We stipulate the other Mike Connors in our headline to differentiate our subject from the star of TV's Mannix you're more apt to know and care about; have no fear, we plan to get to him. The one we tip our hat to today lived from 1891 to 1949. He was a New York vaudeville performer who at the age of 27 was hired by Australian impresario Benjamin Fuller to do a six-month tour Down Under, stayed and became a star down there. His reason for remaining in the country wasn't just a liking for the sunny climate. While performing in a revue in 1917 he met and fell in love with Eveline "Queenie" Paul (1893-1982). Paul had been a chorus girl in musicals and a Principal Boy in pantomimes in her younger years before touring the Australian circuits. The pair married and formed a theatrical team, touring as the Con-Paul Theatre Company. In the '30s, Connors became a star on Australian radio; Paul continued to tour with a chorus line she called "The Sun-Kissed Girls". After Connors died in 1949, Paul continued performing live, and made the occasional television appearance.
For more on vaudeville history, please see No Applause, Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous.
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