This ensemble, including the A-line metallic yellow, brown, and silver dress with yellow gloves, yellow and gold shoe boots, and a cigarette holder with a wooden cigarette, was worn by comedian Phyllis Diller. While Diller’s signature prop was a cigarette holder, it only ever held a wooden prop cigarette; she was a lifelong non-smoker.
Phyllis Diller is wearing this costume in an image featured on postcards that she gave out to fans when she was traveling. Diller did not sign these postcards, but on the postcards was printed, in her handwriting, “Best Wishes Phyllis Diller.”
This bust of comic Phyllis Diller depicts her with close-cropped hair and drapery around her shoulders in a formal style. The bust is made from copper painted plaster and is signed “Diller, M.K.” on the bottom.
The bust was originally displayed in a space in Phyllis Diller’s house that she referred to as the “Gothic Alcove” because it featured stained glass windows. Diller named all of the rooms in her house which included the “Bob Hope Salon” and the “John Wilkes Booth” phone booth.
This beige metal cabinet is Phyllis Diller’s gag file, a categorized archive of the jokes Diller used in her stand-up comedy routines throughout her half-century long career. A small three drawer expansion of the gag file is also in NMAH’s collection (Catalog Number 2003.0289.01.02). The 48 drawers of the gag file, along with the 3 drawer expansion, contain a total of 52,569 3-by-5 inch index cards, each holding a typewritten joke or gag. These index cards are organized alphabetically by subject ranging from accessories to world affairs and covering almost everything in between.
Phyllis Diller (1917-2012) began her comedy career in the 1950s at the age of 37 and broke barriers in the comedy world to become the first solo female comic to be a household name. She developed a stage persona of an incompetent housewife and dressed in outlandish outfits with wild hair. Her material focused on self-deprecating jokes that tackled the idealized image of American mothers and homemakers. She also created many mythical personas for her stage act including her “husband” Fang, her “neighbor” Mrs. Clean, and her “mother-in-law” Moby Dick.
These yellow gloves were worn with an A-line metallic yellow, brown, and silver dress, yellow and gold shoe boots, and a cigarette holder with a wooden cigarette by comedian Phyllis Diller. While Diller’s signature prop was a cigarette holder, it only ever held a wooden prop cigarette; she was a lifelong non-smoker.
Phyllis Diller is wearing this costume in an image featured on postcards that she gave out to fans when she was traveling. Diller did not sign these postcards, but on the postcards was printed, in her handwriting, “Best Wishes Phyllis Diller.”
Cloche-style turquoise blue felt hat worn by Phyllis Diller. The hat has a gray ribbon hatband and large black and gray ribbon bow in the front. Diller is wearing the hat in the photograph on the inside cover of the souvenir photo program titled Phyllis Diller Loves You!, which is also in the NMAH collection (Catalog Number 2003.0289.33). The program is filled with photographs and captions in Diller’s own words depicting her family life as well as her career.
This yellow and brown full-length dress with white and orange daisy print was worn by Phyllis Diller. Diller (1917-2012) began her comedy career in the 1950s at the age of 37 and broke barriers in the comedy world to become the first solo female comic to be a household name. She developed a stage persona of an incompetent housewife and dressed in outlandish outfits with wild hair. Her material focused on self-deprecating jokes that tackled the idealized image of American mothers and homemakers. She also created many mythical personas for her stage act including her “husband” Fang, her “neighbor” Mrs. Clean, and her “mother-in-law” Moby Dick.
This framed work of art is a self-portrait of Phyllis Diller. She depicts herself on a blue background with a black marker outline of her face and hair with blue eyes and pink lips enhanced with colored paint. Diller began painting for pleasure in the mid-1980s. During this time, she was staying in a large suite at Harrah’s in Reno, NV where she had enough space to set up several easels and canvases. She described her style as painting quickly and without too much thought about each individual painting. This quick style allowed her to complete anywhere from ten to twenty-five paintings per day.
These two drawings on corrugated cardboard were probably completed by Phyllis Diller as she packed up her donations to send to the National Museum of American History. They depict two female faces and are possibly self-portraits.
Diller’s art medium of choice was painting, and she began painting for pleasure in the mid-1980s. During this time, she was staying in a large suite at Harrah’s in Reno, NV where she had enough space to set up several easels and canvases. She described her style as painting quickly and without too much thought about each individual painting. This quick style allowed her to complete anywhere from ten to twenty-five paintings per day.
Beige towel from the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas. Phyllis Diller used this towel when she stayed at the hotel during one of her Las Vegas performance gigs. Phyllis Diller was the first female stand-up comic to headline at the Flamingo Hotel, and she was showcased in the Flamingo Room several times, including in 1964, 1966, and 1967.