Jay Velie (16 May 1892 – 22 April 1982) was an American actor and singer; he appeared in many Broadway shows during a career that spanned more than fifty years. He also appeared in a few film shorts.

Career

Velie was born in Denver, Colorado, on 16 May 1892. He became an actor and singer, first appearing on stage in 1912. His career on Broadway lasted for over fifty 50 years, on occasion appearing with his sister, Janet Velie. JayVelie1921

Velie's first Broadway lead was in ''Little Jesse James'' (1923–24). ''Little Jessie James'' was written by

Harlan Thompson Harlan Thompson (24 September 1890 – 29 October 1966) was an American theatre director, screenwriter, lyricist, film director, and film and television producer. He wrote the Broadway hit ''Little Jessie James'' (1923–24), and several other B ...

, the author of the book and the lyrics. The music was by Harry Archer. It was produced by

L. Lawrence Weber L. Lawrence Weber (c. 1872 – 22 February 1940) was an American sports promoter, stage show producer and theater manager. He was active in arranging Vaudville, vaudeville shows, legitimate theater and films. He once tried to bypass laws against im ...

Nan Halperin Nan Halperin (1898 – 30 May 1963) was a Russian immigrant to the USA who became a well-known singing comedian. She played in vaudeville at an early age, and later starred in musical comedies on Broadway theatre, Broadway such as ''Little Jessie ...

played Jessie Jamieson, in pursuit of Jay Velie as Paul Revere. ''Little Jessie James'' was the biggest hit of the season, and ''I Love You'', performed by Halpern and Velie, was the biggest hit of all the songs from that season's musicals. After this, Velie continued to play in Broadway shows, included several major hits, until his final role in ''

70, Girls, 70 ''70, Girls, 70'' is a musical with a book by Fred Ebb and Norman L. Martin adapted by Joe Masteroff, lyrics by Ebb, and music by John Kander. The musical is based on the 1958 play ''Breath of Spring'' by Peter Coke, which was adapted for the ...

'' in 1971. Valie formed a song-and-dance vaudeville team with Renée Robert. On 4 January 1925 they opened the one-act musical ''Terpsichore and Troubadour'' by Rodgers and Hart at the

Palace Theatre Palace Theatre, or Palace Theater, is the name of many theatres in different countries, including: Australia *Palace Theatre, Melbourne, Victoria *Palace Theatre, Sydney, New South Wales Canada *Palace Theatre, housed in the Robillard Block, Mo ...

. Later they took this act on the road. Velie was among the cast of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical ''

Carousel A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (List of sovereign states, international), roundabout (British English), or hurdy-gurdy (an old term in Australian English, in South Australia, SA) is a type of amusement ...

'', which opened at the

Majestic Theatre Majestic Theatre or Majestic Theater may refer to: Australia * Majestic Theatre, Adelaide, former name of a theatre in King William Street, Adelaide, built 1916, now demolished *Majestic Theatre, Launceston, a former cinema in Tasmania designed by ...

on 19 April 1945 and ran for 890 performances. This may have been the greatest of the Rodgers and Hammerstein scores. Velie was cast as Senator Brockbank in the Irving Berlin musical '' Call Me Madam'', produced by

Leland Hayward Leland Hayward (September 13, 1902 – March 18, 1971) was a Hollywood and Broadway agent and theatrical producer. He produced the original Broadway stage productions of Rodgers and Hammerstein's '' South Pacific'' and ''The Sound of Music''. ...

and directed by

George Abbott George Francis Abbott (June 25, 1887 – January 31, 1995) was an American theatre producer, director, playwright, screenwriter, film director and producer whose career spanned eight decades. Early years Abbott was born in Forestville, New Yo ...

. It opened at the Imperial Theatre on 12 October 1950 and ran for 644 performances. Velie played "Mr. M." in the musical '' Happy Hunting'' directed by Abe Burrows, which opened on 6 December 1956 at the Majestic Theatre and ran for 412 performances. The show won several Tony nominations for members of the cast. The Rodgers and Hammerstein musical ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. Se ...

