Miyako Odori

(ca. 1880-?)

About that time at the turn of the century, another young man, George Morgan, met her at a dinner where she performed dancing and singing. Sent to Japan to recover from a broken love affair, he fell deeply in love with O-Yuki. He asked her to marry him but she refused. However, wishing to pay the tuition and living expenses for her medical student-lover, she agreed to become George Morgan's mistress - for a price.

Upon his graduation, the young doctor left town without even bidding her good-bye. Heartbroken, she read of his marriage to a woman of suitable station. O-Yuki was conscience stricken as well. She had used George Morgan badly and under false pretenses. He continued being persistent in his plea that she marry him, and now she docilely agreed. She hoped to make it up to George for her duplicity. They were married by the American Consul in Kobe and traveled to New York.

They were not welcome in the Morgan family. The Goulds, the Astors and the New York society ignored them. George was dropped from the Social Register. They decided to make their home in Paris. O-Yuki learned to play the piano very well and they were happy in the company of the international society. It is said that Puccini was charmed by her gentle ways, and it is also said that he made changes in his opera, Madame Butterfly, as a result of her friendship. He called her "Cho Cho San", the real Madame Butterfly.

O-Yuki and George Morgan lived very happily for years in Paris until about 1914 when it became necessary for him to return to New York to take care of some business due to the war in Europe. He made every effort to return to Paris as soon as possible, but there seemed to be obstacles at every turn. Finally, he made his way to Spain. While waiting for transport, he suffered a fatal heart attack. O-Yuki was devastated, for she had come to love George honestly and completely, devoting herself to him.

When she was able to return to New York with his ashes, attitudes had ameliorated and she was welcomed into the salons of the society of the time. She had become a fine pianist of concert quality, as was reported in society news. She made her home in New York until the end of World War II when she, a woman already in her seventies, decided to return to Tokyo to help the ravaged city and its impoverished inhabitants.

Contributed by Florence Prusmack, author of Khan: a romantic historical novel based on the early life of Ghenghis Khan, in 1998.