The Burlesque community mourns the passing of Candy Caramelo, a beloved Burlesque Lenend. I’ve lifted the following bio from her web site.
Born in Key West, Florida of Spanish and Cuban descent, Dulce Maria Garcia started performing early, starring in green bean radio commercials at age four. At the age of seven she appeared in soap operas, on radio, television and on stage.
At the age of thirteen she danced in the chorus of the Leon Miller production for Royal American Shows which headlined Sally Rand the famous fan dancer.
Candy Caramelo was encouraged to become a burlesque performer herself; however, her Catholic background was an obstacle. Her producer explained to her that the Sistine Chapel and other religious venues around the world contained images of nude angels and that nudity can be artistic if it is done in good taste.
Candy Caramelo performed as a flamenco dancer at the “1965 World’s Fair” in New York. She was billed as “The Latin from Manhattan” and followed in the same circuit as Lili St. Cyr. She starred in “The French Revue” at “Casa Loma” as part of the “1967 World’s Fair” in Montreal. In Halifax she appeared at the “Lobster Trap” and in Toronto at the “Victory Burlesque Theatre”.
The following year, after the release of the popular movie, she adopted the name “Rosemary’s Baby, the girl with the little devil in her”. She also starred at the reopening of the “Mayfair”, the biggest burlesque theatre in New York after a ban had been lifted on burlesque.
She then became “Candy Baby”. Once, when ticket sales were slow for a Nashville show, Candy donned a flesh-colored g-string and breast-brushing wig and rode a horse – as Lady Godiva, of course – through downtown streets. She was arrested, but there wasn’t an empty seat in the house for the next show.
Candy Is No Baby Anymore. As “Candy Caramelo”, with a cast of forty-five beautiful girls she headlined at “Club Tropigala” in the Fontainebleau Hilton in Miami. She has performed in Montreal at the “El Mocambo” in New York at the “Gaiety Burlesque Theatre” and ”Radio City Music Hall” and in Paris at “Les Folies Bergere” and the “Moulin Rouge”. She also performed in Mexico, Venezuela, Spain, China, Japan, Hawaii and Australia.
Other accomplishments include acting in Spanish movies and performing on Radio Caracas, Univision Telemundo, and Mexico Televisa. She appeared as a guest performer on the “Joe E. Brown Show”, “Roseanne” with Roseanne Barr and the “Late Show with David Letterman”. Candy holds the Guinness Record as the “World’s Biggest Showgirl”, standing six feet tall and weighing 300 pounds. She has since lost 130 pounds.
