Clinton "Dusty" Fletcher (July 8, 1900 – March 15, 1954) was an African-American

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

performer, who was best known for the comedy routine which became a hit record in 1947, "

Open the Door, Richard "Open the Door, Richard" is a song first recorded by the saxophonist Jack McVea for Black & White Records at the suggestion of A&R man Ralph Bass. In 1947, it was the number one song on ''Billboards "Honor Roll of Hits" and became a runaway po ...

Routine "Open the Door, Richard!"

Born in El Dorado, Arkansas, Fletcher refined his act over at least twenty years in vaudeville before the 1940s. He would come on stage dressed in rags, acting drunk, muttering and complaining about trying to find his way home. He would then bring out a ladder, and try to set it up so he could get in through a window. Every so often he would crash sprawling on the floor while shouting "Open the Door, Richard!".

Revue ''Fast and Furious''

In August and September 1931 Clinton (Dusty) Fletcher was one of 90 performers in the all Negro revue, ''Fast and Furious'', produced by Forbes Randolph. The revue was performed at the Brantd's Boulevard Theater and later at the New York Theater on Broadway. Fletcher performed in at least five numbers, Football Game, in which he played the Captain of Lincoln's Team; Ham What Am, in which he played Dusty; Macbeth, in which he played MacDuff; The Silent Bootlegger, in which he played the bootlegger; and in Clinton Dusty Fletcher in which he played himself in his comedy act.

Song and recording "Open the Door, Richard!"

In 1946, bandleader

Jack McVea John Vivian McVea (November 5, 1914 – December 27, 2000) was an American swing, blues, and rhythm and blues woodwind player and bandleader. He played clarinet and tenor and baritone saxophone. Career Born in Los Angeles, California, his fat ...

fashioned Fletcher's routine into the lyrics of a song, which he recorded with his band. McVea's record became a big hit, and Fletcher, by now semi-retired, was found living in South Carolina by Herb Abramson of

National Records National Records was a record label that was started in New York City by Albert Green in 1945 and lasted until early 1951. Big Joe Turner was signed at the beginning and remained until 1947. Billy Eckstine was also a big seller for the label as w ...

. He made his own recording of the song, using McVea's arrangement, which made number 3 on US '' Billboard'' R&B chart. The song was also

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

by many others including

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

, Louis Jordan, and

Pigmeat Markham Dewey "Pigmeat" Markham (April 18, 1904 – December 13, 1981) was an American entertainer. Though best known as a comedian, Markham was also a singer, dancer, and actor. His nickname came from a stage routine, in which he declared himself to be ...

. National Records began a lawsuit to claim Fletcher's royalties as the originator of the routine which led to McVea's hit. However, a blackface vaudeville comedian, John "Spider Bruce" Mason then claimed that Fletcher had originally stolen the routine from him in the 1920s. Eventually, McVea, Fletcher and Mason were all co-credited with writing McVea's version.Jim Dawson and Steve Propes, ''What Was The First Rock 'n' Roll Record'', 1992, The

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. ...

(NAACP) publicly attacked the song, particularly Fletcher's version, for making light of public drunkenness and playing on the stereotype of black men as shiftless and ignorant. Fletcher continued to perform the routine, particularly at the

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

in New York, until shortly before his death.

Other work

Fletcher is credited with originating the "Here come de Judge" line used on the television comedy show, ''

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians Da ...

''.

Family

Fletcher had one daughter Helen Fletcher with original

Cotton Club The Cotton Club was a New York City nightclub from 1923 to 1940. It was located on 142nd Street and Lenox Avenue (1923–1936), then briefly in the midtown Theater District (1936–1940).Elizabeth Winter"Cotton Club of Harlem (1923- )" Blac ...

dancer Sadie Mae Fletcher. He had two granddaughters Jacqueline and Amber.

Filmography

* '' Hi De Ho'' (1947) * ''

Boarding House Blues ''Boarding House Blues'' is a 1948 American race film directed by Josh Binney which featured the first starring film role by Moms Mabley. It was the penultimate feature film of All-American News, a company that made newsreels for black Americans. ...

'' (1948) * '' Killer Diller'' (1948)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fletcher, Dusty 1900 births 1954 deaths Vaudeville performers People from Des Moines, Iowa