George Grossmith Jr.
George Grossmith Jr. (11 May 1874 – 6 June 1935) was an English 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 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. |
Birth and Death Data: Born May 11, 1874 (Haverstock), Died June 6, 1935 (Haverstock)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1909 - 1931
Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, lyricist, composer
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | B-6717 | 10-in. | 1/12/1909 | Do you know Mr. Schneider? | Ada Jones | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
Victor | C-8229 | 12-in. | 9/16/1909 | Gems from The dollar princess | Victor Light Opera Company | Vocal chorus and soloists, with orchestra | lyricist | |
Victor | C-8706 | 12-in. | 3/14/1910 | Ring o' roses | Harry Macdonough ; Lucy Isabelle Marsh | Female-male vocal duet, with orchestra | lyricist | |
Victor | C-10032 | 12-in. | 3/7/1911 | Gems from The pink lady | Victor Light Opera Company | Vocal chorus and soloists, with orchestra | lyricist | |
Columbia | 81775 | 10-in. | 5/12/1924 | Haste to the wedding | Frank Quinn ; Frank Quinn | Piano accordion solo and male vocal solo (humming), with piano | composer | |
Columbia | 74207 | 12-in. | approximately 11/30/1920 | Etiquette | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; John Ansell ; Amy Augarde ; George Grossmith Jr. | Vocal duet, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 74208 | 12-in. | approximately 11/29/1920 | Love quadrille duet | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; John Ansell ; Ivy Connor ; George Grossmith Jr. | Vocal duet, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 74210 | 12-in. | approximately 11/29/1920 | What we'll do | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; John Ansell ; George Grossmith Jr. ; Strafford Moss | Male vocal duet, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 74211 | 12-in. | approximately 11/29/1920 | Hush! Hush! | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; John Ansell ; George Grossmith Jr. | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 74213 | 12-in. | approximately 11/29/1920 | Art | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; John Ansell ; George Grossmith Jr. ; Lily St. John | Vocal duet, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 74366 | 12-in. | approximately 10/7/1921 | The church 'round the corner | John Ansell ; George Grossmith Jr. ; Heather Thatcher ; Winter Garden Theatre Orchestra | Vocal duet, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 74367 | 12-in. | approximately 10/7/1921 | The Lorelei | John Ansell ; Seymour Beard ; George Grossmith Jr. ; Heather Thatcher ; Winter Garden Theatre Orchestra | Vocal trio with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 76478 | 12-in. | either May or June 1919 | The happy family | Yvonne Arnaud ; George Grossmith Jr. ; Leslie Henson | Vocal trio, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 76479 | 12-in. | either May or June 1919 | Desertion | George Grossmith Jr. | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 76480 | 12-in. | either May or June 1919 | I like it | Yvonne Arnaud ; George Grossmith Jr. ; Leslie Henson | Vocal trio, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 76483 | 12-in. | either May or June 1919 | Joan and Peter | Phyllis Dare ; George Grossmith Jr. | Female-male vocal duet, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia | 76484 | 12-in. | either May or June 1919 | There's a light in your eye | Phyllis Dare ; George Grossmith Jr. | Female-male vocal duet, with orchestra | vocalist | |
Columbia (U.K.) | WAR587 | 10-in. | November 1930-March 1931 | Sur les vagues | Barrel organ operator (unidentified; Columbia (U.K.) Records) | Barrel organ solo | composer |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Grossmith, George, Jr.," accessed November 9, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/107401.
Grossmith, George, Jr.. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 9, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/107401.
"Grossmith, George, Jr.." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 9 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: George Grossmith Jr.
Grove: George Grossmith Jr.
IMSLP: George Grossmith Jr.
IMDb: George Grossmith Jr.
Britannica: George Grossmith Jr.
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Grossmith, George, 1874-1935 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n96028124
Wikidata: George Grossmith Jr. - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q3101618
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/78042237
MusicBrainz: George Grossmith Jr. - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/7a4baf43-a4b8-4dc9-b178-04a5f56049e8
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