Milestones, Feb. 4, 1952

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Died. Fannie Ward, eightyish, the "perennial flapper" whose off-stage act of perpetual youth for more than half a century outshone her stage fame; of a cerebral hemorrhage; in Manhattan. Born in St. Louis during the Andrew Johnson (or Grant) administration, Fannie made her stage debut in 1890, got off to a fast start in the role of Cupid by accidentally winging an arrow into the leading man's eye. For the next 25 years, little (she tried to keep her weight at 100 Ibs.), blonde, lively Fannie appeared in shows in New York and London, gave more sensational performances riding up Fifth Avenue in a brougham clutching her $12,500 sables. She married London Diamond Dealer Joseph Lewis in 1898, was divorced by him in 1913, promptly married Actor John Dean, the man Lewis had named as corespondent. Angrily vowing that she never had her face lifted, Fannie claimed, depending on her audience, that her smooth, unlined skin was the result of 1) secret face creams, 2) exotic lotions, 3) a "Siberian snow face mask," 4) a young husband, 5) a diet of green vegetables.

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