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Donn Arden Biography -2- Sophie Tucker was the first star to take note of the young manfs budding talents, so impressed was she with his creativity that she backed him in his first night club act* He toured in vaudeville, playing all the top circuits, and appeared in Mike Todd's show at the Chicago Century of Progress. Texas Guinan hired him as a featured act at her New York club and asked that he help out with some of her dancers1 routines. Thus, he gradually branched into choreography, deciding he much preferred the challenge and excitement of creating a show rather than interpreting someone else's ideas. His first Manhattan triumph in this field was at the Hotel New Yorker where his ice show staging was so successful he continued on the same assignment for 10 years, garnering much critical and audience acclaim with each succeeding production, Following World War II, he was invited to Paris to stage, direct and choreograph the extravaganzas at the Lido - in the world of night clubs the equivalent of being called to the White House to preside at a summit conference! This was the pinnacle to which a young American entrepreneur might then aspire. It was a fascinating experience. He loved Paris, and Paris loved him. He brought the American tempo and spirit to his job, and at the same time found Paris offering him the finest opportunities he'd thus far had to let his imagination and flair take flight unrestrained. The French were delighted with him and the feeling was mutual. So much so that he is now in his 17th year of continuously producing the Lido shows in Paris - an absolutely unprecedented record in a business where constant turnover of personnel is ordinarily the rule. In those years, he was also crossing the Atlantic constantly to stage resplendent productions for such top clubs as the Latin Quarter