress, Jazz Age socialite, aviatrix, and bon vivant.-Early life:...
, actress Jeanne Eagels
Jeanne Eagels
Jeanne Eagels was an American actress on Broadway and in several motion pictures. She was a former Ziegfeld Follies Girl who went on to greater fame on Broadway and in the emerging medium of sound films....
and modernist writer Jane Bowles
Jane Bowles
Jane Bowles, born Jane Sydney Auer , was an American writer and playwright.-Early life:Born into a Jewish family in New York, Jane Bowles spent her childhood in Woodmere, New York, on Long Island. She developed tuberculous arthritis of the knee as a teenager and her mother took her to Switzerland...
. Carpenter was to play a significant part throughout Holman's lifetime. They raised their children and lived together and were openly accepted by their theater companions. She scandalized some by dating much younger men, such as fellow American actor Montgomery Clift
Montgomery Clift
Edward Montgomery Clift was an American film and stage actor. The New York Times’ obituary noted his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men"....
, whom she mentored.
Holman took an interest in one fan, Zachary Smith Reynolds
Zachary Smith Reynolds
Zachary Smith Reynolds was an American amateur aviator and younger son of R. J. Reynolds.The Zachary Smith Reynolds story was the basis for two movies, Reckless, starring Jean Harlow, and the popular 1950s classic, Written on the Wind. The latter was loosely based on a novel by Robert Wilder...
, the heir to the R. J. Reynolds's tobacco company. He was smitten with her from the start, despite their seven-year age difference. They met in Baltimore, Maryland in April 1930 after Reynolds saw Holman's performance in a road company staging of the play The Little Show. Reynolds begged friend Dwight Deere Wiman
Dwight Deere Wiman
Dwight Deere Wiman was an American silent movie actor, playwright and theatrical director. He is best known as a Broadway producer.-Early life & Education:...
, who was the show's producer, for an introduction to Holman. Reynolds pursued her all around the world in his plane. With the persuasion of her former lover, Louisa d'Andelot Carpenter, Holman and Reynolds, who went by his middle name, married on Sunday, November 29, 1931 in the parlor of Monroe, Michigan
Monroe, Michigan
Monroe is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 20,733 at the 2010 census. It is the largest city and county seat of Monroe County. The city is bordered on the south by Monroe Charter Township, but both are politically independent. The city is located approximately 14 miles ...
. Reynolds wanted Holman to abandon her acting career, she consented by taking a one-year leave of absence. During this time, however, his conservative family was unable to bear Holman and her group of theater friends, who at her invitation often visited Reynolda, the family estate near Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina, with a 2010 population of 229,617. Winston-Salem is the county seat and largest city of Forsyth County and the fourth-largest city in the state. Winston-Salem is the second largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region and is home to...
. Accusations and arguments among them were common.
Husband's death
In 1932, during a 21st birthday party Reynolds gave at ReynoldaReynolda Gardens
Reynolda Gardens thumb|right|Reynolda Gardens |Reynolda Gardens In Spring Time are gardens located off Reynolda Road, adjacent to the Reynolda campus of Wake Forest University and the Reynolda House in Winston-Salem, North Carolina...
for his friend and flying buddy Charles Gideon Hill, Jr., a first cousin to Reynolds's first wife Anne Ludlow Cannon Reynolds, Holman revealed to her husband that she was pregnant. A tense argument ensued. Moments later, a shot was heard. Friends soon discovered Reynolds bleeding and unconscious with a gunshot wound to the head. Authorities initially ruled the shooting a suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
, but a coroner's inquiry ruled it a murder. Holman and Albert Bailey "Ab" Walker, a friend of Reynolds's and a supposed lover of Holman's, were indicted for murder.
Louisa Carpenter paid Holman's $25,000 bail in Wentworth, North Carolina
Wentworth, North Carolina
Wentworth is a town in Rockingham County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,779 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Rockingham County.-Geography:Wentworth is located at ....
, appearing in such mannish clothes that bystanders and reporters thought she was a man. The Reynolds family contacted the local authorities and had the charges dropped for fear of scandal. Holman gave birth to the couple's child, Christopher Smith "Topper" Reynolds, on January 10, 1933.
Journalist Milt Machlin investigated the death of Smith Reynolds and argued that Reynolds committed suicide. In his account Holman was a victim of the anti-Semitism of local authorities, and the district attorney involved with the case later told Machlin that she was innocent.
In 1934, Broadway producer Vinton Freedley offered Holman the starring role in the Cole Porter
Cole Porter
Cole Albert Porter was an American composer and songwriter. Born to a wealthy family in Indiana, he defied the wishes of his domineering grandfather and took up music as a profession. Classically trained, he was drawn towards musical theatre...
musical Anything Goes
Anything Goes
Anything Goes is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madcap antics aboard an ocean liner bound from New York to London...
, but she declined.
A 1933 film, Sing, Sinner, Sing
Sing, Sinner, Sing
-Plot summary:Leila Hyams plays a singer who is accused of her husband's murder. At the time the movie was released, it was recognized as being loosely based on the 1932 Libby Holman-Zachary Smith Reynolds case.-Cast:*Paul Lukas as Phil Carida...
