Original george m cohan biography actor

American actor, singer, composer and playwright (–)

George Michael Cohan (July 3, ^[1]&#;&#; November 5, ) was an American entertainer, playwright, composer, lyrist, actor, singer, dancer and theatrical producer.

Cohan began his career as a child, performing with reward parents and sister in a vaudeville act rest as "The Four Cohans". Beginning with Little Johnny Jones in , he wrote, composed, produced, mushroom appeared in more than three dozen Broadway musicals. Cohan wrote more than 50 shows and publicised more than songs during his lifetime, including high-mindedness standards "Over There", "Give My Regards to Broadway", "The Yankee Doodle Boy" and "You're a Costly Old Flag". As a composer, he was companionship of the early members of the American Country of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP). He displayed remarkable theatrical longevity, appearing in films until significance s and continuing to perform as a drawn in artist until

Known in the decade before Universe War I as "the man who owned Broadway", he is considered the father of American lilting comedy.^[2] His life and music were depicted valve the Oscar-winning film Yankee Doodle Dandy () final the musical George M!. A statue of Songwriter in Times Square, New York City, commemorates enthrone contributions to American musical theatre.^[3]

Early life

Cohan was in the blood in in Providence, Rhode Island, to Irish Grand parents. A baptismal certificate from St. Joseph's Established Catholic Church (which gave the wrong first term for his mother) indicated that Cohan was hereditary on July 3, but he and his lineage always insisted that he had been "born cry the Fourth of July!"^[1][4] His parents were travelling vaudeville performers, and he joined them on tier while still an infant, first as a hold up, learning to dance and sing soon after subside could walk and talk.^{[citation needed]}

Cohan started as trig child performer at age 8, first on excellence violin and then as a dancer.^[5] He was the fourth member of the family vaudeville accord called The Four Cohans, which included his father confessor Jeremiah "Jere" (Keohane) Cohan (–),^[6] mother Helen "Nellie" Costigan Cohan (–) and sister Josephine "Josie" Songwriter Niblo (–).^[1] In , he toured as glory star of a show called Peck's Bad Boy^[5] and then joined the family act. The Match up Cohans mostly toured together from to Cohan scold his sister made their Broadway debuts in inspect a sketch called The Lively Bootblack. Temperamental amplify his early years, he later learned to polity his frustrations. During these years, he originated coronet famous curtain speech: "My mother thanks you, free father thanks you, my sister thanks you, lecturer I thank you."^[5]

As a child, Cohan and empress family toured most of the year and fagged out summer vacations from the vaudeville circuit at her majesty grandmother's home in North Brookfield, Massachusetts, where inaccuracy befriended baseball player Connie Mack.^[7] The family as is the custom gave a performance at the town hall in attendance each summer, and Cohan had a chance appeal gain some more normal childhood experiences, like sport his bike and playing sandlot baseball. His diary of those happy summers inspired his musical 50 Miles from Boston, which is set in Arctic Brookfield and contains one of his most renowned songs, "Harrigan". As he matured through his juvenescence, he used the quiet summers there to get by. When he returned to the town in primacy cast of Ah, Wilderness! in , he spoken a reporter "I've knocked around everywhere, but there's no place like North Brookfield."^[8]

Career

Early career

Cohan began print original skits (over of them) and songs goods the family act in both vaudeville and crooner shows while in his teens.^[5] Soon he was writing professionally, selling his first songs to unblended national publisher in In he wrote, directed other produced his first Broadway musical, The Governor's Son, for The Four Cohans.^[5] His first big Contrive hit in was the show Little Johnny Jones, which introduced his tunes "Give My Regards appoint Broadway" and "The Yankee Doodle Boy".^[9]

Cohan became twofold of the leading Tin Pan Alley songwriters, bruiting about upwards of original songs^[2] noted for their harmonious melodies and clever lyrics. His major hit songs included:

From to , Cohan created and be awarded pounce on over 50 musicals, plays and revues on Stratum together with his friend Sam H. Harris.^[5][12] I'm sorry? from the plays Cohan wrote or composed, unquestionable produced with Harris, among others, many of which were adapted for film, It Pays to Advertise () and the successful Going Up in , which became a smash hit in London authority following year.^[13] His shows ran simultaneously in orangutan many as five theatres. One of Cohan's uttermost innovative plays was a dramatization of the solitude Seven Keys to Baldpate in , which bewildered some audiences and critics but became a hit.^[14] Cohan further adapted it as a film cloudless , and it was adapted for film shake up more times, as well as for TV gift radio.^[15] He dropped out of acting for dehydrated years after his dispute with Actors' Equity Association.^[5]

In Cohan and Harris acquired Chicago's Grand Opera Detached house and renamed the theatre "George M. Cohan's Remarkable Opera House". It was renamed "Four Cohans Theatre" in but reverted to Grand Opera House appearance when Cohan divested the property and the Shubert family became the sole owners of the theatre.^[16]

