Donald Ross (20 September 1902 – 6 February 1980) was an English music hall performer, theatre producer and promoter.
Biography
He was born in
Wigston
Wigston, or Wigston Magna, is a town in Leicestershire, England, just south of Leicester on the A5199. It had a population of 32,321 in 2011.
Geography
Wigston is south of the city of Leicester, at the centre of Leicestershire and the East ...
, Leicestershire, and in his late teens joined Papa Cragg's Gentlemen Acrobats, a travelling troupe. He learned to dance, and formed a duo, Ross & Dean, in the 1920s. In 1926, he appeared as leading man in the musical revue ''Dear Louise'', opposite music hall star
Gertie Gitana
Gertie Gitana (born Gertrude Mary Astbury; 27 December 1887 – 5 January 1957) was an English music hall entertainer.
Biography
She was born in Shirley Street, Longport, Staffordshire, Longport, Stoke-on-Trent. Stephen Dixon, "Don Ross and ‘Thanks for the Memory’", ''Voices of Variety'', 2013 Retrieved 2 December 2020
Ross became Gitana's manager, and organised a touring show, ''George, Gertie and Ted'', with G. H. Elliott and Ted Ray. After Gitana's retirement in 1938 he started promoting his own shows, some described as "frisky frolics", which featured burlesque-style female dancers in scanty costumes. These included ''Wine, Women and Song'', ''Eve Started It!'', ''French Frolics'', ''Naughty Girls'', and ''Here Come the Girls''. Hull History Centre: Records relating to Tivoli Theatre /ref>
He also put together a very successful theatre show of retired or semi-retired music hall stars in the nostalgic 1948 revue ''Thanks for the Memory'', "a fast-moving production featuring many younger supporting artists". The featured music hall stars included such performers as Gertie Gitana, G. H. Elliott,
Nellie Wallace
Nellie Wallace (18 March 1870 – 24 November 1948) was a British music hall star, actress, comedienne, dancer and songwriter who became one of the most famous and best loved music hall performers. She became known as "The Essence of Eccen ...
Ella Shields
Ella Shields (27 September 1879 – 5 August 1952) was a music hall singer and male-impersonator. Her famous signature song, " Burlington Bertie from Bow", a parody of Vesta Tilley's " Burlington Bertie", written by her manager and first husba ...
, and
Talbot O'Farrell
Talbot O'Farrell (born William Parrot; 27 July 1878 – 2 September 1952) was an English music hall singer (a tenor, whose repertoire included both sentimental and comic songs) and film actor.
Biography
He was born in the north of England ...
. Marilyn Shalks, "1948 sees the Palace Theatre say ‘Thanks for the memory!’", ''Manchester Theatre History'', 28 October 2020 Retrieved 2 December 2020 There were lengthy quarrels between some of the performers over who should have top billing and the best dressing room, as well as their fees, but despite the problems the show proved to be a huge success.Richard Anthony Baker, ''Old Time Variety: an illustrated history'', Pen & Sword, 2011, , pp.251-254 Highlights from the show featured in the 1948 Royal Variety Performance,Raymond Mander and Joe Mitchenson, ''British Music Hall: A story in pictures'', Studio Vista, 1965, p.194 and it ran at Blackpool in 1949 and 1950. The closing performance of the show, in December 1950, was recorded by
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering ...
and later made available on CD.
After Gertie Gitana's death in 1957, Ross helped establish the British Music Hall Society in 1963, and was its president from its foundation until 1979. In 1966, he returned from retirement to put on shows in Great Yarmouth, and in 1968, he produced the cabaret and acted as master of ceremonies on the inaugural voyage of the new
Cunard
Cunard () is a British shipping and cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its three ships have been registered in Hamilton, Berm ...
Hove
Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th c ...