Dolores (Rose Dolores) ~ The Loveliest Showgirl

Dolores, also known as Rose Dolores, was a British fashion model who became a star in the Ziegfeld Follies

She was born Kathleen Mary Rose on September 26, 1893 in Wimbledon, England Her family was very poor and she left school early to start working. At the age of seventeen she started modeling clothes for designer Lady Duff-Gordon. Dolores was six feet tall with a slim figure and blonde hair. When Lady Duff-Gordon moved her business to New York she brought Dolores with her. In 1915 she appeared as a fashion model in the film The Spendthrift. Flo Ziegfeld saw her at a fashion show and hired her to appear in the 1917 Ziegfeld Follies. Although she couldn't sing or dance she became one of the most popular models in the show. She had a commanding stage presence and never smiled while she was on stage. While appearing in the Midnight Frolic in 1919 she wore an elaborate peacock costume with ten foot long wings.

Dolores was called "the loveliest showgirl in the world". She was given a small speaking role in the Broadway show Sally. At the peak of her career she was earning $500 a week. On May 15, 1923 she married William Tudor Wilkinson, a millionaire art collector. Then she retired from the stage and moved to Paris, France with her husband. In an interview she said "I never enjoyed any success as much as I enjoy being an efficient housewife." After moving to Paris she cut her hair short and adopted a masculine style dressing. Rumors began that she was a lesbian but she never commented on them. When the Germans occupied Paris during World War 2 Dolores was briefly detained at an interment camp. Dolores and William remained happily married until his death in 1969. She passed away on November 7, 1975 at the age of eighty-two.