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Alan Keith, OBE (born Alexander Kossoff; 19 October 1908 – 17 March 2003) was a British actor,
disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...
and radio presenter, noted for being the longest-serving and eldest presenter on British radio by the time of his death aged 94.


Background

Alexander "Alec" Kossoff was born in
Hackney, London Hackney is a district in East London, England, forming around two-thirds of the area of the modern London Borough of Hackney, to which it gives its name. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross and includes part of the Queen E ...
, the eldest of three children of
Russian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest pop ...
parents. He was educated at
Dame Alice Owen's School Dame Alice Owen's School (also known as Dame Alice Owen's or Owen's; referred to by the acronym DAOS) is an 11–18 mixed, partially selective secondary school and sixth form with academy status in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, England. It i ...
in
Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...
, and in 1926 he won a scholarship to the
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sen ...
, where he anglicised his name to Alan Keith. He graduated in 1928 with the silver medal, and spent the next eight years on the West End and
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
stage.


Career

By 1935, Alan Keith was already an established voice on
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
radio, appearing in dozens of radio plays as a member of the drama stock company and spending three years as an interviewer for ''
In Town Tonight ''In Town Tonight'' is a BBC radio programme that was broadcast on Saturday evening from 1933 to 1960 (except for a period of 26 weeks in 1937 when ''The BBC presents the ABC'' was broadcast instead). It was an early example of a chat show, ...
''. He also acted in films, appearing in ''
Dangerous Moonlight ''Dangerous Moonlight'' (US: ''Suicide Squadron'') is a 1941 British film, directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Anton Walbrook. Among the costumes, the gowns were designed by Cecil Beaton. The film is best known for its score written by ...
'' (1941), ''
The World Owes Me a Living ''The World Owes Me a Living'' is a 1945 British Second World War drama film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring David Farrar and Judy Campbell. The film is based on a novel by John Llewellyn Rhys, a young author who was killed in action in 1 ...
'' (1945), ''
The Long Knife ''The Long Knife'' is a 1958 British crime film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Joan Rice, Sheldon Lawrence and Victor Brooks. The screenplay concerns a young nurse who becomes drawn into criminal activities. Cast * Joan Rice as Jill ...
'' (1958) and ''
Yesterday's Enemy ''Yesterday's Enemy'' is a 1959 Hammer Films British war film in MegaScope directed by Val Guest and starring Stanley Baker, Guy Rolfe, Leo McKern and Gordon Jackson set in the Burma Campaign during World War II. It is based on a 1958 BBC t ...
'' (1959). In pre-war
television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
broadcasts, he discovered he had a facility with
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
accents, and he continued to play American characters on television and radio through the 1940s and 1950s.


''Your Hundred Best Tunes''

Beginning in the early 1950s, he devoted time to devising and presenting music programmes for the BBC. In 1959, he devised ''
Your Hundred Best Tunes ''Your Hundred Best Tunes'' was a BBC radio music programme, always broadcast on Sunday evenings, which presented popular works which were mostly classical excerpts, choral works, opera and ballads. The hundred tunes which made up the playlist w ...
'', a programme of famous classical music, operetta and ballads. Keith chose the original 100 pieces himself. Many works were suggested by listeners and played in the programme. Thus a good many more than 100 works were played and the list evolved. Therefore, in subsequent years, a 100 Best were periodically voted for by listeners. Keith was awarded an OBE in 1991 for services to broadcasting. In early March 2003, at the age of 94, he recorded an announcement that he intended to retire from the programme after 44 years. However, he fell ill almost immediately afterward, and before long died; his final programme was broadcast 12 days after his death.


Family

Keith married Pearl Rebuck in 1941. Their son Sir
Brian Keith Brian Keith (born Robert Alba Keith, November 14, 1921 – June 24, 1997) was an American film, television, and stage actor who in his six-decade career gained recognition for his work in films such as the Disney family film '' The Parent T ...
was for some years from 2001 a judge in the
High Court of England and Wales The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (England ...
; their daughter
Linda Keith Linda Keith (born 1946) is a former British fashion model, best known for her work for ''Vogue'' magazine during the 1960s as well as her involvement in the rock music scene. Biography Linda Keith was born to Pearl Rebuck and Alan Keith, a Britis ...
was formerly a
bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...
socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...
, and is known for her associations with
the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
and
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
. Alan Keith was the elder brother of fellow actor
David Kossoff David Kossoff (24 November 1919 – 23 March 2005) was a British actor. In 1954 he won the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles for his appearance as Geza Szobek in '' The Young Lovers''. He played Alf Larkin in TV sit ...
,; ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' obituary, 19 March 2003 whose son
Paul Kossoff Paul Francis Kossoff (14 September 1950 – 19 March 1976) was an English guitarist, mainly known as the co-founder and guitarist for the rock band Free. He was ranked number 51 in ''Rolling Stone''s list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All ...
was guitarist with the rock band Free.


Partial filmography

*''
The Avenging Hand ''The Avenging Hand'' is a 1936 British crime film directed by Victor Hanbury and Frank Richardson and starring Noah Beery, Louis Borel and Kathleen Kelly.Wood p.93 It was made at Welwyn Studios as a quota quickie. Duncan Sutherland worked ...
'' (1936) - Receptionist (uncredited) *''
Dangerous Moonlight ''Dangerous Moonlight'' (US: ''Suicide Squadron'') is a 1941 British film, directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Anton Walbrook. Among the costumes, the gowns were designed by Cecil Beaton. The film is best known for its score written by ...
'' (1941) - (uncredited) *''
Give Us the Moon ''Give Us the Moon'' is a 1944 British comedy film directed and written by Val Guest and starring Vic Oliver, Margaret Lockwood and Peter Graves. Plot Made in 1943-44, the film is set in a future peacetime Britain, after the end of World War ...
'' (1944) - Raphael *''
The World Owes Me a Living ''The World Owes Me a Living'' is a 1945 British Second World War drama film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring David Farrar and Judy Campbell. The film is based on a novel by John Llewellyn Rhys, a young author who was killed in action in 1 ...
'' (1945) - Flying circus manager (uncredited) *''
The Long Knife ''The Long Knife'' is a 1958 British crime film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Joan Rice, Sheldon Lawrence and Victor Brooks. The screenplay concerns a young nurse who becomes drawn into criminal activities. Cast * Joan Rice as Jill ...
'' (1958) - Dr. Ian Probus *''
Yesterday's Enemy ''Yesterday's Enemy'' is a 1959 Hammer Films British war film in MegaScope directed by Val Guest and starring Stanley Baker, Guy Rolfe, Leo McKern and Gordon Jackson set in the Burma Campaign during World War II. It is based on a 1958 BBC t ...
'' (1959) - Bendish (uncredited) *''
80,000 Suspects ''80,000 Suspects'' is a 1963 British drama film directed by Val Guest and starring Claire Bloom, Richard Johnson, Yolande Donlan, and Cyril Cusack. It concerns an outbreak of smallpox in Bath, England. Plot Commencing on New Year's Eve in the ...
'' (1963) - Health Inspector Sanders (uncredited)


References


External links


Obituary
''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', 19 March 2003
Obituary
''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...
'', 19 March 2003 {{DEFAULTSORT:Keith, Alan 1908 births 2003 deaths English radio DJs English radio presenters BBC Radio 2 presenters Classical music radio presenters English radio people English Jews English people of Russian-Jewish descent People from the London Borough of Hackney People educated at Dame Alice Owen's School Officers of the Order of the British Empire Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art English male film actors English male radio actors English male stage actors English male television actors Kossoff family