Today in History - 1880

Lillian Russell made her debut at Tony Pastor's Theatre in New York City. Within weeks, the beautiful blonde added a prominent role in The Pie Rats of Penn Yann to her stage credits. This spirited "travesty" of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Pennzance made Lillian Russell an instant star. For the next 35 years, Russell maintained her position as one of the first ladies of the American stage.

Born Helen Louise Leonard in 1861, "Nellie" was raised in a middle class home. Trained in music and foreign languages, in the late 1870s she moved with her mother from Chicago to New York in order to receive advanced voice instruction. Soon, she met Tony Pastor, the vaudeville impresario who transformed the slightly seedy variety format into respectable family entertainment. Billed as "Lillian Russell, The English Ballad Singer" she was seen at Tony Pastor's by almost everyone in New York—except her mother.