The St. Louis Veiled Prophet Celebration: Power on Parade, 1877-1995

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful history
Review: Finally someone has taken the time and trouble to set down the history of the Veiled Prophet organization and its projecs. Tom Spencer has done a splendid job. His book is eminently readable, packed with facts and details, and bright as a penny. It's also a sociological tract, scholarly but not scholastic. The one disappointment is the almost total neglect of the Veiled Prophet Ball and its Queens. I expected at least a list of the V.P. Queens and more photos of the coronations, especially the extravaganzas of the 1930s which have to be seen to be believed (think Busby Berkeley and the sets from "The Wizard of Oz") and from which abundant photos survive. What about the most famous Queen of all, Anne Desloges? And what about the whole Queen culture--all these girls year after year after year plain as a pancake with plain hair styles (if you could call them styles), basically the same gown as was being worn 50 years ago, no distinguishing talents or features (with some welcome exceptions) who after their year in the spotlight are never heard from or seen again. At least in the days the coronation and ball were telecast we had the fun of the Post-Dispatch with a straight face describing a Queen who was downright homely as "a willowy blonde." I was disappointed, too, that the book didn't tackle the subject of exactly how a Queen is chosen. It has changed over the years but it's never been that big of a secret; almost any girl in the court will willingly blab it. There needs to be a book on Veiled Prophet coronations and Queens, darn it.