Frank Greene (born 1879) born Frank William Green in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, England, was an English

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

singer and comedian in Australia from 1909 to 1920, when he left for America.

History

He married the actress Lottie Sargent in London in 1900. Both were brought to Australia, along with Dorothy Court and conductor Fritz Hart, as members of

J. C. Williamson's J. C. Williamson's, formerly Williamson, Garner, & Musgrove and Williamson and Musgrove, was an Australian theatrical management company and theatre owner. With its beginnings in the theatrical productions of J. C. Williamson and his p ...

new company (the Musical Comedy Company having been disbanded) aboard R.M.S. ''China'' for the musical ''

King of Cadonia ''King of Cadonia'' is an English musical in two acts with a book by Frederick Lonsdale, lyrics by Adrian Ross and Arthur Wimperis and music by Sidney Jones and Frederick Rosse. It opened at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London on 3 September 19 ...

'', which opened in Sydney 21 August 1909, playing Captain Laski. He appeared in '' A Country Girl'', ''

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

'', '' The Dollar Princess'', ''

The Merry Widow ''The Merry Widow'' (german: Die lustige Witwe, links=no ) is an operetta by the Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's attempt t ...

'', ''

The Girl in the Train ''Die geschiedene Frau'' (''The Divorcée''), is an operetta in three acts by Leo Fall with a libretto by Victor Léon based on Victorien Sardou's ''Divorçons!''. Conducted by the composer, It opened to considerable success at the Carltheater i ...

'', Prince Carlo in '' The Quaker Girl'', of fond memory, ''

Florodora ''Florodora'' is an Edwardian musical comedy. After its long run in London, it became one of the first successful Broadway musicals of the 20th century. The book was written by Jimmy Davis under the pseudonym Owen Hall, the music was by Leslie St ...

'', and '' The Sunshine Girl''. He was in May 1914 recruited to ''Come Over Here'', dubbed "Australia's first revue" which was running successfully at Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney. He appeared in

Alfred Cellier Alfred Cellier (1 December 184428 December 1891) was an English composer, orchestrator and conductor. In addition to conducting and music directing the original productions of several of the most famous Gilbert and Sullivan works and writing th ...

's ''

Dorothy Dorothy may refer to: *Dorothy (given name), a list of people with that name. Arts and entertainment Characters *Dorothy Gale, protagonist of ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' by L. Frank Baum * Ace (''Doctor Who'') or Dorothy, a character playe ...

'' with

Florence Young Florence Selina Harriet Young (10 October 1856 – 28 May 1940) was a New Zealand-born missionary who established the Queensland Kanaka Mission in order to convert Kanaka labourers in Queensland, Australia. In addition, she conducted missionary ...

, He participated in a charity fete organised by

Hugh J. Ward Hugh Joseph Ward (24 June 1871 – 21 April 1941) was an American-born stage actor who had a substantial career in Australia as comic actor, dancer, manager and theatrical impresario. Biography Hugh J. Ward was born in Philadelphia on 24 June ...

in aid of the proposed "Hospice for the Dying", where each stall represented a popular stage show, manned by cast members in costume. He was associated with the '' Tivoli Follies'' from June 1915 to April 1917. In March 1916 he recited Elgar's ''

Carillon A carillon ( , ) is a pitched percussion instrument that is played with a keyboard and consists of at least 23 cast-bronze bells. The bells are hung in fixed suspension and tuned in chromatic order so that they can be sounded harmoniou ...

'' with the Brussels concert party, as a tribute to the Belgian nation, wearing a uniform borrowed from Albert Goossens, the Belgian baritone. He took part in the

Anzac Day , image = Dawn service gnangarra 03.jpg , caption = Anzac Day Dawn Service at Kings Park, Western Australia, 25 April 2009, 94th anniversary. , observedby = Australia Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Cook Islands New ...

concert in Sydney, 25 April 1916, with other members of the Tivoli Follies. He took part in several of

Jack Haskell John Thomas Haskell (April 30, 1919 – September 26, 1998) was an American singer and announcer in the era of old-time radio and later in television. Early years Haskell was born in Akron, Ohio and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. He majored in musi ...

's revues, including ''Bing Boys on Broadway'' in 1919, He left for America by the SS ''Sonoma'' on 17 August 1920. After a slow start, in 1922 he was reported as playing at the Apollo Theater, Chicago, followed by ''The Dancing Girl'' (

Marie Dressler Marie Dressler (born Leila Marie Koerber, November 9, 1868 – July 28, 1934) was a Canadian stage and screen actress, comedian, and early silent film and Depression-era film star. In 1914, she was in the first full-length film comedy. She ...

's last stage appearance) at the

Winter Garden Theatre The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It opened in 1911 under designs by architect William Albert Swasey. The Winter Garden's current design dates to 1922, when ...

. In 1925 he was playing second lead in ''

Rose-Marie ''Rose-Marie'' is an operetta-style musical with music by Rudolf Friml and Herbert Stothart, and book and lyrics by Otto Harbach and Oscar Hammerstein II. The story is set in the Canadian Rocky Mountains and concerns Rose-Marie La Flemme, a Fren ...

'' on Broadway.

Lottie Sargent

Sargent arrived in Sydney with Greene, and played in several musical comedies, including ''The Balkan Princess'' and ''The Dollar Princess'' and later ''Thank U'' with the John D. O'Hara company, but was troubled with ill-health which a move to Queensland failed to ameliorate. Reports that she left Brisbane to join her husband turned out to be false, as she died in a Brisbane private hospital on 28 October 1925.

Family

He was a brother of the actress

Evie Greene Edith Elizabeth "Evie" Greene (14 January 1875 – 11 September 1917) was a much-photographed English actress and singer who played in Edwardian musical comedies in London and on Broadway. She starred as Dolores in the international hit musical ' ...

(1875–1917), star of the original ''

''. The film star Richard Greene (1918–1985) was a nephew.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greene, Frank 1879 births Year of death missing 20th-century English male singers 20th-century English singers 20th-century Australian male singers British emigrants to Australia