Baby Esther Jones in Bed and World
It says that it was Esther Jones 13th birthday at the Variete Arena in Rotterdam, and Otten visited for a month alone to see Esther Jones. Greta Garbo also captivated him, the Negroes, the jazz, the clubs, the women.
Otten was crazy about children. "I want a thousand children," he sometimes said. He had two daughters. He wrote a beautiful children's book Jammerpoes. He wanted to name his first daughter after Esther, who he has seen dancing in Paris earlier. Although it went half way through, Alexandra Esther became her name.
Otten explains how he met Esther Jones. He said it was a dull rainy day and he was depressed, so one evening he went with some friends to watch a variety program.
He knew how the weather would be, a few acrobats, a few mediocre dancers, a magician, and he knew he would be bored.
Looking at the mediocre performances he went along because he longed for some light and warmth.
He saw a magician, then a lady with performing dogs and then came Little Esther. He had never heard of her and the name, but as soon as he saw her, he knew that the little Negro girl had made a graceful entrance, and it made a change in the dead program.
The dancing child appeared, and enchanted everyone. There a little dark brown black girl sang and danced, her body stretched, into impossible and comical positions.
Her eyes circling and raised up, until you look at two white spheres. Grotesk floats the little brown body over the shelves. Esther jerks in sharp corners, and her head moves abruptly elegantly between the supple shoulders and she twirls with her big legs, she steps quickly across the stage.
Otten knew Josephine Baker, but never saw anything like Esther.
He noticed that Esther stood above Josephine, sweet supple and graceful, and that Esther danced because she had to dance, not just the eyes but the heart. Esther sang and danced, she sang familiar tunes, so sweet, so simple.
Otten goes on for paragraphs talking about Esther dancing. A lot of compliments -repetitive, err... obsessive.
He goes on to say that Esther was 14-years-old when she danced at the Wintergarten in Berlin. (I did say there was some age fabrication going on with Esther Jones, something just doesn't add up with her age.)
He says she was a significant star at fourteen years old, but it was clear that Esther was only committed because of the circumstances.
He got the address of a small hotel near the cafe, and went to have dinner there.
He presented himself through a stingy doorman, and stood in one small bedroom opposite Esther Jones' uncle who was nicely dressed.
Esther was not present but her uncle said she would return in an hour. He asked Otten what he wanted from Esther.
Otten told Esther Jones' uncle how much he was moved by her dancing, and wanted to write about her.
He says Esther's uncle (the Negro) began to tell Otten about his journey across the continent, and all of the success that his little niece Esther Jones had harvested.
He offered Otten cigarettes and soon they were in a conversation.
Otten says the (N - slur) got out a big book, and put it on the bedspread. (Yup typical racists, obsessed with black people but still slur? Racist times.)
Anyway Otten then said that Esther's uncle took out a book full of newspaper clippings and portraits of Esther, a few of her first appearances in Chicago, years ago.
He said that the Negro suggested to drink a glass of beer together, and they went to a boring Dutch pub and drank a few beers together.
They went to variety, where behind the scenes Esther was talking to a few artists. She looked nice in a small brown raincoat with high Russian boots and a round hat that is somewhat on one ear had fallen.
Esther immediately gave Otten a hand and said that he was allowed to come into her dressing room.
Hung in Esther Jones' dressing room was at least twenty dresses in a row, red, blue and yellow.
Esther sat in front of a cracked mirror, and there was only he and her in the room. There were all sorts of small jars of face paint and powder in front of the mirror.
He told her a pirate story, then she went to dress up and told Otten that he had to leave, as she did not want a stranger present while she was changing.
Otten says he would have loved to have seen her dance dress, but went downstairs.
But went back to watch Esther Jones change? WTF.
Poor Esther, the man was a pervert. I am not typing up what I see in that part of the book, it is messed up - no joke.
He then finishes up by saying he wanted to kiss her? But waited for her to put her dress over her head.
He climbed the stairs, and said goodbye because the next morning she was leaving for Berlin.
Esther smiled sweetly and gave him a photo with her signature and said goodbye.
Then goes on to say that it had been four years since the little black girl was seen in the provincial town, and Esther would have in the meantime grown greatly.
He said she was certainly not so childish and sweet, more life will have stamped her and maybe her eyes had became harder.
He then says that he was the last person to have heard of her performance for many years.
He says, Little Esther, Little Esther, sweet dancing devil, what has become of you? Did you go back to America and are you dancing in the pubs of Harlem?
Or have you ended up in the paradise of all Negroes, yonder on the Seine?
Otten says that he last read about Esther when she performed in Paris.
A small message in an American newspaper mentioned that in a French-American club a scandal arose, because people had committed a Negro dancer for an evening.
He says a (N - slur) was killed and of course, no doubt, that was Esther Jones' uncle.
He says that Americans are beasts, and he wanted to defend Esther Jones.