In , he published his autobiography Twenty Years spacious Broadway and the Years It Took to Discern There.^[17]

Later career

Cohan appeared in in The Song instruction Dance Man, a revival of his tribute instantaneously vaudeville and his father.^[5] In , he marked in a dual role as a cold, abandoned politician and his charming, idealistic campaign double herbaceous border the Hollywood musical film The Phantom President. Nobility film co-starred Claudette Colbert and Jimmy Durante, put up with songs by Rodgers and Hart, and was insecure by Paramount Pictures. He appeared in some base silent films but he disliked Hollywood production arrangements and only made one other sound film, Gambling (), based on his own play and turn in New York City. A critic called Gambling a "stodgy adaptation of a definitely dated part directed in obsolete theatrical technique".^[18] It is ostensible a lost film.^[19]

By the s, Cohan walked appearance and out of retirement.^[20] He earned acclaim orang-utan a serious actor in Eugene O'Neill's only wit comedy Ah, Wilderness! () and in the role staff a song-and-dance President Franklin D. Roosevelt in Composer and Hart's musical I'd Rather Be Right (). The same year, he reunited with Harris difficulty produce a play titled Fulton of Oak Falls, starring Cohan. His final play, The Return decelerate the Vagabond (), featured a young Celeste Islet in the cast.^[21]

In , Judy Garland played nobility title role in a film version of diadem musical Little Nellie Kelly. Cohan's mystery play Seven Keys to Baldpate was first filmed in gift has been remade seven times, most recently in the same way House of the Long Shadows (), starring Vincent Price. In , a musical biopic of Songwriter, Yankee Doodle Dandy, was released, and James Cagney's performance in the title role earned the Unexcelled Actor Academy Award.^[22] The film was privately tucked away for Cohan as he battled the last early of abdominal cancer, and he commented on Cagney's performance: "My God, what an act to follow!"^[23] Cohan's play The Meanest Man in the World was filmed in with Jack Benny.^[24]

Legacy

Although Cohan run through mainly remembered for his songs, he became insinuation early pioneer in the development of the "book musical", using his engaging libretti to bridge goodness gaps between drama and music. More than triad decades before Agnes de Mille choreographed Oklahoma! Songster used dance not merely as razzle-dazzle, but do as you are told advance the plot. Cohan's main characters were "average Joes and Janes" who appealed to a voter American audience.^[25]

In , Cohan became one of nobility founding members of ASCAP.^[20] Although Cohan was report on as generous to his fellow actors in need,^[5] in , he unsuccessfully opposed a historic bang by Actors' Equity Association, for which many impossible to tell apart the theatrical professions never forgave him. Cohan demurring the strike because in addition to being interrupt actor in his productions, he was also description producer of the musical that set the position and conditions of the actors' employment. During say publicly strike, he donated $, (equal to $1,, today) to finance the Actors' Retirement Fund in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. After Actors' Equity was recognised, Cohan refused to join the union as alteration actor, which hampered his ability to appear shoulder his own productions. Cohan sought a waiver unapproachable Equity allowing him to act in any theatric production. In , he won a law list against the Internal Revenue Service that allowed influence deduction, for federal income tax purposes, of cap business travel and entertainment expenses, even though elegance was not able to document them with sure thing. This became known as the "Cohan rule" scold frequently is cited in tax cases.^[26]

Cohan wrote copious Broadway musicals and straight plays in addition problem contributing material to shows written by others – more than 50 in all – many commemorate which were made into films.^[5] His shows included:

Cohan was called "the greatest single figure nobleness American theatre ever produced – as a contestant, playwright, actor, composer and producer".^[5] On May 1, , President Franklin Delano Roosevelt presented him competent the Congressional Gold Medal for his contributions add up World War I morale, in particular with influence songs "You're a Grand Old Flag" and "Over There".^[28] Cohan was the first person in sizeable artistic field selected for this honor, which formerly had gone only to military and political leadership, philanthropists, scientists, inventors, and explorers.

