L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MAY 17, 2018 www.italoamericano.org 28 L'Italo-Americano SEATTLE ITALIAN COMMUNITY T he Seattle World's Fair was the event of the decade. It domi- nated the news for six months and some 10 million people toured its buildings and pavilions, enjoyed entertain- ment from around the world, and waited in long lines to go up in the Space Needle or get whisked away in the Monorail. The Fair, which ran from April 21 to October 21, 1962, was built on the grounds of Seattle Center, the ancestral lands of the Duwamish people. Although it was billed as an educational and technological marvel, what many people do not realize is that the Fair also included an area called Show Street where "adult enter- tainment" could be found. We're talking an adults-only puppet show, a peep show and a bur- lesque show that featured all- naked "Girls of the Galaxy" (quickly shut down). And then there was Gracie Hansen's Paradise International, a plush nightclub and restaurant that accommodated 700 adults who paid to see a Las Vegas-style revue with extravagant produc- tions, elegant costumes and top- less showgirls. Perched on the nightclub's roof was a huge red neon apple with one gigantic bite missing; the allusion to the Garden of Eden was unmistakable. Paradise International was the brainchild of Gracie Hansen, a di- vorcée from Lewis County, Wash. She was outspoken, cheeky and larger than life in more ways than one. A Seattle Times reporter called her "short, stout and big- busted," while Seattle magazine described her as "short-necked and dumpy, the despair of dress designers." Unperturbed by her size, Hansen dressed to be noticed, whether in feathered gowns or rhinestone necklaces. In her later years, she drove around Seattle in a gold-plated Buick convertible. Hansen's father was Sam Di- ana, a baker from Sicily who im- migrated to Shreveport, La., where Gracie Diana was born in 1922. The family later moved to Longview, Wash., and Sam ran a barbershop there until his death in 1930. After he died, Gracie and her mother moved to an apartment above a movie theater. It was there that the girl fell in love with the glamor and excitement of the movies. She desperately wanted to move to New York to pursue an acting career after high school, but her mother would not allow it. In revolt, she eloped with a log- ger named Leo Hansen and moved to the tiny logging town of Mor- ton, Wash. Not surprisingly, small town living was not Hansen's cup of tea. She tried working as a wait- RITA CIPALLA racier and racier; when finally one logger, attired as Queen for a Day, hiked up his skirt and showed he had nothing on underneath but his boots, church groups closed down the show." The last Follies pro- duced was in 1959. That small blip did not stop Hansen. About this time, she started taking notice of the news coming out of Seattle about plans for the 1962 World's Fair. Gracie decided that the fair would pro- vide the perfect backdrop for one of her variety shows. She traveled to the city to talk to fair planners but it was a tough sell. To keep up the pressure, she moved to Seattle. In the end, as is often the case, it was money that talked. Hansen raised $90,000 from assorted backers and the project was green-lighted. As she put it, her goal was "to save the fair from science" by giving fairgoers what they really wanted—a "girlie re- vue" that included 32 topless and beautiful women. Hansen's Paradise Interna- tional Night Club opened April 21, 1962 and was a huge success from day one. She offered four shows nightly that included singing, dancing, some ribald hu- mor and, of course, nudity. The fairgoers loved it and so did the media, who called her the "queen of the fair." After the fair closed, Hansen worked hard to capitalize on her notoriety. She did a stint on local radio, emceed a TV show, and threw her hat—or in her case, her bejeweled turban—into the ring when she ran for mayor of Seattle. Her slogan was "I'm not going to open up the town, just your minds." Although she quit the race early, the stunt provided her with even more name recognition. In the mid-1960s, Hansen moved to Portland, Ore., where she opened a nightclub called Gracie's Roaring Twenties, built in a converted parking garage be- hind the former Hoyt Hotel. She sang there, too, and the crowds loved her. Dressed in satin gowns with feathered boas and dramatic sparkly jewelry, Hansen would walk onto the stage and yell "Hiya, suckers!" Her fans ate it up. In 1970, Hansen set her sights on the race for the governor of Oregon. Ever the show person, her campaign slogan was "The Best Governor Money Can Buy." She came in a respectable third. She also ran for state legislature, but lost that race as well. Diagnosed with diabetes when she was in her 30s, Hansen started having more serious health prob- lems by the mid-1970s. She moved to southern California where she lost one leg to diabetes in 1980. In 1985, while undergo- ing surgery to remove the other leg, she died. Gracie Hansen was 62 years old. Gracie Hansen, who ran a luxurious nightclub at Seattle Center during the 1962 World's Fair, was bigger than life and dressed to be noticed. (Stumptownblog) Often wearing feather boas and statement jewelry, Gracie Hansen ran nightclubs in Seattle and Portland and even ran for political office. (The Oregonian) ress, a cook and a bank clerk, but none of those occupations seemed a good fit. Finally, she found work she could enjoy—producing a fundraiser for the local PTA that was called the Morton Follies. This two-hour production used only local talent, yet the Morton residents rose to the occasion. Over time, the show got edgier and more risqué. As Seattle mag- azine noted, "The dialog became Gracie Hansen: Queen of the Seattle World's Fair

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