Lydia the Tattooed Lady Stock Exchange by commandeering a microphone and singing the song before telling jokes for 15 minutes, during which time traders suspended their work to watch him perform. Lydia the Tattooed Lady "Lydia, the Tattooed Lady" is a 1939 song written by Yip Harburg and Harold Arlen. It first appeared in the Marx Brothers movie "At the Circus" (1939) and became one of Groucho Marx's signature tunes. The complex lyrics by Harburg – with clever rhymes such as "Lydia/encyclopedia" and "Amazon/pajamas on" – were inspired by W. S. Gilbert. Harburg made many contemporary references to topical personalities such as Grover Whalen,
Lydia Thompson Lydia Thompson Lydia Thompson (born Eliza Thompson; 19 February 1838 – 17 November 1908), was an English dancer, comedian, actress, and theatrical producer. After dancing and performing in pantomimes in Britain and then in Europe as a teenager in the 1850s, she became a leading dancer and actress in burlesques on the London stage. She introduced Victorian burlesque to America with her troupe the "British Blondes", in 1868, to great acclaim and notoriety. Her career began to decline in the 1890s, but she continued to perform into the early years of the 20th century. Thompson was born in Brydges Street,