As I did these last few posts, I realized that each comedian has his own space in the universe of comedy. So I have given a title to a few of them. Here they are:
Raised by a clown himself, his father worked in a circus when Red Skelton was young. With his authentic training, he successfully brought this type of comedy into Radio, Television and Motion Pictures more than any other comedian.
Keeping true to the title of his most popular film, "The Court Jester" (1956),
Danny Kaye proved himself as the "King of Jesters and Jesters of Kings."
As a tribute to his film and character, "The Nutty Professor" (1963),
Jerry Lewis is as crazy as they come.
Who needs scripts when you're with Bob Hope. Dorothy Lamour found herself lost many times through some of their films, but carried on as best she could. From hosting the Oscars to entertaining troops, he never packed a cue card.
As the King of Clumsy, Stan Laurel has kept audiences rolling for generations. He continues to be an example to comedians of our day. His facial expressions, walk, smile and even the movement of his elbows speak louder than any of his dialogue.
Many comedians have found success performing alone, while others found it best to team up. For this next week, I will be posting on my favorite Duos and Trios.
Before I move on from the solo performers, I wanted to list a few comparisons I found interesting. I posted on six comedians and here are their similarities.
When it came to having boys: Stan Laurel Red Skelton Lou Costello
(These three all had their only son die in their youth).
Danny Kaye
(Only had one child, a daughter).
Bob Hope
(Adopted four kids).
Jerry Lewis
(He is the odd one out with six boys from his first wife).
Speaking of wives: Danny Kaye Bob Hope Lou Costello
(All of these never divorced with the exception of a rumor about Hope having a previous marriage).
Jerry Lewis
(He had two marriages).
Red Skelton
(Had three marriages).
Stan Laurel
(Interesting enough, he had five marriages. Two of them were with his second wife who later became his fourth).
On Academy Awards:
None of the comedians I posted on received an Oscar for a performance. They all, except Lou Costello, received Honorary Awards from the Academy. Stan Laurel Red Skelton Jerry Lewis
(They all received one Honorary Academy Award).
Danny Kaye
(He was awarded two Oscars)
Bob Hope
(He beat them all. Not only was he the host for the Oscars countless times, he walked home five of his own).
There are a few other comparisons that I don't have time to list now.
Interesting Fact: In his youth he wanted to become a Doctor. This is interesting since laughter is the best medicine.
Awards: Though he was never nominated for an Oscar in acting he did receive two honoree awards: one in 1955 and another in 1982 as the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. In his first season of his show he received an Emmy and was nominated three other times for different shows. He was awarded two Golden Globes: "Me and the Colonel" (1958) & "On the Riviera" (1951). He also has a Star on the Walk of Fame in Motion Picture, Radio & Recoding. He also received a Laurel Award, a life achievement award from the Screen Writers Guild and hand prints at Grauman's Chinese Theater.
My Favorite Film: "The Court Jester" (1956) is his most popular film. Usually I'd rather pick my favorite as an unknown film I've discovered. With Danny Kaye, however, I am going to have to agree with the crowd that this is also my favorite.
Chef, Pilot, Conductor, Actor, Singer, Comedian, Dancer, TV host, UNICEF ambassador, husband & father - Danny sure kept himself busy. History shows that movie stars had a hard time balancing all of these talents and duties with family like, but Danny didn't just balance them, he juggled them.
For many reason's Danny is my favorite comedian of Hollywood. He could stand on his own as the funny & straight man, while being the orchestra at the same time. He was clean in his act and had his own unique form of tongue twisters that he and his wife, as his writer, developed. Most of all, he is my favorite for his love of children that far surpassed many of his day. Being an ambassador of UNICEF and with the film of "Hans Christian Andersen" (1952), you can see his kindness and care for them. What a legacy to leave behind!
Awards: It has been nominated for a Golden Globe and in 2004 was inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.
Interesting Fact: Basil Rathbone as an expert sword fighter used his talent to prevent any injuries on the fighting scene. He admitted that he was almost skewered a few times by Danny's wild sword.
