Let’s Cole Porter

Cole Wide Web: Cole Porter’s name derives from the surnames of his parents, Kate Cole and Sam Porter (a shy druggist from their small town of Peru, Indiana).

Indiana Historical Society : Porter secured his place in Yale lore with the creation of the sports-related songs “Bull Dog” and “Ha-Dee-Dah,”… His singing pianologue act, with its assortment of original compositions, deft burlesque, humorous patter and topical allusions, was rendered with superb phrasing and diction.

The Guide to Musical Theatre : Cole Porter was attached to. a relief organisation in France during World War 1, and seems to have spent a good deal of the war enjoying himself in Paris..

PBS : In 1916, his first full score was performed. The musical, “See America First”, was a flop and closed after only fifteen performances. He soon began to travel around Europe and got an apartment in Paris.

The Cole Porter Reference Guide : In “Greenwich Village Follies of 1924″ (his first show in New-York), Porter’s songs for this revue were dropped at different points in the New York production, so that by the end of the run and before the tour, all of his songs had been deleted.

Cole Porter Online : Unlike contemporaries such as George Gershwin and Irving Berlin, Porter was born into a prosperous Midwestern family, and he married a wealthy divorcée, Linda Lee Thomas. Eventually he also earned a large income from his songs. Porter was thus able to live the life of high society, enjoying countless parties with celebrities and aristocrats.

TheatreHistory.com : In his lyrics and melodies–for like Irving Berlin he wrote both–he fixed the smartness and cynicism, the freedom in sex attitudes, the lack of inhibitions in speech and behavior, and the outright iconoclasm that had characterized the 1920′s.

MedGenMed : Although the Porters shared deep emotional ties and loyal friendship, throughout their marriage Cole Porter preferred both long-term intimate relationships and brief physical encounters with men.

About.com : At the time of his married, Porter’s bisexuality was public knowledge. Porter and Thomas separated in the 1930′s after Porter’s affairs with Boris Kochno, Howard Sturges, architect Ed Tauch (for whom Porter wrote “Easy to Love”), choreographer Nelson Barclift (who inspired “Night and Day”), director John Wilson, and Ray Kelly.

About.com : At the time of his married, Porter’s bisexuality was public knowledge. Porter and Thomas separated in the 1930′s after Porter’s affairs with Boris Kochno, Howard Sturges, architect Ed Tauch (for whom Porter wrote “Easy to Love”), choreographer Nelson Barclift (who inspired “Night and Day”), director John Wilson, and Ray Kelly.