Richard Ward "Dick" Pelham (February 13, 1815 – October 1876), born Richard Ward Pell, was an American

blackface Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used predominantly by non-Black people to portray a caricature of a Black person. In the United States, the practice became common during the 19th century and contributed to the spread of racial stereo ...

performer. He was born in New York City. Pelham regularly did blackface acts in the early 1840s both solo and as part of a duo or trio. His early performances were in the mould of

Thomas D. Rice Thomas Dartmouth Rice (May 20, 1808 – September 19, 1860) was an American performer and playwright who performed in blackface and used African American vernacular speech, song and dance to become one of the most popular minstrel show ente ...

; he did song-and-dance versions of "

Gumbo Chaff "Gumbo Chaff", also spelled "Gombo Chaff", is an American song, first performed in the early 1830s. It was part of the repertoire of early blackface performers, including Thomas D. Rice and George Washington Dixon. The title character was one ...

" and " Oh Pshaw!", among others. His brother, Gilbert Pelham, paired with him for part of his early career. The song " Massa Is a Stingy Man" became their trademark tune. Pelham was also a renowned dancer; by 1845, he was ranked so highly that William Henry Lane did an impression of him. In 1843, Pelham became one of the founding members of the

Virginia Minstrels The Virginia Minstrels or Virginia Serenaders was a group of 19th-century American entertainers who helped invent the entertainment form known as the minstrel show. Led by Dan Emmett, the original lineup consisted of Emmett, Billy Whitlock, ...

, the first group to present a full

minstrel show The minstrel show, also called minstrelsy, was an American form of racist theatrical entertainment developed in the early 19th century. Each show consisted of comic skits, variety acts, dancing, and music performances that depicted people spe ...

during a performance at the New York

Bowery Amphitheatre The Bowery Amphitheatre was a building in the Bowery neighborhood of New York City. It was located at 37 and 39 Bowery, across the street from the Bowery Theatre. Under a number of different names and managers, the structure served as a circus, m ...

on February 6, 1843. Through April 1843, he played

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though ...

as the Virginia Minstrels toured New York City and Boston. Pelham's style was something new for the time; in addition to traditional techniques, he played it like a drum. Pelham and

Frank Brower Francis Marion Brower (November 20, 1823 – June 4, 1874) was an American blackface performer active in the mid-19th century. Brower began performing blackface song-and-dance acts in circuses and variety shows when he was 13. He eventually intr ...

, who played the

bones A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, an ...

, were the first minstrel endmen, and greatly influenced the stereotype. Pelham's stage demeanor involved "looks and movements comic beyond conception. He seemed animated by a savage energy; and he handling of his instrument. . . nearly wrung him off his seat. His white eyes rolled in a curious frenzy . . . and his hiccupping chuckles were unsurpassable." Pelham's signature non-musical bit was his "A Brief Battering at the Blues", a comic monologue and prototypical stump speech. On April 21, 1843, when the group broke up. Pelham decided to settle in England. He briefly helped reform the Virginia Minstrels in the spring of 1844 when he met up with Brower and

Joel Sweeney Joel Walker Sweeney (1810 – October 29, 1860), also known as Joe Sweeney, was an American musician and early blackface minstrel performer. He is known for popularizing the playing of the banjo and has often been credited with advancing the ...

in Liverpool. The trio convinced

Dan Emmett Daniel Decatur Emmett (October 29, 1815June 28, 1904) was an American songwriter, entertainer, and founder of the first troupe of the blackface minstrel tradition, the Virginia Minstrels. He is most remembered as the composer of the song "Dixie ...

to rejoin, and the new ensemble played the

Theatre Royal, Dublin Over the centuries, there have been five theatres in Dublin called the Theatre Royal. In the history of the theatre in Great Britain and Ireland, the designation "Theatre Royal", or "Royal Theatre", once meant that a theatre had been granted a ...

, from April 24 to May 7 . They toured through June, then broke up again. Over the next few decades, Pelham continued to perform, only now with British minstrel troupes.

Pablo Fanque Pablo Fanque (born William Darby; 30 March 1810 – 4 May 1871) was a British equestrian performer and circus proprietor, becoming the first recorded Black circus owner in Britain. His circus was popular in Victorian Britain for 30 years, a p ...

, one of Victorian England's most celebrated circus proprietors (later immortalized in

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

song "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!"), helped popularize a Pelham sketch in England through performances at his circus in the 1860s. One of the most popular routines at Pablo's circus at

Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish people, Flemish weavers settled in the area i ...

in 1868 was Pelham's "Wha's Your Ticket?" in which an actor portrays "the character of a Negro engaged to collect tickets at a bal masque with express instructions to allow no one to pass without, but who by his blundering allows all to enter without that requisite." The sketch was described in 1859 as a "new afterpiece expressly imported from

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

by permission of R.W. Pelham Esq." The sketch was still being performed in England as a "laughable American sketch" as late as 1888. The huge success of a recent British tour by the African-American

Master Juba Master Juba (ca. 1825 – ca. 1852 or 1853) was an African-American dancer active in the 1840s. He was one of the first black performers in the United States to play onstage for white audiences and the only one of the era to tour with a white mi ...

may have adversely affected Pelham's career there as his performance suffered in comparison. His final performance was on August 19, 1856. Richard Pelham eventually married an English actress. He died in or near LiverpoolBirths, Marriages and Deaths (United Kingdom) Oct-Dec 1876: PELHAM, Richard Ward...60...Liverpool: ref 8b. 97 in October 1876.

References

;Notes ;Sources * Lawrence, Vera Brodsky (1988). ''Strong on Music: The New York Music Scene in the Days of George Templeton Strong''. Volume I: Resonances, 1839 – 1849. The University of Chicago Press. * Nathan, Hans (1962). ''Dan Emmett and the Rise of Early Negro Minstrelsy''. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. * Stark, Seymour (2001). ''Men in Blackface: True Stories of the Minstrel Show''. Xilibris Corporation. * Wilmeth, Don B., and Miller, Tice L., eds. (1996). ''Cambridge Guide to American Theatre''. New York: Cambridge University Press. {{DEFAULTSORT:Pelham, Richard American male dancers American male comedians 19th-century American male singers American male stage actors Blackface minstrel performers Blackface minstrel songwriters Male actors from New York City 1815 births 1876 deaths American percussionists 19th-century American male actors Comedians from New York City