Elizabeth Custer

[mkyzzzrdet]

"Her wealth allowed her to be an enthusiastic backer of art institutions like New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Greenwich House of Pottery. In 1925, those two organizations banded together to produce a film on pottery making. The director was Maude Adams, formerly one of America's top Broadway actresses. Victor Raffo handled the title role; he was considered one of the best potters in the world. The film was shot at the Greenwich institution.

A documentary showing how to throw a pot isn't usually an audience grabber. So the producers created a flimsy plot: an old lady and her young granddaughter visit a pottery shop. While the proprietor is in the back, the little girl destroys the piece on the wheel the potter was working on. Naturally, the guy is ticked off (Raffo's facial expressions are priceless). He starts over—and for the next several minutes, he shows his visitors how to make a pot.

"Granny" in the billing is 83-year-old Libbie, looking serene and dignified with snow-white hair, an old-fashioned hat and a black dress (she wore nothing but black after George's death). The girl is Raffo's daughter Ruth (who is still alive in upstate New York)."
http://www.truewestmagazine.com/mrs-custer-at-the-movies/

Mike - thanks for adding this. I should have had a little more explanatory material when I posted it. It is all very interesting and strange to see someone like her as a living breathing person, instead of in some old photograph.

 

[Mike Serpa]

That's okay. I wasn't interested until James N. asked about it. That's what made me curious. It is a little odd seeing her in motion pictures.

 

[FZ11]

That's why I kind of went with the story that Custer was the father, the explanation being that he was the husband of one of the women and a father of one of their own. I thought maybe that is why his body was left in one piece. It also makes sense that the family would accuse Tom, it would save Custer's great name and I'm sure nobody from the Custer family would want to undermine Libby's hard work in promoting her husbands name in a good light.

The Indians didn't recognize Custer on the battlefield. His hair was cut short.

 

[James N.]

The Indians didn't recognize Custer on the battlefield. His hair was cut short.

On the other hand, there's the story that a squaw or young Indian (Cheyenne, I believe) girl recognized Custer from having seen him previously at one of the forts and used her sewing awl - a long, sharp bone used to make holes in deerhide to prepare it for sewing - to puncture his eardrums so that he could better hear Indian complaints in the afterlife! This is a story line followed in the ca. 1990 TV miniseries Son of the Morning Star based on the book of that name and is an actual period reminiscence.

 

[Waterloo50]

On the other hand, there's the story that a squaw or young Indian (Cheyenne, I believe) girl recognized Custer from having seen him previously at one of the forts and used her sewing awl - a long, sharp bone used to make holes in deerhide to prepare it for sewing - to puncture his eardrums so that he could better hear Indian complaints in the afterlife! This is a story line followed in the ca. 1990 TV miniseries Son of the Morning Star based on the book of that name and is an actual period reminiscence.

I read that Custer suffered two bullet wounds one in his left side and one in his temple, apart from the punctures to his eardrums he was left in one piece but I have also read reports that claim Custer was probably mutilated to some degree, it was reported that he had a peculiar mutilation to the genitals and there was also a report of a finger taken off, some reports also describe a long slash to the thighs. I wonder if the stories of Custer being left unmutilated were told to protect his image and prevent people from being shocked.
I don't know if its true but I also remember someone claiming that they witnessed a very quick post mortem, the story goes that Custer had been shot in the left shoulder and in the temple and there were also a number of holes in the back of his head, a bullet removed from one of these holes was supposed to be from a 41 Calibre revolver. I have my suspicions about the 41 Calibre story, I think it was far more likely that he was shot in the left shoulder and the killer shot was obviously the one to his temple. I'm not sure about mutilations to his body, would he really have been treated differently, my feeling is that he would have been viewed as just another fallen soldier.

 

[James N.]

I read that Custer suffered two bullet wounds one in his left side and one in his temple, apart from the punctures to his eardrums he was left in one piece but I have also read reports that claim Custer was probably mutilated to some degree, it was reported that he had a peculiar mutilation to the genitals and there was also a report of a finger taken off, some reports also describe a long slash to the thighs. I wonder if the stories of Custer being left unmutilated were told to protect his image and prevent people from being shocked.
I don't know if its true but I also remember someone claiming that they witnessed a very quick post mortem, the story goes that Custer had been shot in the left shoulder and in the temple and there were also a number of holes in the back of his head, a bullet removed from one of these holes was supposed to be from a 41 Calibre revolver. I have my suspicions about the 41 Calibre story, I think it was far more likely that he was shot in the left shoulder and the killer shot was obviously the one to his temple. I'm not sure about mutilations to his body, would he really have been treated differently, my feeling is that he would have been viewed as just another fallen soldier.

This theory has been advanced before and I think it's certainly possible, especially given Victorian sensibilities.

 

[Rio Bravo]

When did Custer cut his hair short ? Was it just before the battle of LBH so as to make him less conspicuous ?
Lyman said he " looks like a circus Rider gone mad ! He wears a huzzar jacket & tight trousers of faded black velvet trimmed with tarnished gold lace.............the General's coiffure ( consists of ) short,dry,flaxen ringlets!...........he has a very merry blue eye,and a devil-may-care style "

 

[James N.]

When did Custer cut his hair short ? Was it just before the battle of LBH so as to make him less conspicuous ?
Lyman said he " looks like a circus Rider gone mad ! He wears a huzzar jacket & tight trousers of faded black velvet trimmed with tarnished gold lace.............the General's coiffure ( consists of ) short,dry,flaxen ringlets!...........he has a very merry blue eye,and a devil-may-care style "

Remember that Lyman's comments were made TEN YEARS EARLIER about the then-twentysomething new general. Libby herself cut George's hair before they rode out together from Fort Abraham Lincoln on the first day of the campaign. Since it was supposed to last at least over the summer, this was simply to make it more manageable while in the field.

 

[FZ11]

On the other hand, there's the story that a squaw or young Indian (Cheyenne, I believe) girl recognized Custer from having seen him previously at one of the forts and used her sewing awl - a long, sharp bone used to make holes in deerhide to prepare it for sewing - to puncture his eardrums so that he could better hear Indian complaints in the afterlife! This is a story line followed in the ca. 1990 TV miniseries Son of the Morning Star based on the book of that name and is an actual period reminiscence.

Could be. All we really have are the stories told by the Native Americans,net of translation errors,fears of retribution,etc. Great book by Connell. Just pulled off the shelf to review. Thanks.

 

[FarawayFriend]

Now I found a real gem, a clip from an old non-commercial film that shows the real Libby Custer as an old lady!
Enjoy (Libby appears on scene at about 1:30)

 

[Waterloo50]

Now I found a real gem, a clip from an old non-commercial film that shows the real Libby Custer as an old lady!
Enjoy (Libby appears on scene at about 1:30)

Thats an incredible find, all credit to you for finding that. Wouldn't it be great if they could get a lip reader to work out what she was saying to the potter. Ive seen the work lip readers have done with silent footage of WW1 and it was incredible to hear what the men were saying. I think that I'm right in saying that lip readers can also pick up on the dialect that a person uses.