Hannah, my maternal grandmother's younger and brasher sister, changed her name to "Hermosa" ("beautiful" in Spanish) and performed Latin dances in vaudeville shows with her dance partner, George Burns. Yes, that George Burns. When she and Burns wanted to take their act on the road, my great-grandfather insisted that they get married first, so Aunt Hermosa was Mrs. George Burns before Burns maried Gracie Allen. Since their marriage was not much more than a courtesy to our family, they broke up when the tour ended, and the divorce was entirely amicable. My mother remembers her (temporary) Uncle George as a kind man who taught her some good dance steps.
Aunt Hermosa went on to dance in vaudeville shows and then lived for decades in the Hotel St. Moritz on Central Park South, courtesy of a boyfriend with deep pockets. As a child and then a teenager, I viewed her as a fun-loving and hip lady, so I always enjoyed being with her.
FYI, she had strayed so far from her roots in a Jewish family that when she attended my Bar Mitzvah, there was a point in the middle of the service when she enthusiastically clapped for me. Of course, that's not something you do in the middle of a Jewish (or Roman Catholic or any other) service, but she was unfazed, and I loved that about her.more »