, was loosely based upon the allegations surrounding Reynolds' death.
Later years
Holman married her second husband, film and stage actor Ralph Holmes, in March 1939. He was twelve years her junior. She had previously dated his older brother, Phillips HolmesPhillips Holmes
Phillips Holmes was an American film actor who appeared in 44 films between 1928 and 1938. His credits included Grumpy, An American Tragedy, Broken Lullaby, Dinner at Eight, and Great Expectations....
. In 1940, both brothers, who were half-Canadian, joined the Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
. Phillips was killed in a collision of two military planes in August 1942. When Ralph returned home in August 1945, the marriage quickly soured and they soon separated. On November 15, 1945, Ralph Holmes was found in his Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
apartment, dead of a barbiturate
Barbiturate
Barbiturates are drugs that act as central nervous system depressants, and can therefore produce a wide spectrum of effects, from mild sedation to total anesthesia. They are also effective as anxiolytics, as hypnotics, and as anticonvulsants...
overdose at age 29.
Holman adopted two sons, Timmy (born October 18, 1945), and Tony (born May 19, 1947). Her natural son Christopher ("Topper") died on August 7, 1950 after falling while mountain climbing. Holman had given him permission to go mountain climbing with a friend on California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
's highest peak, Mount Whitney
Mount Whitney
Mount Whitney is the highest summit in the contiguous United States with an elevation of . It is on the boundary between California's Inyo and Tulare counties, west-northwest of the lowest point in North America at Badwater in Death Valley National Park...
, not knowing that the boys were ill-prepared for the adventure. Both died. Those close to Holman claim she never forgave herself. In 1952 she created the Christopher Reynolds Foundation in his memory.
In the 1950s, Holman worked with her accompanist, Gerold Cook, on researching and rearranging what they called earth music. It was primarily blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
and spirituals
Spiritual (music)
Spirituals are religious songs which were created by enslaved African people in America.-Terminology and origin:...
that were linked to the African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
community. Holman had always been involved in what later became known as the Civil rights movement
Civil rights movement
The civil rights movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. In many situations it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance aimed at achieving change by nonviolent forms of resistance. In some situations it was...
. During World War II, she tried to book shows for the servicemen with her friend, Josh White
Josh White
Joshua Daniel White , better known as Josh White, was an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor, and civil rights activist. He also recorded under the names "Pinewood Tom" and "Tippy Barton" in the 1930s....
, but they were turned down on the grounds that "we don’t book mixed company."
- "Libby and Josh were beyond brave, although perhaps she did not quite realize what she was taking on in 1940s America. When they started rehearsals for their first show in a New York club, she arrived at the front door and was welcomed. Josh was directed to the staff entrance round the back. Libby waited till the day they were due to open, after the owners had spent a vast amount on publicity, and told them she was not going to sing in their club until they changed their racial door policy. She won.
- In Philadelphia, Josh was refused a room at the hotel in whose bar they sang nightly. Libby ranted and told them: ‘Take down the American flag outside and fly the fucking swastika, why don’t you!’
- When they were told by officials that the US Army did not tolerate mixed shows, Libby replied: ‘Mixed? You mean boys and girls?’"
In 1959, through the Christopher Reynolds Foundation, she underwrote a trip to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
by Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
and his wife, Coretta Scott King
Coretta Scott King
Coretta Scott King was an American author, activist, and civil rights leader. The widow of Martin Luther King, Jr., Coretta Scott King helped lead the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.Mrs...
, both of whom became close friends with Holman and her husband, Louis Schanker. Holman also contributed to the defense of Dr. Benjamin Spock
Benjamin Spock
Benjamin McLane Spock was an American pediatrician whose book Baby and Child Care, published in 1946, is one of the biggest best-sellers of all time. Its message to mothers is that "you know more than you think you do."Spock was the first pediatrician to study psychoanalysis to try to understand...
, the pediatrician and writer arrested for taking part in antiwar demonstrations.
Her third and last husband was well known artist/sculptor Louis Schanker
Louis Schanker
Louis Schanker was an American abstract artist born in 1903. He grew up in an orthodox Jewish environment in the Bronx, New York. His parents were of Romanian descent...
. They married on December 27, 1960. Although Holman did not have to work after her marriage to Reynolds, she never completely gave up her career, making records and giving recitals. One of her last performances was at the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
in New York in 1966. She performed her trademark song, "Moanin' Low."
Death and Legacy
For many years, Holman reportedly suffered from depression over the deaths of President Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King, the recent presidential election loss by Eugene McCarthyEugene McCarthy
Eugene Joseph "Gene" McCarthy was an American politician, poet, and a long-time member of the United States Congress from Minnesota. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and the U.S. Senate from 1959 to 1971.In the 1968 presidential election, McCarthy was the first...
, and the illness and deterioration of her friend Jane Bowles
Jane Bowles
Jane Bowles, born Jane Sydney Auer , was an American writer and playwright.-Early life:Born into a Jewish family in New York, Jane Bowles spent her childhood in Woodmere, New York, on Long Island. She developed tuberculous arthritis of the knee as a teenager and her mother took her to Switzerland...
