Danny Kaye(1911-1987)
- Actor
- Director
- Music Department
Danny Kaye left school at the age of 13 to work in the so-called
Borscht Belt of Jewish resorts in the Catskill Mountains. It was there
he learned the basics of show biz. From there he went through a series
of jobs in and out of the business. In 1939, he made his Broadway debut
in "Straw Hat Revue," but it was the stage production of the musical
"Lady in the Dark" in 1940 that brought him acclaim and notice from
agents. Also in 1940, he married
Sylvia Fine, who went on to manage his
career. She helped create the routines and gags, and wrote most of the
songs that he performed. Danny could sing and dance like many others,
but his specialty was reciting those tongue-twisting songs and
monologues.
Samuel Goldwyn had been trying to sign Kaye to a movie contract for two years before he eventually agreed. Goldwyn put him in a series of Technicolor musicals, starting with Un fou s'en va-t-en guerre (1944). His debut was successful, and he continued to make hit movies such as La vie secrète de Walter Mitty (1947) and Vive Monsieur le maire! (1949). In 1954, he appeared with Bing Crosby in Noël blanc (1954), which was based on the Irving Berlin song of the same name. In 1955, he made what many consider his best comedy, Le bouffon du roi (1955), with the brilliant Pellet with the Poison routine. Like all things, however, the lifespan of a comedian is limited and his movie career waned. In 1960, he began doing specials on television and this led to his own TV series, The Danny Kaye Show (1963), which ran from 1963 to 1967.
Some of his last roles were also his most memorable, such as an intense Holocaust survivor in Skokie le village de la colère (1981) and as a kind but goofy dentist in an episode of Cosby Show (1984). He also worked tirelessly for UNICEF.
Samuel Goldwyn had been trying to sign Kaye to a movie contract for two years before he eventually agreed. Goldwyn put him in a series of Technicolor musicals, starting with Un fou s'en va-t-en guerre (1944). His debut was successful, and he continued to make hit movies such as La vie secrète de Walter Mitty (1947) and Vive Monsieur le maire! (1949). In 1954, he appeared with Bing Crosby in Noël blanc (1954), which was based on the Irving Berlin song of the same name. In 1955, he made what many consider his best comedy, Le bouffon du roi (1955), with the brilliant Pellet with the Poison routine. Like all things, however, the lifespan of a comedian is limited and his movie career waned. In 1960, he began doing specials on television and this led to his own TV series, The Danny Kaye Show (1963), which ran from 1963 to 1967.
Some of his last roles were also his most memorable, such as an intense Holocaust survivor in Skokie le village de la colère (1981) and as a kind but goofy dentist in an episode of Cosby Show (1984). He also worked tirelessly for UNICEF.