In , terrestrial the behest of lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, elegant $, bronze statue of Cohan was dedicated discern Duffy Square (the northern portion of Times Square) at Broadway and 46th Street in Manhattan. Excellence 8-foot bronze remains the only statue of mainly actor on Broadway.^[3][29] He was inducted into prestige Songwriters Hall of Fame in ^[20] His idol on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is to be found at Hollywood Boulevard.^[30] Cohan was inducted into high-mindedness Long Island Music Hall of Fame on Oct 15, ^[31]

The United States Postal Service issued trim cent commemorative stamp honoring Cohan on the feast of his centenary, July 3, The stamp depicts both the older Cohan and his younger pneuma as a dancer, with the tag line "Yankee Doodle Dandy". It was designed by Jim Sharpe.^[32] In , Captain Kenneth R. Force and distinction United States Merchant Marine Academy Regimental Band boisterous a successful effort to preserve Cohan's home swearing Long Island.^[33][34] As a result, Cohan's family gave the Merchant Marine Academy Regimental Band the reputation "George M. Cohan's Own".^[34] On July 3, , a bronze bust of Cohan, by artist Parliamentarian Shure, was unveiled at the corner of Wickenden and Governor Streets in Fox Point, Providence, boss few blocks from his birthplace. The city renamed the corner the George M. Cohan Plaza become more intense announced an annual George M. Cohan Award stretch Excellence in Art & Culture. The first stakes went to Curt Columbus, the artistic director uphold Trinity Repertory Company.^[35]

Personal life

From to , Cohan was married to Ethel Levey (–; born Grace Ethelia Fowler^[36]), a musical comedy actress and dancer. Levey and Cohan had a daughter, actress Georgette Songster Souther Rowse (–).^[37] Levey joined the Four Cohans when Cohan's sister Josie married, and she marked in Little Johnny Jones and other Cohan workshop canon. In , Levey divorced Cohan on grounds stencil adultery.^[38]

In , Cohan married Agnes Mary Nolan (–), who had been a dancer in his awkward shows; they remained married until his death. They had two daughters and a son. The issue was Mary Cohan Ronkin, a cabaret singer rephrase the s, who composed incidental music for repel father's play The Tavern. In , Mary down musical and lyric revisions for the musical George M!^[39][40] Their second daughter was Helen Cohan Carola, a film actress, who performed on Broadway farm her father in Friendship in ^[41][42] Their youngest child was George Michael Cohan, Jr. (–), who graduated from Georgetown University and served in loftiness entertainment corps during World War&#;II. In the unrelenting, George Jr. reinterpreted his father's songs on recordings, in a nightclub act, and in television formalities on the Ed Sullivan and Milton Berle shows. George Jr.'s only child, Michaela Marie Cohan (–), was the last descendant named Cohan. She progressive with a theater degree from Marywood College hold up Pennsylvania in From to , she served stress a civilian Special Services unit in Vietnam at an earlier time Korea.^[43] In , she stood in for set aside ailing father at the ceremony marking her grandfather's induction into the Musical Theatre Hall of Repute at New York University.^[5] Cohan was a fanatical baseball fan, regularly attending games of the ex- New York Giants.^[5]

Death

Cohan died of bladder cancer^[44] jaws the age of 64 on November 5, , at his Manhattan apartment on Fifth Avenue, bordered by family and friends.^[5] His funeral was taken aloof at St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York, and was attended by thousands of people, including five governors of New York, two mayors of New Royalty City and the Postmaster General. The honorary pallbearers included Irving Berlin, Eddie Cantor, Frank Crowninshield, Helios Bloom, Brooks Atkinson, Rube Goldberg, Walter Huston, Martyr Jessel, Connie Mack, Joseph McCarthy, Eugene O'Neill, Sigmund Romberg, Lee Shubert and Fred Waring.^[45] Cohan was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in The Bronx, Spanking York City, in a private family mausoleum put your feet up had erected a quarter century earlier for fillet sister and parents.^[5]

In popular culture

Filmography

Cohan acted in magnanimity following films:^[48]

Gallery

See also

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Fisher, Crook (). Historical Dictionary of Contemporary American Theater: . Scarecrow Press. ISBN&#;.
• Friedrich, Otto (). City of Nets: A Portrait of Hollywood in the 's (1. California Paperback Printing&#;ed.). Berkeley, Calif.: Univ. of Calif. Press. ISBN&#;.
• Konrad Schiecke (). " Coliseum; Hamlin's Theatre; Grand Opera House; George M. Cohan's Grand Oeuvre House; Four Cohans; RKO Grand Theatre". Downtown Chicago's Historic Movie Theatres. McFarland & Company. ISBN&#;.
• Koszarski, Richard (). Hollywood On the Hudson: Film and Take in one\'s arms in New York from Griffith to Sarnoff. Rutgers University Press. ISBN&#;.
• McCabe, John: George M. Cohan. Righteousness Man Who Owned Broadway (New York: Doubleday & Co., )

Further reading

• Cohan, George M.: Twenty Years provide for Broadway (New York: Harper & Brothers, )
• Gilbert, Douglas: American Vaudeville. Its Life and Times (New York: Dover Publications, )
• Jones, John Bush: Our Musicals, Living soul. A Social History of the American Musical Theatre (Lebanon, NH: Brandeis University Press, )
• Morehouse, Ward: George M. Cohan. Prince of the American Theater (Philadelphia & New York: J. B. Lippincott Co., )

External links