Otten was crazy about children. "I want a thousand children," he sometimes said. He had two daughters. He wrote a beautiful children's book Jammerpoes. He wanted to name his first daughter after Esther, who he has seen dancing in Paris earlier. Although it went half way through, Alexandra Esther became her name.
Otten explains how he met Esther Jones. He said it was a dull rainy day and he was depressed, so one evening he went with some friends to watch a variety program.
He knew how the weather would be, a few acrobats, a few mediocre dancers, a magician, and he knew he would be bored.
Looking at the mediocre performances he went along because he longed for some light and warmth.
He saw a magician, then a lady with performing dogs and then came Little Esther. He had never heard of her and the name, but as soon as he saw her, he knew that the little Negro girl had made a graceful entrance, and it made a change in the dead program.
The dancing child appeared, and enchanted everyone. There a little dark brown black girl sang and danced, her body stretched, into impossible and comical positions.
Her eyes circling and raised up, until you look at two white spheres. Grotesk floats the little brown body over the shelves. Esther jerks in sharp corners, and her head moves abruptly elegantly between the supple shoulders and she twirls with her big legs, she steps quickly across the stage.
Otten knew Josephine Baker, but never saw anything like Esther.
He noticed that Esther stood above Josephine, sweet supple and graceful, and that Esther danced because she had to dance, not just the eyes but the heart. Esther sang and danced, she sang familiar tunes, so sweet, so simple.
Otten goes on for paragraphs talking about Esther dancing. A lot of compliments -repetitive, err... obsessive.
He goes on to say that Esther was 14-years-old when she danced at the Wintergarten in Berlin. (I did say there was some age fabrication going on with Esther Jones, something just doesn't add up with her age.)
He says she was a significant star at fourteen years old, but it was clear that Esther was only committed because of the circumstances.
He got the address of a small hotel near the cafe, and went to have dinner there.
He presented himself through a stingy doorman, and stood in one small bedroom opposite Esther Jones' uncle who was nicely dressed.
Esther was not present but her uncle said she would return in an hour. He asked Otten what he wanted from Esther.
Otten told Esther Jones' uncle how much he was moved by her dancing, and wanted to write about her.
He says Esther's uncle (the Negro) began to tell Otten about his journey across the continent, and all of the success that his little niece Esther Jones had harvested.
He offered Otten cigarettes and soon they were in a conversation.
Otten says the (N - slur) got out a big book, and put it on the bedspread. (Yup typical racists, obsessed with black people but still slur? Racist times.)
Anyway Otten then said that Esther's uncle took out a book full of newspaper clippings and portraits of Esther, a few of her first appearances in Chicago, years ago.
He said that the Negro suggested to drink a glass of beer together, and they went to a boring Dutch pub and drank a few beers together.
They went to variety, where behind the scenes Esther was talking to a few artists. She looked nice in a small brown raincoat with high Russian boots and a round hat that is somewhat on one ear had fallen.
Esther immediately gave Otten a hand and said that he was allowed to come into her dressing room.
Hung in Esther Jones' dressing room was at least twenty dresses in a row, red, blue and yellow.
Esther sat in front of a cracked mirror, and there was only he and her in the room. There were all sorts of small jars of face paint and powder in front of the mirror.
He told her a pirate story, then she went to dress up and told Otten that he had to leave, as she did not want a stranger present while she was changing.
Otten says he would have loved to have seen her dance dress, but went downstairs.
But went back to watch Esther Jones change? WTF.
Poor Esther, the man was a pervert. I am not typing up what I see in that part of the book, it is messed up - no joke.
He then finishes up by saying he wanted to kiss her? But waited for her to put her dress over her head.
He climbed the stairs, and said goodbye because the next morning she was leaving for Berlin.
Esther smiled sweetly and gave him a photo with her signature and said goodbye.
Then goes on to say that it had been four years since the little black girl was seen in the provincial town, and Esther would have in the meantime grown greatly.
He said she was certainly not so childish and sweet, more life will have stamped her and maybe her eyes had became harder.
He then says that he was the last person to have heard of her performance for many years.
He says, Little Esther, Little Esther, sweet dancing devil, what has become of you? Did you go back to America and are you dancing in the pubs of Harlem?
Or have you ended up in the paradise of all Negroes, yonder on the Seine?
Otten says that he last read about Esther when she performed in Paris.
A small message in an American newspaper mentioned that in a French-American club a scandal arose, because people had committed a Negro dancer for an evening.
He says a (N - slur) was killed and of course, no doubt, that was Esther Jones' uncle.
He says that Americans are beasts, and he wanted to defend Esther Jones.
Otten then says that Little Esther is no longer a child and her art died with her childhood. Now she is dancing maybe three times a week at the Rue Blomet, in a narrow street, scarcely lit in the middle of a large light spot. The entrance to the Negro Ball, where all the Negroes of the world are together, white, yellow, brown and black.