. She also was considered never the same after the death of Montgomery Clift
Montgomery Clift
Edward Montgomery Clift was an American film and stage actor. The New York Times’ obituary noted his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men"....
in 1966. Friends said that she lost some of her vitality.
On June 18, 1971, Holman was found nearly dead in the front seat of her Rolls Royce
Rolls-Royce (car)
This a list of Rolls-Royce motor cars and includes vehicles produced by:*Rolls-Royce Limited *Rolls-Royce Motors , which was owned by Vickers between 1980 and 1998, and after that by Volkswagen...
by her household staff. She was taken to the hospital where she died hours later. Holman's death was officially ruled a suicide due to acute carbon monoxide poisoning
Carbon monoxide poisoning
Carbon monoxide poisoning occurs after enough inhalation of carbon monoxide . Carbon monoxide is a toxic gas, but, being colorless, odorless, tasteless, and initially non-irritating, it is very difficult for people to detect...
.
Few of Holman's friends believed the coroner's report that she had committed suicide. They questioned how the slight, aging Holman could open and close the heavy, manually-operated garage door.
Holman's papers are at the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center of Boston University. In 2001, a successful effort was made by local citizens to save her Connecticut estate, Treetops
Treetops (State Park)
Treetops, the former estate of torch singer and actress Libby Holman, is part of the Mianus River Park, which is overseen by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection. Treetops is located just south of the Mianus River Park and straddles the border of Stamford and Greenwich.In 2001, a...
, from development. It straddles the border of Stamford and Greenwich. As a result, the pristine grounds were preserved. Many rooms in the mansion have been restored. Treetops is part of the Mianus River State Park, which is overseen by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection
Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection
The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is a state agency of Connecticut. The department oversees the natural resources and environment of the state, as well as regulating public utilities and energy policy...
. Treetops is located just south of the Mianus River Park. In 2006, the Treetops Chamber Music Society’s annual concert series made Louis Schanker's studio its home.
Musical theater credits
- The Sapphire Ring - Selwyn TheatreAmerican Airlines TheatreThe American Airlines Theatre is a Broadway theatre, located at 227 West 42nd Street, New York City.-Design:Originally named the Selwyn Theatre, it was constructed by the Selwyn brothers, Edgar and Archie, in 1918. It was one of three theatres they built and controlled on 42nd Street, along with...
(1925) - Garrick Gaeties - Garrick Theatre (1925)
- Greenwich Village Follies - Shubert TheatreShubert Theatre (Broadway)The Shubert Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 225 West 44th Street in midtown-Manhattan, New York, United States.Designed by architect Henry Beaumont Herts, it was named after Sam S. Shubert, the second oldest of the three brothers of the theatrical producing family...
(1926) - Merry-Go-Round - Klaw Theatre (1927)
- Rainbow - Gallo TheatreStudio 54Studio 54 was a highly popular discotheque from 1977 until 1991, located at 254 West 54th Street in Manhattan, New York, USA. It was originally the Gallo Opera House, opening in 1927, after which it changed names several times, eventually becoming a CBS radio and television studio. In 1977 it...
(1928) - Ned Wayburn's Gambols - Knickerbocker TheatreKnickerbocker Theatre (Broadway)The Knickerbocker Theatre — previously known as Abbey's Theatre and Henry Abbey's Theatre — was a Broadway theatre located at 1396 Broadway in New York City. It operated from 1893 to 1930...
(1929) - The Little Show - Music Box TheatreMusic Box TheatreThe Music Box Theater is a Broadway theatre located at 239 West 45th Street in midtown-Manhattan.The once most aptly named theater on Broadway, the intimate Music Box was designed by architect C. Howard Crane and constructed by composer Irving Berlin and producer Sam H. Harris specifically to...
(1929) - Three's a Crowd - Selwyn TheatreAmerican Airlines TheatreThe American Airlines Theatre is a Broadway theatre, located at 227 West 42nd Street, New York City.-Design:Originally named the Selwyn Theatre, it was constructed by the Selwyn brothers, Edgar and Archie, in 1918. It was one of three theatres they built and controlled on 42nd Street, along with...
(1930) - Revenge with Music- New Amsterdam TheatreNew Amsterdam TheatreThe New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theater located at 214 West 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Theatre District of Manhattan, New York City, off of Times Square...
(1934) - You Never KnowYou Never Know (musical)You Never Know is a musical with a book by Rowland Leigh, adapted from the original European play By Candlelight, by Siegfried Geyer and Karl Farkas, with music by Cole Porter and Robert Katscher, lyrics by Cole Porter, additional lyrics by Leigh and Edwin Gilbert, directed by Leigh, and songs by...
- Winter Garden TheatreWinter Garden TheatreThe Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 1634 Broadway in midtown Manhattan.-History:The structure was built by William Kissam Vanderbilt in 1896 to be the American Horse Exchange....
(1938) - Blues, Ballads, and Sin Songs (1954)