Skelton, Red

Skelton, Red
orig. Richard Bernard Skelton

born July 18, 1913, Vincennes, Ind., U.S.
died Sept. 17, 1997, Rancho Mirage, Calif.

U.S. comic actor.

He joined a touring medicine show at age 10, performed in minstrel shows, burlesque, and vaudeville, and was a hit on Broadway in 1937 with his trademark doughnut-dunking pantomime. His 1938 screen debut was followed by appearances in more than 35 film comedies. He starred in the popular The Red Skelton Show on radio (1941–44, 1945–53) and television (1951–71). Noted for his broad humour and warm personality, Skelton developed characters such as the Mean Widdle Kid, Clem Kadiddlehopper, and Freddie the Freeloader.

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▪ American actor
byname of  Richard Bernard Skelton 
born July 18, 1913, Vincennes, Indiana, U.S.
died September 17, 1997, Rancho Mirage, California
 U.S. pantomimist and radio and television comedian, host, and star performer of the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) variety program The Red Skelton Show from 1951 to 1971. In this television series Skelton re-created a number of characters—among them Clem Kaddiddlehopper, Sheriff Deadeye, Junior, the Mean Widdle Kid, and Cauliflower McPugg—he had developed during his years in vaudeville and radio. Skelton's style deftly combined broad humour with emotional complexity.

      Skelton's father, a circus clown, died two months before Skelton was born, and he had to help support himself from an early age. He was a newsboy by age 7, and at 10 he took to the road with a medicine show touring the Midwest, effectively ending his classroom schooling. He went on to perform in minstrel shows, burlesque shows, circuses, and radio. His radio appearance on The Rudy Vallee Show in 1937 led to other bookings, and he was voted the outstanding new radio star of 1941. He also took roles in some 30 movies, including a film starring Ginger Rogers, Having a Wonderful Time (1938). His other movie credits include Excuse My Dust (1939), Bathing Beauty (1944), and The Fuller Brush Man (1948).

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Universalium. 2010.

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