Figure 1.--This photograph shows Maurice dressed up in a costume in the family garden. We do not yet have any images of Maurice in his regular clothes.

Maurices mother was disappointed about not having a daughter. She may have kept Maurice in curls and frocks for a little longer than usual, but in fact I do not have much information or photographs about how he was dressed as a boy other than on stage. Nor do we have much informstion on how his brothers were dressed. One report suggests that his mother evidently dressed Maurice not only for feminine roles on stage but also at their home. As the accompanying pictures suggest, Maurice was not only photographed on stage but also in the back garden of his home in various girlish poses and costumes, none of which appeared in his mother’s plays. One photograph shows him with a doll in his arms, apparently seeming to scold her, and another shows him demurely holding a bouquet of flowers. These home photographs all seem to deal with costumes rather than his ordinary clothes. It is interesting that Maurice had shorthair as a child and fit in well with other boys. One observer in his biography stated that “in his home life, either at school or home me, he is one of the most boyish of boys you ever met.” [Farrer]

Sources

Farrer, Peter. The Life of Maurice Pollack (1885-1918), a Birmingham Actor (Karn Publications: Garston, Liverpool, 1998). USBN 0951238574

Created: 6:24 PM 9/10/2004
Last updated: 6:24 PM 9/10/2004