'' reopened at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on 16 November 1959 and played for 1,443 performances. Velie played Admiral von Schreiber as a replacement. Velie appeared in '' Jennie'', a musical by Arnold Schulman that opened at the Majestic on 17 October 1963 and ran for 82 performances. He again played Admiral von Schreiber in a revival of ''The Sound of Music'' that played for 23 performances from 26 April 1967 to 14 May 1967 at the New York City Center. This version received lukewarm reviews. Jay Velie died of congestive failure on 22 April 1982 at his home in Larchmont, New York, aged 89.

Broadway shows

Jay Velie's Broadway shows included: *''Round the Town'' (Musical, Revue, Original) May 21, 1924 - May 31, 1924 *''

Little Jessie James ''Little Jessie James'' was a musical farce that was the biggest hit of the 1923-24 Broadway season. Production ''Little Jessie James'' was written by Harlan Thompson, the author of the book and the lyrics. The music was by Harry Archer. It was ...

'' (Musical, Farce, Comedy, Original - as Paul Revere) August 15, 1923 - July 19, 1924 *''The Grab Bag'' (Musical, Revue, Original) October 6, 1924 - March 14, 1925 *''A la Carte'' (Musical, Revue, Original) August 17, 1927 - Sep 1927 *''Diff'rent'' (Play, Revival - as Alfred Rogers) January 25, 1938 - February 12, 1938 *''

Pygmalion Pygmalion or Pigmalion may refer to: Mythology * Pygmalion (mythology), a sculptor who fell in love with his statue Stage * ''Pigmalion'' (opera), a 1745 opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau * ''Pygmalion'' (Rousseau), a 1762 melodrama by Jean-Jacques ...

'' (Play, Comedy, Revival - as Colonel Pickering) January 25, 1938 - February 12, 1938 *''

Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines ''Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines'' is an opera in three acts by Jack Beeson written in 1975 to a libretto by Sheldon Harnick after the 1901 play of the same name by Clyde Fitch. The play had previously been adapted for a 1916 silent film. Th ...

'' (Play, Comedy, Revival - as The Herald Reporter) January 25, 1938 - February 12, 1938 *''No More Peace'' (Play, Revival - as St. Francis) January 25, 1938 - February 12, 1938 *'' Coriolanus'' (Play, Tragedy, Revival - as Tullush Aufidius) January 25, 1938 - February 12, 1938 *''The Fabulous Invalid'' (Play, Original - as An Announcer) October 8, 1938 - December 3, 1938 *''Counsellor-at-Law'' (Play, Revival - as A Tall Man) November 24, 1942 - July 10, 1943 *''

Our Town ''Our Town'' is a 1938 metatheatrical three-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The play tells the story of the fictional American small town of Grover's Corners between 1901 and 1913 throug ...

'' (Play, Drama, Revival - as Sam Craig) January 10, 1944 - January 29, 1944 *''

'' (Musical, Drama, Original - as 1st Heavenly Friend) April 19, 1945 - May 24, 1947 *''Carousel'' (Musical, Drama, Revival - as Heavenly Friend) February 22, 1949 - March 5, 1949 *'' Call Me Madam'' (Musical, Comedy, Original - as Senator Brockbank) October 12, 1950 - May 3, 1952 *''Carousel'' (Musical, Drama, Revival - as Heavenly Friend) Jun 02, 1954 - August 8, 1954 *'' Happy Hunting'' (Musical, Comedy, Original - as Mr. M.) December 6, 1956 - November 30, 1957 *''

'' (Musical, Drama, Original - as Admiral von Schreiber - Replacement) November 16, 1959 - Jun 15, 1963 *'' Jennie'' (Musical, Original - as Sheriff Pugsley, Gentleman, Fire Chief) October 17, 1963 - December 28, 1963 *''

'' (Musical, Original - as Ensemble Player) April 15, 1971 - May 15, 1971

Film

Jay Velie acted or played himself in the film shorts: *''A Group of Songs'' (1928) *''Jay Velie'' (1928) *''A Journey of Songs '' (1929) *''One Good Turn'' (1930) *''A Little Girl with Big Ideas'' (1934).

References

Citations Sources * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Velie, Jay 1892 births 1982 deaths American male actors