pondent Janet Flanner vividly described her opening night:“She made her entry entirely nude except for a pink flamingo feather between her limbs; she was being carried upside down and doing the splits on the shoulders of a black giant [Joe Alex]. Mid-stage he paused, and with his long fingers holding her basket-wise around her waist, swung her in a slow cartwheel to the stage floor, where she stood . . . . She was an unforgettable female ebony statue. A scream of salutation spread through the theater. Whatever happened next was unimportant. The two specific elements had been established and were unforgettable - her magnificent dark body, a new model that to the French proved for the first time that black was beautiful, and the acute response of the white masculine public in the capital of hedonism of all Europe - Paris.” #Shortly after La Revue Negre opened, Baker was asked to join Folies-Bergeres, the premier Paris music hall, for its new show. “French audiences’ fascination with the black culture was apparently based on dubious impressions - Baker remarked that the white imagination sure is something when it comes to blacks - and La Revue Negre catered to that fascination with exaggerated stereotypes.”# At the Folies-Bergeres, Baker was billed as “Dark Star.” She created a sensation by dancing on a mirror; nude except for a string of plush bananas swathed around her waist. She became immensely popular with European audiences. Her good humor, grace and sensual movements were exciting for people looking for a break from their war-torn reality. Donald Bogle commented in an article in Essence magazine: “For a weary, disillusioned, post-World War I era, she epitomized a new freedom and festivity.”# By the fall of 1926, thousands of banana-clad “Josephine” dolls were being sold to both children and tourists. Baker also cashed in on perfume and a substance, used ...
