Cal Stewart
Cal Stewart (b. 1856 Charlotte County, Virginia, d. December 7, 1919) was an American comedian and humorist who pioneered in vaudeville and early sound recordings. He is best remembered for his comic monologues in which he played "Uncle Josh" Weathersby, a resident of a mythical New England farming town called "Pumpkin Center" or "Punkin Center", leading to a number of small towns across the U.S. adopting those names. Born in Charlotte County, Virginia in 1856, Stewart spent his early life working in circuses, medicine shows and vaudeville to great acclaim as "Uncle Josh Weathersby from Way Down East". It was on the road that he befriended Mark Twain and later Will Rogers, two men who shared similar wit in comedy. Around 1897, Thomas Edison's studios hired him to cut several cylinder recordings of his famous speeches and songs. They were well received by the public, and launched an entire series of recordings based on the Uncle Josh character. Stewart's trademark on these recordings is the easily recognizable laugh that precedes his speeches. Best-selling recordings included "Uncle Josh’s Arrival in New York" (1898), "I'm Old But I'm Awfully Tough (Laughing Song)" (1898), "Jim Lawson's Horse Trade With Deacon Witherspoon" (1901), "Uncle Josh's Huskin' Bee Dance" (1901), and "Uncle Josh Buys an Automobile" (1903). He wrote the song "Ticklish Reuben" in 1900. Stewart continued recording on Edison, Columbia, Victor, and independent labels up until his death on December 7, 1919. He also wrote two books based on his monologues and performed in theaters across America with his wife Rossini Vrionides and her brother and sister. Stewart is represented on the 2007 compilation Actionable Offenses: Indecent Phonograph Recordings from the 1890s. |
Birth and Death Data: Born 1856 (Charlotte County), Died December 7, 1919
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1897 - 1928
Roles Represented in DAHR: speaker, author, vocalist, composer, lyricist
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 326-350 of 574 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Columbia | 78451 | 10-in. | 5/29/1919 | Uncle Josh in a cafeteria | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78452 | 10-in. | 5/29/1919 | Uncle Josh and the sailor | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78453 | 10-in. | 5/29/1919 | Uncle Josh has his photo taken | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78456 | 10-in. | 5/29/1919 | Uncle Josh in a department store | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78457 | 10-in. | 5/29/1919 | Uncle Josh and the fire department | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78463 | 10-in. | 6/2/1919 | Uncle Josh at the dentist | Harry C. Browne ; Cal Stewart | Comic scene | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78464 | 10-in. | 6/2/1919 | Uncle Josh invites the city folks down to visit him on the farm | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78465 | 10-in. | 6/2/1919 | Uncle Josh and the Billiken | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78466 | 10-in. | 6/2/1919 | Moving pictures at Pumpkin Center | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78470 | 10-in. | 6/5/1919 | Uncle Josh on an automobile | Frank Croxton ; Cal Stewart | Comic scene | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78471 | 10-in. | 6/5/1919 | War talk at Pumpkin Center | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue, with organ | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78476 | 10-in. | 6/11/1919 | The courtship of Uncle Josh and Aunt Nancy | Ada Jones ; Cal Stewart | Comic scene, with organ | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78477 | 10-in. | 6/11/1919 | Jim Lawson's hogs | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78478 | 10-in. | 6/11/1919 | Uncle Josh at Delmonico's | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78479 | 10-in. | 6/11/1919 | Uncle Josh at a roller skating rink | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78484 | 10-in. | 6/11/1919 | Evening time at Pumpkin Center | Ada Jones ; Peerless Quartet ; Cal Stewart | Descriptive scene, with male vocal quartet | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78485 | 10-in. | 6/11/1919 | Christmas time at Pumpkin Center | Ada Jones ; Peerless Quartet ; Cal Stewart | Descriptive scene, with male vocal quartet | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78488 | 10-in. | 6/16/1919 | Uncle Josh and the honey bees | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78489 | 10-in. | 6/16/1919 | Uncle Josh at a meeting of the school house directors | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78490 | 10-in. | 6/16/1919 | The opera at Pumpkin Center | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78491 | 10-in. | 6/16/1919 | Uncle Josh and the insurance company | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78492 | 10-in. | 6/16/1919 | Last day of school at Pumpkin Center | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78493 | 10-in. | 6/16/1919 | Uncle Josh in a Chinese laundry | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | speaker, author | |
Columbia | 78494 | 10-in. | 6/16/1919 | Uncle Josh at the bughouse | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | author, speaker | |
Columbia | 78501 | 10-in. | 6/18/1919 | Uncle Josh and the labor union | Cal Stewart | Comic monologue | speaker, author |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Stewart, Cal," accessed November 1, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/103525.
Stewart, Cal. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 1, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/103525.
"Stewart, Cal." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 1 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Stewart, Cal, 1856-1919 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n82031934
Wikidata: Cal Stewart - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q5018230
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/3812479
MusicBrainz: Cal Stewart - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/5470796f-4387-4f70-b520-d56dbce45465
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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