Harry Rickards
Encyclopedia
Harry Rickards born Henry Benjamin Leete, was an English-born comedian and theatre owner, active in Australia
.
, London
, the son of Benjamin Leete, a printer and later chief engineer of the Egyptian railways. Harry was also intended to be an engineer. He had been forbidden during his apprenticeship to attend theatres by his Puritan
parents. He married Caroline Hayden on 10 March 1862 at Bromley
.
on 28 November 1871. He made his first appearance there at the St George's hall, Melbourne
, on 9 December 1871. He then went to Sydney
where he also appeared with success. Returning to England he was a successful "lion comique" at the music halls and a good comedian in pantomime, especially in the provinces. He again visited Australia in 1885, and for some years toured Australia with a vaudeville company with much success. About 1893 he bought the Garrick theatre, Sydney and renamed it the Tivoli; he built up the Tivoli circuit
, taking control of the Opera House, Melbourne, and was also lessee of theatres in other state capital cities. Every year he visited England, and during the next 18 years he engaged for the Australian variety stage great artists like Harry Houdini
, Marie Lloyd
, Peggy Pryde, Paul Cinquevalli
, Little Tich
and a host of others of great talent which he paid well.
, Sydney. He was married twice and left a widow and two daughters. He was an excellent singer of such songs as "Knocked 'em in the Old Kent Road" and "His Lordship Winked at the Counsel", and was a first-rate business man whose hobby was his work. For around 25 years his name was a household word in Australia, and at the time of his death his business as a single-handed manager and proprietor was possibly the largest in the world. His theatrical interests were acquired by entrepreneur Hugh D. McIntosh
.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Early life
Rickards was born in CroydonCroydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, the son of Benjamin Leete, a printer and later chief engineer of the Egyptian railways. Harry was also intended to be an engineer. He had been forbidden during his apprenticeship to attend theatres by his Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
parents. He married Caroline Hayden on 10 March 1862 at Bromley
Bromley
Bromley is a large suburban town in south east London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Bromley. It was historically a market town, and prior to 1963 was in the county of Kent and formed the administrative centre of the Municipal Borough of Bromley...
.
Theatrical career
Rickards, however, developed a talent for comic singing — he was engaged as a vocalist at a music hall, where he appeared under the name of "Harry Rickards". He established a reputation as a singer of comic songs, and the trvelled to Australia, reaching MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
on 28 November 1871. He made his first appearance there at the St George's hall, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, on 9 December 1871. He then went to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
where he also appeared with success. Returning to England he was a successful "lion comique" at the music halls and a good comedian in pantomime, especially in the provinces. He again visited Australia in 1885, and for some years toured Australia with a vaudeville company with much success. About 1893 he bought the Garrick theatre, Sydney and renamed it the Tivoli; he built up the Tivoli circuit
Tivoli circuit
The Tivoli Circuit was a successful and popular Australian entertainment circuit which flourished from 1893 and the 1950s. The circuit suffered a catastrophic decline in popularity after the introduction of television in Australia in 1956, and the last Tivoli show was staged in 1966.-History:The...
, taking control of the Opera House, Melbourne, and was also lessee of theatres in other state capital cities. Every year he visited England, and during the next 18 years he engaged for the Australian variety stage great artists like Harry Houdini
Harry Houdini
Harry Houdini was a Hungarian-born American magician and escapologist, stunt performer, actor and film producer noted for his sensational escape acts...
, Marie Lloyd
Marie Lloyd
Matilda Alice Victoria Wood was an English music hall singer, best known as Marie Lloyd. Her ability to add lewdness to the most innocent of lyrics led to frequent clashes with the guardians of morality...
, Peggy Pryde, Paul Cinquevalli
Paul Cinquevalli
Paul Cinquevalli was a famous juggler from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. His birth name is given by The Cambridge Guide to Theatre as Paul Kestner, but other sources give it as Paul Braun-Lehmann and Emile Otto Lehmann-Braun.-Early life:Cinquevalli was born in Lissa in what is...
, Little Tich
Little Tich
Harry Relph, , known on the stage as "Little Tich", was an English music hall comedian. He was noted for the characters of The Spanish Señora, The Gendarme and The Tax Collector, but his most popular routine was his Big Boot dance, which involved a pair of 28-inch boots, commonly called "slapshoes"...
and a host of others of great talent which he paid well.
Death and legacy
Rickards died in England on 13 October 1911 and was later buried in Waverley CemeteryWaverley Cemetery
The Waverley Cemetery opened in 1877 and is a cemetery located on top of the cliffs at Bronte in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. It is noted for its largely intact Victorian and Edwardian monuments. The cemetery contains the graves of many significant Australians including the poet Henry Lawson and...
, Sydney. He was married twice and left a widow and two daughters. He was an excellent singer of such songs as "Knocked 'em in the Old Kent Road" and "His Lordship Winked at the Counsel", and was a first-rate business man whose hobby was his work. For around 25 years his name was a household word in Australia, and at the time of his death his business as a single-handed manager and proprietor was possibly the largest in the world. His theatrical interests were acquired by entrepreneur Hugh D. McIntosh
Hugh D. McIntosh
Hugh Donald "Huge Deal" McIntosh was an Australian show-business entrepreneur born to parents of Scottish and Irish origin and modest means in Sydney's Surry Hills, then a ramshackle suburb with a reputation for crime and vice among the largely Irish immigrant population. His policeman father Hugh...
.