This book intertwines two stories about two couples, set in the late 1920’s, whose only connection was that they played Contract Bridge. The title refers to the appellation that Puritans gave to playing cards, which these two stories do not contradict. The two couples were Ely & Jo Culbertson, and Jack & Myrtle Bennett. One couple were well-known in the New York bridge world, the other a middle-class couple living on the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City. Neither marriage would survive: one ended in divorce, the other in murder.
Ely & Josephine Culbertson were very active in the “bridge scene” in New York City in the late 1920’s. Ely was a self-promoter, compared to Barnum, and Jo was “his favorite partner”. Ely published a bridge magazine, wrote a best-selling bridge book, and used his and his wife’s skill at bridge to earn a living. Apparently, anyone who knew anything about bridge in the 1920’s or 30’s had heard of him. He worked hard to make himself famous. Jack & Myrtle Bennett became famous in a totally different manner, but were also known about in bridge circles at about the same time. Myrtle eventually managed to outlive her notoriety.
A good portion of this book “sets the scene”, and helpfully details life in the 1920’s in both New York City and Kansas City. I would have found this aspect of the book interesting even if the stories of the two couples had not been compelling. The author talks about some of the fads of the era, including flag pole sitting, but the main fad it discusses is bridge. I don’t play bridge, but you don’t need to understand it to appreciate the book. The author helpfully includes a brief description and glossary of the game. It also mentions a number of other people who were well-known in the late 1920’s, including Myrtle’s attorney, James A Reed. It also mentions other Kansas City personalities, including Harry Truman and Tom Pendergast.
If this was your family, how would you research them? Ely was helpful enough to write his autobiography, but, according to Pomerantz, much of it is fiction. Attempting to fact check might be interesting, but probably very difficult. If you are fortunate enough to have a relative that left a diary or autobiography behind, it would certainly be an excellent starting place. Although the author is a journalist by training, he used some genealogical techniques to follow Myrtle’s life after she left Kansas City, including searching censuses, death records, and wills. And of course reviewing newspaper articles from the era. He also tracks down and interviews descendants, relatives, and friends of the couple, and is able to interview several of them. All marvelous strategies for any genealogist.