The Showgirl & The Conman

The Complicated Romance of Fannie Brice and Notorious Nicky Arnstein

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In Episode 60, we take a little break from murderous mayhem for a love story with a different kind of mayhem. The world of Broadway was quite aghast when Fannie Brice, a star of the Ziegfield Follies, took up with New York gambler Julius Wilford Arnstein, better known as Nicky, whose story was adapted into the musical “Funny Girl.” The first act is a Sunday magazine article that was published while Nicky was serving time in the Leavenworth prison, and act two is a telling of the conclusion of the romance by Brooklyn Daily Eagle’s star reporter Alice Cogan.

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