Charles King (actor, 1886)

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Charles King

Charles J. King (born October 31, 1886 in New York City , † January 11, 1944 in London , England ) was an American theater and film actor and singer.

life and career

Charles King was born in New York in 1886 (according to other sources, 1889) to Irish immigrants. He had ten siblings, but only two more reached adulthood. His sister Mollie King (1895-1981) later also became an actress. King embarked on an acting career in the 1900s, appearing in vaudeville shows. In 1908 he was on Broadway in the revue The Mimic World . He became one of the most popular actors on Broadway and starred in many musical comedies. A particularly frequent partner of his was Elizabeth Brice , with whom he appeared in plays such as The Slim Princess , A Winsome Widow , Watch Your Step and Miss 1917 during the 1910s . King was also featured in George White's Scandals . Many of the songs he sang in his musicals have also been released on record. Recordings of him have appeared with Victor , Columbia and Brunswick .

Although he spent the majority of his career on stage, he is best known to today's audiences for the few films he made during the transition into the sound film era. At the end of the 1920s, when talkies were rapidly gaining ground and actors with language skills were being sought, King came to Hollywood for several musical films. In 1928 he made his film debut in The Five O'Clock Girl by Robert Z. Leonard . His greatest film success came in 1929 with the lead role of the entertainer Eddie in The Broadway Melody , a musical that was hugely popular at the box office at the time and won the Oscar for Best Picture at the 1930 Academy Awards . In 1930, leading roles in the musicals Chasing Rainbows and Oh, Sailor Behave! ; King also starred alongside William Haines in the comedy Remote Control . King did not stay permanently in Hollywood, but withdrew back to Broadway in 1931. He remained a successful actor there until his death, including in Cole Porter's musical comedy Panama Hattie between 1940 and 1942 .

Charles King died in January 1944 in London of pneumonia when he was just on a USO - troops care participated. The actor left behind his wife, Lila. He is not to be confused with his colleague Charles King (1895–1957), who mostly played small roles in over 400 films.

Filmography

  • 1928: The Five O'Clock Girl
  • 1929: The Broadway Melody
  • 1929: The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (as himself)
  • 1929: Climbing the Golden Stairs (short film)
  • 1930: Chasing Rainbows
  • 1930: Oh, Sailor Behave!
  • 1930: The March of Time (as himself)
  • 1930: Remote Control
  • 1932: Ladies Not Allowed (short film)
  • 1937: Flowers from the Sky (short film)
  • 1938: Styles and Smiles (short film)

Web links

Notes and individual references

  1. ↑ The year of birth 1889 can be found in other sources.
  2. ↑ Mollie King in the Internet Movie Database (English)
  3. ^ Charles King (1895) in the Internet Movie Database (English)
personal data
SURNAME King, Charles
ALTERNATIVE NAMES King, Charles J.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American actor and singer
DATE OF BIRTH October 31, 1886
PLACE OF BIRTH New York City
DATE OF DEATH January 11, 1944
Place of death London , England