1953: On Catching a Wealthy Sponsor

I know I said a few months back that Miss Abigail was livin’ the single life, but things have changed due to a night with the gals drinking a few margaritas and crafting and posting our profiles on an online dating site. Well, lo and behold, I snatched me a man a month later! So far things are great – Denis doesn’t mind my crazy dogs or my book obsession (heck, he once owned a copy of Live Alone and Like It). Kindrid spirits, I tell you. I thought it would be fitting for his “coming out on the Abiblog” to talk about an upcoming gig of the band he’s in — Boister does original scores for Buster Keaton films, among other things. Their next performance, set for this Sunday at 2pm at the AFI Silver in Silver Spring, Maryland, is actually quite relevant for readers of this blog. Filmed in 1925, Seven Chances is all about a man who, if he can find a bride and marry her in time, will inherit millions. I haven’t seen it yet, but apparently there’s a great chase scene, with tons of young, hopeful brides running down the streets of L.A. hoping to catch him.

In keeping with the storyline of the movie, the new squeeze and I did a little research and came up with this quote, from a chapter in The Unfair Sex called “On Catching a Weathly Sponsor.” I bet this would have come in handy for the brides in this movie. Too bad it was written in 1953!

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It is far more difficult to acquire a Sponsor than to catch a husband. To begin with, only three per cent of the male population is wealthy enough to qualify. Just think how many women are trying for each member of that select group. After you eliminate the unattractive women, the inexperienced, and the inadequate, the competition is still too much for any but the most gifted.

Even girls who are both talented and diligent frequently fail. For Luck plays an important role. So much depends on getting the breaks, on having the right contacts, on the accident of proper timing.

True, on rare occasions a novice who has none of the qualifications for success (and often no ambition) will by some quirk of chance be precipitated into a brilliant alliance with a rich man. Reports of this kind of accidental success give many naive girls a false perspective on the Weathly Sponsor situation, and they promptly fling themselves into the contest with great expectations and childish fancies. I sincerely hope you willl not be one of those who rush in where angels fear to tread.
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