George Grossmith
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Grossmith Jr. (11 May 1874 – 6 June 1935) was a British actor, theatre producer and manager, director, playwright and songwriter, best remembered for his work in and with Edwardian musical comedies. Grossmith was also an important innovator in bringing "cabaret" and "revues" to the London stage. Born in London, he took his first role on the musical stage at the age of 18 in Haste to the Wedding (1892), a West End collaboration between his famous songwriter and actor father and W. S. Gilbert.
Grossmith soon became an audience favourite playing "dude" roles. Early appearances in musicals included George Edwardes's hit A Gaiety Girl in 1893, and Go-Bang and The Shop Girl in 1894. In 1895, Grossmith left the musical stage, instead appearing in straight comedies, but after a few years he returned to performing in musicals and Victorian burlesques. Early in the new century, he had a string of successes in musicals for Edwardes, including The Toreador (1901), The School Girl (1903), The Orchid (1903), The Spring Chicken (1905), The New Aladdin (1906), The Girls of Gottenberg (1907), Our Miss Gibbs (1909), Peggy (1911), The Sunshine Girl (1912) and The Girl on the Film (1913). The lanky Grossmith was often comically paired with the diminutive Edmund Payne. At the same time, he developed a reputation as a co-writer of musicals and revues, usually adding jokes.
Grossmith soon established himself as a major producer, together with Edward Laurillard, of such hits as Tonight's the Night (1914), Theodore & Co (1916) and Yes, Uncle! (1917). He wrote the long-running revue series that began with The Bing Boys Are Here (1916), scheduling these projects around his naval service in World War I. He then produced Eastward Ho! (1919) and produced, co-wrote, directed and sometimes starred in, Kissing Time (1919), A Night Out (1920), Sally (1921), The Cabaret Girl (1922), The Beauty Prize (1923) and Primrose (1924), many of these featuring Leslie Henson. He also continued to appear in other producers' shows, including The Naughty Princess (1920) and No, No, Nanette (1925).
Later, he performed in such pieces as Princess Charming (1926) and appeared in at least ten films for London Film Productions Ltd., among other films, in the 1930s. He produced The Land of Smiles and Cavalcade (both in 1931), and in 1933, he played Touchstone in a production of As You Like It.
Known For | Acting |
---|---|
Most Rating | 0.215 |
Birthday | 1874-05-11 |
Place of Birth | London, England, UK |
Also Known As | George Grossmith Jr., Georges Grossmith , |
1933
The Man with the Hispano
0/0
The almost financially ruined French gentleman Gaston Dewalter spends several days in Biarritz before going off in the Hispano-Suiza, a luxe car which...
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The Man with the Hispano
1933
The Hawk
0/0
The wife of a Hungarian gentleman tires of helping him cheat and becomes the mistress of a diplomat.When she re-encounters her husband he is enfeebled...
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The Hawk
1934
Princess Charming
7/2
Revolution breaks out in a small European kingdom, and a young princess is forced to flee for her life. She heads for the neighboring country, which j...
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Princess Charming
1932
Service for Ladies
6.8/3
Max Tracey is the head waiter at a London hotel. He falls in love at first sight with Sylvia Robertson, an aristocratic woman, and poses as a prince t...
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Service for Ladies
1930
Women Everywhere
3/1
Charles Jackson, an American sea-captain and singing soldier-of-fortune, is arrested by the French Foreign Legion for running guns to the rebel forces...
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Women Everywhere
1934
The Lady of Lebanon
0/0
The French and the English spy on each other, in this adventure set in post World War I colonial Syria.
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The Lady of Lebanon
1932
Wedding Rehearsal
4.6/5
The grandmother of a British nobleman, reluctant to marry, plays matchmaker. He outmaneuvers her by getting all of the matches married off .
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Wedding Rehearsal
1933
The Girl from Maxim's
0/0
A Doctor tries to pass off a singer as his wife in Paris in 1904.
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The Girl from Maxim's
1930
Those Three French Girls
4/5
An addled Englishman's efforts to save three young women from eviction land them all in jail and leads to other adventures and mischief.
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