Vivians Wife, New North-West (Article, 1886)
Full Text
VIVIAN' WIFE.
Astounding Revelations In Relation to Sex.
His "Wife" Turns Out to Have Been a Man.
Charlie Vivian was, by many points, the most talented variety performer in his line that ever visited Montana. He was a whole show of himself, on the stage, and it is said by those somewhat familiar with the facts that he made a holy show of himself "behind the scenes" when his wife failed, as she generally did, to entertain the audience between his acts. Mrs. Vivian was neither voluptuous nor fascinating. There was a certain frowsiness and dilapidation in her general appearance that suggested Vivian had no occasion to be jealous, and yet instances are not wanting when he made her a target for beer bottles and rendered her life kind of sad and useless by throwing her set of false teeth in the stove. Well, these things occurred years ago. Charlie's wonderful talent was acknowledged, he was a good fellow with the boys, and his connubial eccentricities were regarded more as [ebullitions] of genius than evidences of depravity. He made us happy--he departed, and years ago died. "We could have better spared a better man."
The above is suggested by recent developments that occurred at Grand Rapids, Mich., on the evening of the 7th of June: Annie Hindle, who was playing at Smith's Opera House, and had been on the American stage as a female for fifteen years, was married under the name of Charles Hindle, by Rev. K.B. Tupper, to Miss Annie Ryan, of Cleveland, Ohio, a comely woman of about thirty years, who had been traveling with Hindle as maid. The marriage raised as excitement equal to a cyclone, but Annie Hindle was a man all the same, and entitled to marry his maid, or any other maid, whenever he pleased. His history is that he was picked up an orphan in Hartfordshire, Eng., when a child, by an elderly lady named Annie Hindle. At five or six years of age he went on the stage in the pottery districts and continued to wear dresses until he became a "woman," and subsequently played as a male impersonator. "He came to the United States in 1869, and soon after became the 'wife' of Charles Vivian, the handsome English comedian. The story goes that Vivian, after the ceremony, was told by Hindle that it was all a joke, and Vivian was mad at first, but laughed at it afterwards. Hindle adds that he and Vivian traveled to California and back together."
The above is the substance of the story as published in the Grand Rapids Journal which says also that the ladies of the Company who had "dressed" with Annie Hindle for years were dumbfounded on learning the facts. It is generally believed that it was "Annie Hindle" who accompanied Vivian on his Montana trip, and the ease with which audiences are deceived as to sex was exemplified recently in the case of Frankie Jones; but although it may spoil the point of this sensation as relates to Montana, we incline to believe that "Mrs. Vivian" who was here was really a woman. We give the story, however, as it goes, awaiting further developments. If it turns out she was "Charles" Hindle, Vivian will never be forgiven for not having hit him when he banged that beer bottle at (her) his head in Pioneer. But let it pass. Hindle is excusable for being froway and dull if he was a man, and poor Charlie, at least, is more than
"ten thousand miles away."
