The greatest and most skillful of all female impersonators was christened William Julian Dalton. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, May 14, 1882. His mother was Julia Edna Baker and his father, Joseph Dalton. His father's mining interest took the family to Butte, Montana, where he attended school. At 17, Mr. Eltinge returned to Boston and became a dry goods salesman. He joined an amateur organization which staged annual revues and played female roles in their productions. In 1904 he made his first professional appearance in Mr. Wix of Wickham. For five years he appeared as a female impersonator in vaudeville throughout the United States and England. He gave a command performance for Edward VII at Windsor Castle. In 1911 he was starring in The Fascinating Widow, his greatest success. In 1910 the Eltinge 42nd Street Theatre in New York, in 1954 it was renamed the Empire Theatre and today is the lobby for the AMC multiplex, was built and named for him. He was five feet nine inches tall, weighed 185 pounds, had dark brown hair, blue eyes, and with a baritone voice he sang pure falsetto. He referred to his corsets as "old ironsides." During his career he missed only two performances. He was quiet, affable, devoid of egotism, stubborn, serous-minded and thoroughly masculine in actions. He liked beer, horse races and swimming. He seldom read a book and disliked baseball. He wrote the lyrics of many songs and designed his own costumes. Off stage he was a well-groomed and conservative dresser. His last stage appearance was in 1931 in Nine O'Clock Revue at the Hollywood Music Box. Financial hardship forced him out of retirement in 1941 to appear at the Diamond Horseshoe night club in New York. During the engagement he died of a cerebral hemorrhage on March 7, 1941.