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Gracie Doll

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Gracie Doll Famous memorial

Original Name
Grace Earles
Birth
Germany
Death
8 Nov 1970 (aged 71)
Sarasota, Sarasota County, Florida, USA
Burial
Sarasota, Sarasota County, Florida, USA Add to Map
Memorial ID
View Source
Actress, Entertainer. Born Frieda A. Schneider, the daughter of Gustav and Emma Schneider in Stolpen, Germany. She and three of her siblings all inherited a form of dwarfism. She and her brother Kurt were discovered by American, Bert W. Earles, and traveled to the US in 1914, where they toured with a Wild West show under the names of Gracie and Harry Earles. Their manager also brought sisters Daisy (Hilda) and Elly, also called Tiny, to the United States by 1926 where they joined Harry and Grace in their act. They billed themselves under their manager's name of Earles until his death almost a decade later, when they took the stage name of Doll. They left the Wild West show, and started touring with Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. Off season, the family also began appearing in films; she the fewest of the siblings, appearing only in 'Be Big' (1931) and with her siblings as Munchkins in 'The Wizard of Oz' (1939). They billed themselves as 'The Moving Picture Midgets' at the time. They continued to work the circus sideshow for thirty seasons, and when the Ringling traveling shows ended in 1956, the Dolls toured with the Christiani Circus. She was the tallest of the siblings at three feet five and a half inches. In 1958, the four siblings retired as a group, purchasing a custom equipped house for themselves in Sarasota, Florida, where they lived out their retirement. She predeceased her siblings at age 71.
Actress, Entertainer. Born Frieda A. Schneider, the daughter of Gustav and Emma Schneider in Stolpen, Germany. She and three of her siblings all inherited a form of dwarfism. She and her brother Kurt were discovered by American, Bert W. Earles, and traveled to the US in 1914, where they toured with a Wild West show under the names of Gracie and Harry Earles. Their manager also brought sisters Daisy (Hilda) and Elly, also called Tiny, to the United States by 1926 where they joined Harry and Grace in their act. They billed themselves under their manager's name of Earles until his death almost a decade later, when they took the stage name of Doll. They left the Wild West show, and started touring with Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. Off season, the family also began appearing in films; she the fewest of the siblings, appearing only in 'Be Big' (1931) and with her siblings as Munchkins in 'The Wizard of Oz' (1939). They billed themselves as 'The Moving Picture Midgets' at the time. They continued to work the circus sideshow for thirty seasons, and when the Ringling traveling shows ended in 1956, the Dolls toured with the Christiani Circus. She was the tallest of the siblings at three feet five and a half inches. In 1958, the four siblings retired as a group, purchasing a custom equipped house for themselves in Sarasota, Florida, where they lived out their retirement. She predeceased her siblings at age 71.

Bio by: Iola


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  • Maintained by: Find a Grave
  • Originally Created by: Iola
  • Added: Jul 22, 2018
  • Find a Grave Memorial ID:
  • Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/191571104/gracie-doll: accessed ), memorial page for Gracie Doll (12 Mar 1899–8 Nov 1970), Find a Grave Memorial ID 191571104, citing Sarasota Memorial Park, Sarasota, Sarasota County, Florida, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave.