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Edward Harrigan (October 26, 1844June 6, 1911), sometimes called Ned Harrigan, was an
Irish-American
, image = Irish ancestry in the USA 2018; Where Irish eyes are Smiling.png
, image_caption = Irish Americans, % of population by state
, caption = Notable Irish Americans
, population =
36,115,472 (10.9%) alone ...
actor, singer, dancer, playwright, lyricist and theater producer who, together with
Tony Hart
Norman Antony Hart (15 October 1925 – 18 January 2009),Debrett's People of Today 2008, Debrett's Peerage Ltd, 2007. known professionally as Tony Hart, was an English artist best known for his work in educating children in art through his role ...
(as Harrigan & Hart), formed one of the most celebrated theatrical partnerships of the 19th century. His career began in
minstrelsy and
variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
but progressed to the production of multi-act plays full of singing, dancing and
physical comedy
Physical comedy is a form of comedy
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any ...
, making Harrigan one of the founding fathers of modern American
musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...
.
Early years
Harrigan was born at
Corlear's Hook
The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets.
Traditionally an im ...
in Lower Manhattan, New York City. He was one of 13 children, only four of whom lived past infancy. Their father was a Protestant from Newfoundland, and their mother was described as "a Protestant Yankee".
[Cullen]
p. 484
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After Harrigan's parents divorced when he was 18, he worked at caulk
Caulk or, less frequently, caulking is a material used to seal joints or seams against leakage in various structures and piping.
The oldest form of caulk consisted of fibrous materials driven into the wedge-shaped seams between boards on w ...
ing ships, and his work eventually took him to San Francisco. As a pastime, he wrote new lyrics to existing melodies, and the result found popularity with his fellow workers.[
]
Harrigan and Hart partnership
Harrigan made his first stage appearance in 1867 at the Olympic,[ a San Francisco "melodeon", as that city's variety theaters were then known. A brief partnership with comic Sam Rickey was followed by a fourteen-year stage career with ]Tony Hart
Norman Antony Hart (15 October 1925 – 18 January 2009),Debrett's People of Today 2008, Debrett's Peerage Ltd, 2007. known professionally as Tony Hart, was an English artist best known for his work in educating children in art through his role ...
, whom he met in Chicago in 1870. Although Harrigan wrote the lyrics and stage patter, the diminutive Hart's charm and singing talent played a large role in the duo's success.
Harrigan and Hart went in 1871 to Boston, where they had their first big success at John Stetson's Howard Athenaeum
The Howard Athenæum (1845–1953), also known as Old Howard Theatre, in Boston, Massachusetts, was one of the most famous theaters in Boston history. Founded in 1845, it remained an institution of culture and learning for most of its years, fina ...
.[ They then moved on to New York, where they first worked with ]Tony Pastor
Antonio Pastor (May 28, 1837 – August 26, 1908) was an American impresario, variety performer and theatre owner who became one of the founding forces behind American vaudeville in the mid- to late-nineteenth century. He was sometimes referr ...
before beginning a long run at Josh Hart's Theatre Comique
The Theatre Comique, formerly Wood's Minstrel Hall, was a venue on Broadway in Manhattan, New York City. It was built in 1862, replacing a synagogue on the site.
History
William Lingard debuted at the theater in 1868. ''Pluto'', the first Broa ...
. By the mid-1870s they began moving from the variety show
Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...
toward musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...
. Harrigan's sketches on the Comique's crowded bill featured comic Irish, German and black characters drawn from everyday life on the streets of New York. Their breakthrough hit was the 1873 song and sketch "The Mulligan Guard", a lampoon of an Irish neighborhood "militia" with music by David Braham
David Braham (1834 – April 11, 1905) was a London-born musical theatre composer most famous for his work with Edward Harrigan and Tony Hart (theater), Tony Hart. He has been called "the American Jacques Offenbach, Offenbach".
Early life (1834&n ...
, who would become Harrigan's musical director and father in law. It became their signature piece, and they featured it in many of their slapstick skits and plays.["Tony Hart"]
Internet Accuracy Project, accessed October 1, 2014 In 1876, Harrigan took over the Comique himself, along with Hart and manager Martin Hanley.
