Although her college education remains mysterious, in 1906 she apparently passed her teacher training and was assigned to teach at Public School 84 in Queens.

[17] Although Merrill claimed to have begun her theatrical career by sending an unsolicited song to Eva Tanguay, her interest in theater seems to have predated that event.

[13] A 1906 review of a production of The Jolly Bachelors put on by St. Mary's Catholic Club in Brooklyn is probably one of the earliest mentions of Merrill (still under her birth surname) in print.

Charles Bill, William Morrison and Blanche V. Dreyfoos managed to take one step higher in the art with which they have been so generously endowed."

[21] With her first publication, virtually all professional mentions refer to her as Blanche Merrill.The Trained Nurses, a vaudeville act written by and featuring Gladys Clark and Henry Bergman, was produced by Jesse L. Lasky at the Colonial Theatre in New York City on September 16, 1912.

"Several music publishing firms have been after the services of Blanche Merrill... who has gained a big reputation for her age within the past couple of years."

Her work for Tanguay and Shaw as well as The Trained Nurses attracted "considerable attention from the profession to her jingling lyrics and ofttime melodies.

[27][28] Another one of Merrill's and Edward's songs, "Here's to You, My Sparkling Wine," made its way into the musical The Blue Paradise, which opened at the Casino Theatre on August 5, 1915, and then toured.

[33] A Variety notice near the end of October 1915 indicates that an act, "The Musical Devil", featuring a performer ("Yvette") was written by Merrill.

During their association, Merrill created some of Brice's most distinctive material and freed her from the problem that had always plagued her: finding songs that really suited her.

The act had four songs, the last three of which had lyrics by Merrill: "If We Could Only Take Their Word," "The Yiddish Bride" (which critic and Variety founder Sime Silverman called "a gem"), and "Becky Is Back in the Ballet."

When it reopened in Atlantic City, New Jersey, for the continuation of its pre-Broadway run, it included two songs written by Merrill, one called "The Yiddish Indian.

He mentioned Merrill, whom he called "an expert" who could command thousands of dollars for material, with Fanny Brice being one of her steady and smart customers.

Chadwick, DeForest & Kearns, Willie Weston, Arnold & Taylor, Arthur Lipson, Maurey Livingston, as well as the Charles Dillingham's and Florenz Ziegfeld's "Cocoanut Grove" nightclub.

[68] Other performers and their acts in part or in whole written by Merrill during 1917 included Anna Ford and George Goodridge in You Can't Believe Them,[69] Grace Cameron returning in Dolly Dimples,[70] Mabel Hamilton (formerly of the duo Clark and Hamilton) in a solo act,[71][72] and Lillian Shaw, having the penultimate spot in vaudeville program at the Colonial Theatre.

Having written a variety of vaudeville acts, in October 1917 it was announced that Merrill was putting aside specialty work in order to write a play.

With the aid of her lawyer, Merrill was able to get a clause written into her contracts that restricted performance of her songs to the field to which they were conceived, whether vaudeville or musical comedy.

Written as a parody of Rudyard Kipling's poem Boots, it was first performed by the Howard Brothers at the Winter Garden Theatre in The Passing Show of 1918.

According to Variety, Merrill refused and withdrew from the project entirely, signing on with the Shubert Brothers to work on their upcoming show, Biff Boom Bang.

"[89] A notice in a July 1919 issue of Variety stated that Merrill had signed a contract with Lee Shubert to produce a musical version of Clyde Fitch's play Girls.

A notice in Billboard said that Merrill collaborated with John Murray Anderson on the Greenwich Village Follies of 1921, the third production in that series of revues.

[123] In 1924 Merrill wrote a vaudeville act, Life for Mabel McCane which first played at Poli's Capitol Theatre in Hartford, Connecticut.

[149] Filmed at the Cosmopolitan Studios and produced by First National,[152] the Merrill's initial story was eventually released on January 13, 1926, as Bluebeard's Seven Wives.

[165] Mary Kornman and Mickey Daniels, both recently retired from Hal Roach's Our Gang film series, began appearing in vaudeville in 1926.

"[176] On the bill along with Fehl and Murray at the Kilburn Empire Theatre in London, a reviewer wrote: "Blanche Merrill has written each of these two acts, and very effective material it is.

[196] A 1946 advertisement for the Duncan Sisters appearing at Joaquin Garay's Copacabana in San Francisco stated that their act included "special material by Blanche Merrill.

[209] Over the course of 89 rhyming lines, she portrays television as a new invention that sparks curiosity, and then a frantic rush to capitalize on it, resuscitating vaudeville careers while threatening the movie industry.

[208] Merrill was vacationing in Atlantic City during August 1949 while working on ideas for radio and television, including "a show for Sid Caesar.

"[13] Part of Merrill's technique was meeting with a client (a performer), assessing their skills, noting their singing range an ability and seeing them on stage.

Becky was a dancer Look how she danced Nighttime and day she triptoed away She got a job in the ballet But one night her foot made a slip She fell on her back with oi!