Today in 1938 a group of Carroll Girls—dancers employed by famed theatrical producer Earl Carroll—staged a protest outside the Musicians Union Hall in Los Angeles, an event discussed in the above clipping from Life magazine. The picketing was the result of a spat between Carroll and bandleader Roy Cavanaugh. Apparently Carroll had reneged on a booking and Cavanaugh had appealed to the musician’s union and won their backing. The dancers, caught in the middle, took to the sidewalk to denounce the union for being unwilling negotiate a solution that would let the show go on, and let the dancers get paid.
You will notice in the wider shot below that the meat cutters union Local 421 is in the background. We can’t explain that, except to guess that the musicians and butchers unions were located in the same area. You’ll also notice a lot of musicians playing. Presumably, they’re union guys, and presumably they shouldn’t be playing—i.e. helping to publicize the picket against their own union. But then again, nothing will divide your loyalties like a woman. Just saying. Been there, lived that.
All told, this looks like the most entertaining protest in history. We picture an epic barbecue thanks to the meat cutters union, and killer tunes thanks to the (soon to be punished) musicians. We’d love to tell you how the Carroll Girls fared with their demands, but we don’t know. However, Carroll’s stellar run as a show business impresario continued until his death in 1948, so we suspect that even if the Cavanaugh show didn’t happen the dancers got over that speed bump and kept working steadily for a long while.