By 1878, with ''The Mulligan Guard Picnic'', Harrigan & Hart settled down on Broadway and performed in seventeen of their shows over the next seven years. Though still broad and farcical, these shows featured music that was integrated with a more literary story line, together with the dialogue and dance, and the shows began to resemble modern musical comedy
Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...
. Harrigan wrote the stories and lyrics, and Braham wrote the music.
Although the plays gradually became longer as more songs, dances, and stage business was added, the tickets remained the same price. Harrigan and Hart's comedy was about everyday people, and so it was fitting that working folk were able to afford to fill up the seats. These shows were very popular, especially with New York's immigrant-based lower and middle classes, who were delighted to see themselves comically (but sympathetically) depicted on stage. The action of the plays took place in downtown Manhattan and concerned real-life problems, such as interracial tensions, political corruption, and gang violence, all mixed with broad, street-smart comedy, puns and ethnic dialects. Harrigan played the politically ambitious Irish saloon owner "Dan Mulligan", and Hart played the African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
washerwoman "Rebecca Allup".
One of Harrigan's most popular plays with the Mulligan Guard Series, the ''Mulligan Guard's Ball'' (1880), shows off the smooth juxtaposition of the comedy, musicality, and a healthy dose of humanity that made Harrigan's plays so distinctive. Full of laughable chaos and "Harrigan hilarity", the Irish militia and Black militia within the act butt heads in a satirical whirlwind of dance, stage violence, and buffoonery.[Moody, Richard. ''Ned Harrigan: From Corlear's Hook to Herald Square''. Chicago: Nelson-Hall Inc., Publishers, 1980.] The ''New York Herald'' compared the Mulligan series to the ''Pickwick Papers'' by Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
, and one devotee wrote: "America has produced nothing more national, more distinctly its own, than these plays of the Irish in New York".[ People spoke of Ned Harrigan as the American Molière.
Although the Theatre Comique was eventually shut down for financial reasons, Harrigan announced in 1881 that they would build a fresh and elegant "]New Theatre Comique
The Church of the Messiah at 728–30 Broadway, near Waverly Place in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a ...
" several blocks further north on Broadway. The building they renovated was originally the home of the Church of the Messiah but had hosted many other theatres throughout the years. However, this theatre was not to last; it burned to the ground in 1884.
Marriage and decline
After the theatre collapsed, so did the partnership. Harrigan had married Annie Braham, David's daughter, on November 18, 1876. Their family continued in his footsteps, as son William Harrigan, daughter Nedda Harrigan
Nedda Harrigan Logan (August 24, 1899 – April 1, 1989) was an American actress.
Early life
Harrigan was the youngest of 10 children of entertainer Edward Harrigan and his wife, Annie (Braham) Harrigan. Her grandfather was conductor Davi ...
, and granddaughter Ann Connolly all became Broadway performers. However, Harrigan's habit of hiring relatives soured his partnership with Hart. In May 1885, five months after the fire, Harrigan and Hart appeared on Broadway together for the last time. Hart's health deteriorated, and he died at age 36 in 1891,[ while Harrigan opened up his Harrigan's Theatre in 1890 on Herald Square. Twenty-three of his plays achieved runs of more than 100 performances each on Broadway. Harrigan continued writing plays and performing until his last public appearance on March 16, 1910.
Harrigan died in 1911.][
]
''Harrigan 'n Hart''
In 1985, a musical celebrating the partnership, ''Harrigan 'N Hart
''Harrigan 'N Hart'' is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart, lyrics by Peter Walker, and music by Max Showalter. The show is based on the book ''The Merry Partners'' by Ely Jacques Kahn, Jr. and material found by Nedda Harrigan Logan.Rich, ...
'', opened on Broadway. The show has a book by Michael Stewart, lyrics by Peter Walker, and music by Max Showalter
Max Gordon Showalter (June 2, 1917 – July 30, 2000), sometimes credited as Casey Adams, was an American film, television, and stage actor, as well as a composer, pianist, and singer. He appeared on more than 1,000 television programs. One ...
is based on the book ''The Merry Partners'' by Ely Jacques Kahn, Jr.