My Favorite Scene: I love the scene when he enters the court and give his Jester song and on into when he is arrested for being the princesses secret love.
This movie has it all: singing, acting & comedy. This has always been a family favorite. Among my other favorite scenes is his impersonation of an old man, the sword fight, the vessel with the pessel & the jousting. Danny Kaye gives his all and never comes up for air. Here he showcased a large portion of his talents that he had done in previous films while also creating a whole new suitcase of tricks. What I love most about this film is not just the comedy, but the magnificent sets and backdrops. This is my all-time favorite comedy of vintage Hollywood.
To start off the posts of the week right, I've turned my attention to the quadruple threat, named Danny Kaye. In Acting, Dancing, Singing & Comedy, he excelled with flying colors that have never been duplicated to this day. From "The Court Jester" (1956) to "Hans Christian Andersen" (1952), he created a Musical genre on his own.
What I love about him was his clean humor. He never had one inappropriate moment, not one dirty joke, just PURE comedy. No one can successfully imitate his speedy limericks or his dizzy tongue twisters, but this wasn't all he had to offer the world. His voice was honest and his acting moving.
He may not have danced like Gene Kelly nor sung like Frank Sinatra but he created his own space in the universe of Hollywood.
AS AN ACTOR:
"Hans Christian Andersen" (1952) & "Wonder Man" (1945) are the first to come in mind. To me, he will always be the author from Denmark. He was the perfect fit for the film, since his voice was matched with his acting. In "Wonder Man," we see him take on two completely opposite roles. From the book worm to the party animal, he never compromised his special something that he always gave in a performance.
AS A DANCER:
With "White Christmas" (1954) as popular as it is in our day, I don't see it needful to elaborate on his talent of dancing. In fact I may only be able to mention a little known fact from the movie itself. As he & Bing Crosby finished off the "Sisters" routine, he had Bing laughing so hard, they had to re-shoot it. With each new take, the laughing got worse until they finally abandoned the idea and stuck with the first shot they had, which is in the film today.
AS A SINGER:
He had one of the most soft and pure voices of the big screen. My favorite songs of his were "Inchworm" in Hans & the lullaby "I'll Take You Dreaming" in the Jester. Then all of sudden, he becomes a humorous opera singer in "Soliloquy for Three Heads" & "Gypsy Drinking Song" for "The Inspector General" (1949). Another is when he finds himself disguised as the lead in an Opera on "The Wonder Man."
AS A COMEDIAN:
I think the best film to portray his Comedy spectrum was "The Court Jester." It contains all of his shape-shifting, tongue twisting, facial expressing, cowardice best. What a spectacular movie! Each time he was in front of the camera, he presented to us a new side of himself. To find a twin of a comedian, I would have to turn to the great Red Skelton. Both with red hair and each with there own unique pantomimic expressions.
I wish I could show all of my favorite clips but this post would take up the whole site. Instead, I have created this collage to portray his alter egos.
As I started this week with studying the religion of the entertainers of yesteryear, I decided to start off strong with those either of Jewish decent or conversion. I quickly became overwhelmed, more than I had anticipated, by how many of our talented artists came from Jewish families, many of them refugees.
In fact I read something that I felt summed it up, "Hollywood was ran by Jewish executives who made Catholic movies for a Protestant Country." As I continued my research, I was surprised, though, by the amount of inaccurate facts and prejudices. One site had listed Charlie Chaplin as a Jew which is quite incorrect.
Another interesting find was a book being sold on Amazon titled, "An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood". Here, they displayed a connection to the film, "The Jazz Singer" (1927), as well as the moguls of Hollywood. The story of the character, Jackie Rabinowitz and his separation from the culture of his ancestors, is similar to the real lives of each of the producers shown below.
Their talents are intertwined, not just into the creation and performances of the cinema, but into the musical composition and even the television media. The collages I've created below reflect these different areas. I apologize if I have left some of your favorite individuals out. As I said before, I had no idea on the extent of research needed to uncover these great men & woman.
