Bound by Flesh Page #5

with some cares of their own;

then when they would see

Daisy and Violet,

who were carrying a cross

that was far, far heavier

than any others...

- Once they saw the talent

and putting on a very

entertaining, high-quality show,

they really drew

a wider audience after that.

- They had this joie de vivre.

They radiated that

to the audience.

They earned $1,000 a week,

which was,

in the mid-'20s,

a staggering sum of money.

- We were big-time.

46 weeks on the Marcus Loew

circuit at $2,500 a week.

Our salary jumped

then to $3,000,

then followed 44 weeks

on the Orpheum circuit

at $3,850 a week.

- They were hugely popular,

and at one point,

they were earning $5,000 a week.

- They were one of

the highest-grossing acts

in vaudeville.

- They were inimitable.

I mean, there was not

anything else like them.

They would conclude

their turn on the stage

with a four-part dance,

and there would be

two young men

who would come out from the left

and right wings of the stage

and join with the twins,

and then the four of them

would glide around the stage.

It never failed

to bring down the house.

And one of the dancers

was Lester Townsend.

In fact, Lester Townsend

was Bob Hope.

- They were right up there

with the big stars of their day,

and, you know, they had

every right to be there.

- They were appearing on

the same bills

with George Burns

and Gracie Allen,

Fanny Brice,

Sophie Tucker,

Charlie Chaplin.

On and on and on,

the people

who really shaped much

of popular amusement

in America.

And there would be

after-show soirees,

and they would go out to dinner

with them and all that,

so all of these people

became their friends.

They appeared in advertisements,

newspaper advertisements.

They made records,

and a lot of sheet music

was produced,

and the twins would appear

on the covers.

- We signed contracts,

which Sir never read to us.

All our activities

were in his hands.

And we learned that

he had himself named

as our legal guardian.

What's more, we understood that

if we ever ran out on him,

if we ever refused to perform

at his command,

we would be put

in an institution.

- We had learned, you see,

to put our worries aside

as we danced, played,

and sang, :

only pleasure

and the feeling of well-being

ever was projected by us

over the footlights

of the theaters.

- You see this crafted persona

of who they presented

to the world,

as opposed to who

they might have been.

- It wasn't easy to laugh

while our hearts ached and

yearned for freedom and love.

- They were optimistic,

sweet, totally innocent.

- They were these bubbly,

vivacious girls

that had everything

going for them in life.

- But at 1 8,

with the world at our feet,

we'd never had a date,

never held hands with a man

or been kissedl

- Myer Myers was able to

legally gain control of them

at the age of 1 8.

They would have been

legally adults

and able to exercise

their rights,

but he had gone to a lawyer

to say that

they weren't capable

of taking care of themselves

in that way,

and they didn't realize

what had been going on

or that they had

any legal rights until, I guess,

they were almost 22,

at the time of the trial.

- They did not even know

what money was.

They didn't have pocket money

or anything.

- "Read all the newspapers

you can, "

Harry Houdini whispered to me,

Daisy,

one night as he passed me

in the wings,

as if he knew

we had never been permitted

to read a newspaper.

- They saw the fabulous income

that they were producing.

- He would always say,

"I'm gonna give you

an allowance,"

or, "I'm putting some money

in the bank for you,"

but it doesn't really

ever materialize.

If they ever wanted

to spend any money,

they had to ask permission.

- The Myers did not let

anyone near them

who might have interfered

with their money-making ability.

And they were not allowed

to have guys around.

- In my country,

all you need

to make a hit

with the ladies

is to sing to them.

- Stage fame did not answer

the wish in our hearts.

l, Daisy, was in love.

- Daisy had fallen in love

with Don Galvan.

He was a singer.

- That's the story of

That's the glory of love

- Myer Myers absolutely

prohibited any kind of contact.

- Why can't we go out

and have some fun?

Other girls our age do.

We've never smoked a cigarette,

tasted a cocktail,

had our hair cut.

- You are not other girlsl

You are Siamese twins.

- Don Galvan, at one point,

bought a vase of flowers

and placed it outside

Daisy and Violet's room

at a theater.

Myer Myers happened to spot

that vase,

and there was this note

of endearment.

He kicked that vase,

and Daisy was so upset,

she and Violet

ganged up on Myers

and put their foot down

and say,

you know,

"From here on,

"things are going to be

somewhat different.

We want our own room.

We want our own money."

And he started loosening

his reins on the twins

a little bit

and turning over

some of the responsibilities

for promoting them and traveling

with them to others,

and one of them

was Bill Oliver,

who had been primarily

a promoter

of professional wrestlers.

He looked after the twins.

Bill Oliver was married

but a relationship developed.

He would somehow carry on

this romance

with both twins

simultaneously.

Yeah, it absolutely caused

friction between the sisters.

There were, you know,

times when they wouldn't speak

to one another.

I mean,

they're inches apart,

but they wouldn't speak

to one another.

They would go onstage

and, you know, perform

as effervescently as always,

but then when

they got offstage,

they would not speak

to one another.

The twins bought Bill Oliver

all kinds of things,

including a new car.

He wasn't content

just to have Daisy and Violet,

but apparently he had some

other women out there as well.

His wife found out...

- And was suing them

for alienation of affection.

- And that became a great

cause celebre in the papers.

Bill Oliver, in the eyes

of some men, I guess,

became sort of a heroic figure.

Everybody was speculating about

what his nights were like.

Here's this

40-some-year-old guy

being able to service

two 25-year-old women.

That's pretty great.

- And so when Myer

found out about this lawsuit,

I mean, he really,

you know, blew up.

- Sir put us in the car

and drove us to the office

of the lawyer

Martin J. Arnold.

- Martin Arnold,

who was primarily the lawyer

with my father, who got them

liberated from the Myers,

was a friend,

and he was a really fine man.

- Bill Oliver and his wife

lived in Kansas City,

far away from San Antonio,

so it wasn't even

in the same jurisdiction.

Arnold said,

"Don't worry about

ever having to appear in that."

- L, Daisy,

seem to have found courage

in the kindly appearance

and soft voice

of the Texas lawyer,

who I felt

would give us protection.

- He whispers, you know,

kind of behind the scenes

about what

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