Joseph Hart (entertainer)
Encyclopedia
Joseph Hart was an American vaudevillian entertainer, manager, producer and songwriter.
, Massachusetts on June 8, 1861, to James H. and Sarah E. Boudrow. His father, a Boston area junk dealer, was from Nova Scotia
, the son of French immigrants who had settled there in the early 1800s. Hart's mother was a native Massachusetts. Joseph Hart took to the stage at an early age playing boy's roles at Boston's Howard Athenaeum
, then managed by his uncle, Josh Hart.
Later he joined other minstrel troupes such as Simmons and Slocomb and Tony Pastors Minstrels before entering vaudeville to play Ko-Ko in W. S. Gilbert
and Arthur Sullivan
's Mikado
and as a performer in Princess Ida
.
In 1888 he joined forces with Frederick Hallen
as Hallen and Hart and toured for six years in Later On, a musical comedy written by himself and H. Grattan Donnelly. This success was followed by a two year run of The Idea
, written with Herbert Hall Winslow.
Hart next struck out on his own touring with his play The Gay Old Boy (1894–95), A Tarrytown Widow (1897–98), by C. T. Dazey, Foxy Grandpa
(an adaptation from the Carl E. Schultze
comic strip, 1901–05) and Girls Will Be Girls (1903–04), the latter two written in collaboration with Melville Baker
.
Hart's later years were primarily spent as a writer and producer of vaudeville shows.
Early life
Joseph Hart Boudrow was born in BostonBoston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts on June 8, 1861, to James H. and Sarah E. Boudrow. His father, a Boston area junk dealer, was from Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, the son of French immigrants who had settled there in the early 1800s. Hart's mother was a native Massachusetts. Joseph Hart took to the stage at an early age playing boy's roles at Boston's Howard Athenaeum
Howard Athenaeum
The Howard Athenæum in Boston, Massachusetts, was one of the most famous theaters in Boston history. Founded in 1845, it remained an institution of culture and learning for most of its years, finally closing in 1953.- History :...
, then managed by his uncle, Josh Hart.
Career
While still in his teens Hart began touring with I. W. Baird's Minstrel Show as an end man, the musician stationed at the end of a line of performers. Soon Hart became a crowd favorite for his banjo playing, singing and comedy routines that he often wrote himself.Later he joined other minstrel troupes such as Simmons and Slocomb and Tony Pastors Minstrels before entering vaudeville to play Ko-Ko in W. S. Gilbert
W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
and Arthur Sullivan
Arthur Sullivan
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
's Mikado
Mikado
Mikado may refer to:* Mikado, alternative term for Emperor of Japan* The Mikado, a 1885 comic opera by Gilbert and Sullivan- Foods :* Mikado, the European brand name for Pocky, a Japanese chocolate-covered breadstick...
and as a performer in Princess Ida
Princess Ida
Princess Ida; or, Castle Adamant is a comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It was their eighth operatic collaboration of fourteen. Princess Ida opened at the Savoy Theatre on January 5, 1884, for a run of 246 performances...
.
In 1888 he joined forces with Frederick Hallen
Frederick Hallen
Frederick Hallen was a Canadian-born vaudeville entertainer who found popularity on the American stage.Born in Montreal, Canada around 1859, Hallen began touring the vaudeville circuit as early as 1880 with his American wife Enid Hart, as Hallen and Hart...
as Hallen and Hart and toured for six years in Later On, a musical comedy written by himself and H. Grattan Donnelly. This success was followed by a two year run of The Idea
The Idea (musical)
The Idea is a musical with words and music by Joseph Hart.The original production, featuring Frederick Hallen and Joseph Hart, was produced by Hallen in Boston in the fall 1892...
, written with Herbert Hall Winslow.
Hart next struck out on his own touring with his play The Gay Old Boy (1894–95), A Tarrytown Widow (1897–98), by C. T. Dazey, Foxy Grandpa
Foxy Grandpa
Foxy Grandpa was a newspaper comic strip featuring an eponymous character, created by cartoonist Carl E. Schultze drawing under the name of “Bunny.”Foxy Grandpa made its first appearance on January 7, 1900...
(an adaptation from the Carl E. Schultze
Carl E. Schultze
Carl Edward Schultze was an American newspaper cartoonist best known for his popular Foxy Grandpa comic strip series. He drew the strip under the pseudonym Bunny, his childhood nickname...
comic strip, 1901–05) and Girls Will Be Girls (1903–04), the latter two written in collaboration with Melville Baker
Melville Baker
Melville Baker was an American screenwriter. He was born in Massachusetts and died of a heart attack in Nice, France at the age of 56.-Selected filmography:* The Swan * The Circus Kid...
.
Hart's later years were primarily spent as a writer and producer of vaudeville shows.