Triple Threat - by Leisha Douglas (Paperback)

About the Book

Elizabeth Hines had a meteoric rise to stardom in the 1920s becoming George M. Cohan's leading lady in several of his most iconic musical comedies and soon she was an international star. This is her story.

Book Synopsis

There's a triple threat on Broadway's 1920s stage and it's Elizabeth Hines

Elizabeth Hines had a meteoric rise to stardom in the 1920s becoming George M. Cohan's leading lady in several of his most iconic musical comedies, including his longest-running Broadway production, Little Nellie Kelly.

This fictionalized biography, written by her granddaughter, follows Elizabeth's trajectory from adolescent ingenue to world-renowned star. During her career, she travels to Africa and Europe performing abroad, and hobnobs with key figures of the 1920s. But the changing social circumstances and its mounting pressures reignite an inner conundrum. As this young, well-bred woman transcends familial and socio-cultural expectations to establish a successful international theatrical career, she maintains her integrity, poise, and regard for others, something often missing in the world of theater. In Leisha Douglas's Triple Threat: The Story of a 1920s Broadway Star, this last well may be the bigger feat.

About the Author

Leisha Douglas's stories and poems have been published in many literary journals, including The Cortland Review, Helix, The Minetta Review, The Midwest Quarterly, Upstreet, The RavensPerch, and The Big Other, as well as anthologized and nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She has collaborated with artists to create limited-edition publications that combine art, photography, and poetry. She was the co-director of the Katonah Poetry Series. Her poetry chapbook, Hand Fishing, will be published by Moonstone Press in 2026. She previously had a long career as a psychotherapist and mental health counselor. The author lives in New York.

Praise for Triple Threat

"Fiction and fact blend seamlessly in this imagined life of a talented and beautiful woman determined from an early age to be in the world of musical theatre on her own terms."

-Deborah Batterman, author of Just Like February

"The authenticity of the era (1913-1928) is beautifully captured in the rich detail of Leisha Douglas's concise, lucid prose. The author has a gift for humanizing her characters in a world where you can hear a heartbeat on almost every page of this compelling novel."

-Kevin Pilkington, author of Taking On Secrets

Review Quotes

"Fiction and fact blend seamlessly in this imagined life of a talented and beautiful woman determined from an early age to be in the world of musical theatre on her own terms."

-Deborah Batterman, author of Just Like February

"The authenticity of the era (1913-1928) is beautifully captured in the rich detail of Leisha Douglas's concise, lucid prose. The author has a gift for humanizing her characters in a world where you can hear a heartbeat on almost every page of this compelling novel."

-Kevin Pilkington, author of Taking On Secrets