KLONDIKE KATE: Queen of the Yukon

by Ellis Lucia ‧ RELEASE DATE: N/A

Kathleen Rockwell, the famed Yukon dance hall girl who was often called ""Queen of the North"", was the last of a breed of money and adventure seeking westering women. The story of how she went to Dawson City to make up to $750 a night singing for lonely sourdough miners, how she became the toast of those rugged men, and how her name became synonymous with the North is already well known in American folk history. But here it is told with an authenticity perhaps lacking before. The author has carefully reconstructed her life, assembled a fascinating set of pictures which well explain how this lovely young woman captivated those rough dance hall audiences, and above all has weighed the legend and separated much of the truth from the myth. Of special interest is Kate's early friendship and help given Alexander Pantages, the man who was to become a great theatre magnate only a few years later. Much is made of Pantages' trial for alleged rape of a young dancer in 1929, although Kate did not take a direct role in those hearings. Certain stories are left unanswered, certain charges of opportunism against Kate are side-stepped. Perhaps it is better they are. This book, a creditable job for the most part, will let her legend live on.

Pub Date: N/A

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Hastings House

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1962

Categories: NONFICTION