Little Egypt was the stage name for two popular exotic dancers, Ashea Wabe who danced at the Seeley banquet and Farida Mazar Spyropoulos, who appeared at the "Street in Cairo" exhibition on the Midway at the World Columbian Exposition, held in Chicago in 1893. She also used the stage name Fatima. Belly dancers Belly dance is a Western name coined for a style of female dance developed in the Middle East and other Arabic_influenced areas. ... Alternate meaning: an area in southern Illinois. ... World Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893 One-third scale replica of The Republic, which once stood in the great basin at the exposition, Chicago, 2004 The World Columbian Exposition (also called The Chicago Worlds Fair), a Worlds fair, was held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary... Chicago (officially named the City of Chicago) is the third largest city in the United States (after New York City and Los Angeles), with an official population of 2,896,016, as of the 2000 census. ... 1893 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

Little Egypt

The dance performed by Little Egypt had also been called "Hootchy-Kootchy" or "Hoochee-Coochee" (the origin of the name is unknown), and "danse du ventre", which is French for "belly dance". Little Egypt Belly Dancer (Photographer Benjamin Falk 1890s) This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ... Belly dancer Belly dance is a Western name coined for a style of female dance developed in the Middle East and other Arabic-influenced areas. ...

After the fair, Ashea Wabe became front-page news item in 1896 after she danced at a New York Fifth Avenue swank bachelor party for Herbert Seeley. A rival dancer falsely reported that Wabe was going to dance nude and the party was raided by the vice squad. 1896 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Street sign at Fifth Avenue and East 57th street Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in New York City. ...

The raid brought some amount of fame to Little Egypt. She was hired by Broadway impresario Oscar Hammerstein I to appear as herself in a humorous parody of the Seeley dinner. She would have then been forgotten except for a series of photographs taken by Benjamin Falk.

After that, several women adopted the name of Little Egypt and toured the United States, until the name became somewhat synonymous with exotic dancers generally. Spyropoulos then claimed to be the original Little Egypt from the Chicago Fair. Although no dancer used that stage name at the fair, Spyropoulos, because of her size, had been given the nick-name Little Egypt. Recognized as the true Little Egypt she always disliked being confused with the other dancer from the Seeley banquet. Spyropoulos danced as Little Egypt at the 1933 Century of Progess in Chicago at the age of 62. 1933 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Rhonda Fleming starred in the title role of the movie "Little Egypt," a 1951 Universal International Production. Rock and Roll tunesmiths Leiber/Stoller penned a song entitled Little Egypt that was a 1961 hit for the Coasters. Elvis Presley performed the song extolling the virtues of belly dancers in his 1964 film, Roustabout and included it in his legendary 1968 T.V. show, Elvis. Donna Carlton wrote "Looking for Little Egypt", a historical account of Little Egypt at the 1893 World Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Rhonda Fleming, nicknamed Queen of Technicolor, American actress born in August 10, 1923 in Hollywood, California. ... The Coasters were an American doo wop and early rock and roll group, evolving from The Robins, a Los Angeles based doo wop group. ... Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), also known as The King of Rock and Roll, or as just simply The King, was an American singer who had an immeasurable effect on world culture. ... World Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893 One-third scale replica of The Republic, which once stood in the great basin at the exposition, Chicago, 2004 The World Columbian Exposition (also called The Chicago Worlds Fair), a Worlds fair, was held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary... Chicago (officially named the City of Chicago) is the third largest city in the United States (after New York City and Los Angeles), with an official population of 2,896,016, as of the 2000 census. ...

See also: The Streets of Cairo, or the Poor Little Country Maid The Streets of Cairo, or the Poor Little Country Maid is a melody purportedly written by Sol Bloom, a showman (and later, a U.S. Congressman) who was the entertainment director of the Worlds Columbian Exposition in 1893. ...

External links

• Donna Carlton (http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/IDD/littleeg.htm)
• Falk Papers (http://catnyp.nypl.org/search/aFalk%2C+B.+J.+(Benjamin+J.)%2C+1853-1925/afalk+b+j+benjamin+j+1853-1925/1,1,36,B/frameset&FF=afalk+b+j+benjamin+j+1853-1925&2,,36)