Obituaries : Mary E. Mauch; Ice Follies Star
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Mary Elchlepp Mauch, one of a hardy handful of skaters who formed the first Ice Follies troupe in 1936, died Friday in Woodland Hills. Her son, Michael, said his mother was 70 and died of natural causes; a specific cause of death has not been determined.
George Shipstad, one of three brothers who with Oscar Johnson formed the Shipstad and Johnson Ice Follies, said there were 28 people in the initial group.
“Mary was one of a very few girls that were called ‘Ice Follie-ettes,’ ” he recalled from his retirement home in Encino.
The troupe went by chartered bus from Chicago to Tulsa for their first engagement, but a polio epidemic there cut into attendance and it wasn’t until the group landed in Philadelphia several weeks and cities later that it became successful. The Philadelphia engagement led to an invitation to appear in Madison Square Garden, and those performances made the Ice Follies a success.
Mary Elchlepp retired after marrying the late Hans R. Mauch, who was Frack of the Ice Follies’ legendary Frick and Frack comedic skating team.
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