James Carl "Hamtree" Harrington (1889-1956) was a popular American comedian in the 1900s. He helped found the Negro Actors' Guild of America. He was in several films.

Early life

James Carl Harrington was born in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

in 1889. At 14 years old, Harrington dropped out of school, ran away from home, and joined a traveling carnival.

Vaudeville career

Upon leaving the carnival, Harrington took work as a

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing Amusement is the state of experiencing humorous and entertaining events or situations while the person or a ...

and Black

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, moonlighting as a barber when stage work was unavailable. Throughout the late 1920s, Harrington worked as a vaudeville performer, often teaming up with well-known Black female performers. In the 1930s, Harrington began to perform solo. During that time, he acted in movies, started a singing career, and helped found the Negro Actors' Guild of America. Harrington was one of the featured comics in Lew Leslie's Broadway production of ''

Blackbirds of 1939 ''Blackbirds of 1939'' was an African-American musical revue in Lew Leslie's series of Blackbirds productions. It was the last revue, following on from '' Blackbirds of 1928'', ''Blackbirds of 1930'', '' Blackbirds of 1933'', 1934, 1935, 1936 and 1 ...

'', which starred

Lena Horne Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010) was an American dancer, actress, singer, and civil rights activist. Horne's career spanned more than seventy years, appearing in film, television, and theatre. Horne joined the chorus of th ...

and Tim Moore. Harrington's last show was in 1952. The genesis of Harrington's stage name, "Hamtree," is unknown, although it could have come from his large feet.

Personal life

Early in his career, Harrington romanced a chorus girl named Edna Murray. That relationship produced a son. Not long after, Harrington toured with Maude Mills, a vaudeville actress, whom he married in 1916. Their marriage lasted five years. Harrington never remarried again before his death in 1956.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrington, Hamtree African-American male comedians American male comedians Vaudeville performers People from Columbia, South Carolina 1889 births 1956 deaths 20th-century African-American people Comedians from South Carolina