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Tanqueray

Audiobook (Includes supplementary content)
2 of 2 copies available
2 of 2 copies available

"These bawdy, gritty tales of New York City in the 1960s and 1970s will captivate listeners, but it's Johnson who is the hero of this story. Listeners will relish every minute."- Library Journal
"Humans of New York fans will delight in hearing Stephanie 'Tanqueray' Johnson, once one of the city's best known burlesque dancers, tell her triumphant story."-People Magazine

This program is read by Stephanie Johnson with an introduction read by Brandon Stanton, author of Humans of New York.

The storytelling phenomenon Humans of New York and its #1 bestselling books have captivated a global audience of millions with personal narratives that illuminate the human condition. But one story stands apart from the rest...
She is a woman as fabulous, unbowed, and irresistible as the city she lives in.
Meet TANQUERAY.
In 2019, Humans of New York featured a photo of a woman in an outrageous fur coat and hat she made herself. She instantly captured the attention of millions. Her name is Stephanie Johnson, but she's better known to HONY followers as "Tanqueray," a born performer who was once one of the best-known burlesque dancers in New York City. Reeling from a brutal childhood, immersed in a world of go-go dancers and hustlers, dirty cops and gangsters, Stephanie was determined to become the fiercest thing the city had ever seen. And she succeeded.
Real, raw, and unapologetically honest, this is the full story of Tanqueray as told by Brandon Stanton—an audiobook filled with never-before-told stories of Tanqueray's struggles and triumphs through good times and bad, personal photos from her own collection, and glimpses of New York City from back in the day when the name "Tanqueray" was on everyone's lips.
A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin's Press.

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    • Publisher's Weekly

      May 30, 2022
      Two years after Johnson shared her story on Stanton’s popular Instagram account Humans of New York, she commands the spotlight again in this hypnotizing account of her past as a Black burlesque dancer. Of their first encounter in 2020, Stanton writes in the foreword that the septuagenarian immediately captivated him—and later more than three million Instagram users—with tales of dancing in New York City in the 1970s under her stage name, Tanqueray. With help from Stanton, Johnson returns to those stories to bare it all on the page. Recalling the many travails she faced before finally running away to New York City, Johnson details her childhood growing up with an abusive mother in 1940s Albany, N.Y.; a teenage pregnancy with a married man; and a prison stint for burglary. Forced to give up the baby for adoption, Johnson moved to the city with dreams of dancing on Broadway and eventually started performing in adult theaters. Johnson’s storytelling skills are undeniable as she dispenses tantalizing anecdotes, from bumping elbows with James Brown to hustling side gigs, like sewing custom sequined G-strings from dental floss. While her exploits are titillating, Johnson reminds readers that “underneath all the laughs and the gags, it was always about one thing: survival.” This has it all: humor, intrigue, and heart.

    • Library Journal

      Starred review from December 1, 2022

      When Johnson's story first appeared on the photoblog Humans of New York in 2019, it was an immediate sensation. Born in Albany, NY, in the 1940s, Johnson was kicked out of her home at age 17, when she became pregnant. After a brief stint in jail, she made her way to New York City, where she flourished first as a go-go dancer and then as a burlesque entertainer in Times Square. Narrating her own story, Johnson focuses on her career as an entertainer, where she was first relegated to second-rate clubs because of her race. But she soon used her talent, drive, and ingenuity to rise to the top. A consummate storyteller, Johnson slowly reveals enticing details about her life, while keeping the listener eager for more. Her husky voice conveys the full gamut of emotion, from joy and delight to pain and regret, and an interview between Johnson and Humans of New York's Brandon Stanton is an excellent addition to the audiobook. VERDICT These bawdy, gritty tales of New York City in the 1960s and 1970s will captivate listeners, but it's Johnson who is the hero of this story. Listeners will relish every minute.--Nanette Donohue

      Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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