Ely Jacques Kahn Jr. (December 4, 1916 – May 28, 1994) was an American writer with ''The New Yorker'' for five decades.
Biography
Born in New York City, he was the son of architect Ely Jacques Kahn, and the brother of mystery editor and anthol ...
and material found by Nedda Harrigan Logan. Harry Groener
Harry Groener (born September 10, 1951) is a German-born American actor and dancer, perhaps best known for playing Mayor Wilkins in '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (seasons 3, 4 and 7).
Early life
Groener was born in Augsburg, Bavaria, West German ...
portrayed Harrigan, Mark Hamill
Mark Richard Hamill (; born September 25, 1951) is an American actor and writer. He is known for his role as Luke Skywalker in the ''Star Wars'' film series, beginning with the original 1977 film and subsequently winning three Saturn Awards f ...
(of ''Star Wars
''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...
'' fame) played Hart, and Joe Layton
Joe Layton (May 3, 1931 – May 5, 1994) was an American director and choreographer known primarily for his work on Broadway.Dunning, Jennifer. (9 May 1994). Page B7.'Joe Layton, Choreographer And Director, Is Dead at 64' Obituary. New York Tim ...
directed. Frank Rich
Frank Hart Rich Jr. (born 1949) is an American essayist and liberal op-ed columnist, who held various positions within ''The New York Times'' from 1980 to 2011. He has also produced television series and documentaries for HBO.
Rich is current ...
of ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' found the show dull and "aimless", and it closed after 25 previews and four regular performances.''Harrigan 'n Hart''
Internet Broadway Database, accessed October 1, 2014
Works
* 1877: ''Old Lavender
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
*Old, Northamptonshire, England
* Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...
''
* 1878: ''The Mulligan Guard Picnic''
* 1879: ''The Mulligan Guards' Ball''
* 1880: ''The Mulligan Guards' Surprise'' which included the hit song "Whist! The Bogie Man" words by Harrigan and music by David Braham
David Braham (1834 – April 11, 1905) was a London-born musical theatre composer most famous for his work with Edward Harrigan and Tony Hart (theater), Tony Hart. He has been called "the American Jacques Offenbach, Offenbach".
Early life (1834&n ...
.
* 1881: ''The Major
''The Major'' is the first BBC natural history documentary film to be made in colour, though it was originally screened, in 1963, in black and white, as colour television broadcasts did not begin in the United Kingdom until 1967. After that it b ...
''
* 1882: ''Squatter Sovereignty''
* 1883: ''The Mulligans' Silver Wedding''
* 1883: ''Cordelia's Aspirations''
* 1886: '' The Leather Patch''
* 1888: ''Waddy Googan''
* 1890: ''Reilly and the Four Hundred''
Notes
References
*
*
* Greenleaf, Jonatha
''A History of the Churches, of All Denominations, in the City of New York''
(New York: E. French, 1846)
* Kahn, E.J. (1955) ''The Merry Partners: The Age and Stage of Harrigan and Hart'' (Random House). Biography of Harrigan and Hart.
* Moody, Richard. (1980) ''Ned Harrigan - From Corlear's Hook to Herald Square.'' (Chicago: Nelson Hall)
Further reading
* Dormon, James H. "Ethnic Cultures of the Mind: The Harrigan-Hart Mosaic." American Studies Fall 1992: 21–40. JSTOR. Web. 8 March. 2013.
* Finson, Jon W., ed. (1997).
Collected Songs, 1873–1896
'. Music of the United States of America (MUSA) vol. 7. Madison, Wisconsin: A-R Editions.
External links
*
Harrigan and Braham
at Music of the United States of America (MUSA)
Edward Harrigan papers, 1871–1984
Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, at 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, is located in Manhattan, New York City, at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side, between the Metro ...
Edward Harrigan papers, circa 1870–1908, Manuscripts and Archives Division, New York Public Library
Brown University
Ashland Elks Lodge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrigan, Edward
1844 births
1911 deaths
19th-century American male actors
American male stage actors
Songwriters from New York (state)
Vaudeville performers
American people of Irish descent
American musical theatre composers
American dramatists and playwrights