Quentin Tod
Encyclopedia
Quentin Tod sometimes credited as Quentin Todd, was a British actor
, dance
r, choreographer
, television
pioneer
, and a devotee of Meher Baba
.
, England
, son of Alexander Maxwell Tod, an Englishman, and his American wife Belle Perkins Tod, of Pittsfield, Massachusetts
. Tod made his acting debut in the 1911 Broadway
musical
comedy, Marriage a la Carte
. His first credited performance in film was in the 1930 Monty Banks
comedy The New Waiter, in which Tod played himself. He was the sole credited dancer in the first British televised version of A Midsummer Night's Dream
in 1937 and was ballet choreographer on the 1937 British television pantomime performance of Dick Whittington and His Cat
. The following year he devised Have You Brought Your Music? for BBC Television
. The show featured music played by the now defunct BBC Television Orchestra
.
Quentin Tod met the Indian spiritual master Meher Baba
in London at the home of Helena Davy in 1931 and became a devoted follower for the remainder of his life. He spent time in Meher Baba's ashram in India near Ahmednagar and also traveled with him to The United States in 1932.
Tod died in 1947 of malnutrition
in St. Stephen's Hospital in Chelsea, London
at the age of 62.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
r, choreographer
Choreography
Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. Choreography may also refer to the design itself, which is sometimes expressed by means of dance notation. The word choreography literally means "dance-writing" from the Greek words "χορεία" ...
, television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
pioneer
Innovator
An innovator in a general sense, is a person or an organization who is one of the first to introduce into reality something better than before. That often opens up a new area for others and achieves an innovation.-History:...
, and a devotee of Meher Baba
Meher Baba
Meher Baba , , born Merwan Sheriar Irani, was an Indian mystic and spiritual master who declared publicly in 1954 that he was the Avatar of the age....
.
Biography
Quentin Tod was born in KentKent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, son of Alexander Maxwell Tod, an Englishman, and his American wife Belle Perkins Tod, of Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Its area code is 413. Its ZIP code is 01201...
. Tod made his acting debut in the 1911 Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
comedy, Marriage a la Carte
Marriage a la Carte
Marriage a la Carte was a three-act Broadway musical comedy composed and written by C. M. S. McClellan and scored by Ivan Caryll.The play was staged by Austen Hurgon with musical direction provided by J. Sebastian Hiller and Carl H. Engel...
. His first credited performance in film was in the 1930 Monty Banks
Monty Banks
Montague Banks was a comedian and film director. In the 1920s, he worked in Hollywood, starring in many silent short comedies and in the feature-length action thriller Play Safe...
comedy The New Waiter, in which Tod played himself. He was the sole credited dancer in the first British televised version of A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
in 1937 and was ballet choreographer on the 1937 British television pantomime performance of Dick Whittington and His Cat
Dick Whittington and His Cat
Dick Whittington and His Cat is an English folk tale that has often been used as the basis for stage pantomimes and other adaptations. It tells of a poor boy in the 14th century who becomes a wealthy merchant and eventually the Lord Mayor of London because of the ratting abilities of his cat...
. The following year he devised Have You Brought Your Music? for BBC Television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
. The show featured music played by the now defunct BBC Television Orchestra
BBC Television Orchestra
The BBC Television Orchestra was a broadcast orchestra founded in 1936 by violinist and composer Hyam Greenbaum and led by Boris Pecker. Hyam Greenbaum's wife Sidonie Goossens was the first solo harpist with the Orchestra in that year...
.
Quentin Tod met the Indian spiritual master Meher Baba
Meher Baba
Meher Baba , , born Merwan Sheriar Irani, was an Indian mystic and spiritual master who declared publicly in 1954 that he was the Avatar of the age....
in London at the home of Helena Davy in 1931 and became a devoted follower for the remainder of his life. He spent time in Meher Baba's ashram in India near Ahmednagar and also traveled with him to The United States in 1932.
Tod died in 1947 of malnutrition
Malnutrition
Malnutrition is the condition that results from taking an unbalanced diet in which certain nutrients are lacking, in excess , or in the wrong proportions....
in St. Stephen's Hospital in Chelsea, London
Chelsea, London
Chelsea is an area of West London, England, bounded to the south by the River Thames, where its frontage runs from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Its eastern boundary was once defined by the River Westbourne, which is now in a pipe above...
at the age of 62.