Sid Silvers (January 16, 1901 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York – August 20, 1976 in Brooklyn) was an American actor, comedian, lyricist, and writer. Silvers began his career in

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 ...

in the early 1920s as a comedy partner of Phil Baker. As part of their act, Silvers would heckle Baker from the audience. The Baker/Silvers act was later used as the basis for the 1951

Martin and Lewis Martin and Lewis were an American comedy duo, comprising singer Dean Martin and comedian Jerry Lewis. They met in 1945 and debuted at Atlantic City's 500 Club on July 25, 1946; the team lasted ten years to the day. Before they teamed up, Martin ...

film ''

The Stooge ''The Stooge'' is a 1952 American comedy film directed by Norman Taurog and starring the comedy team of Martin and Lewis. The film was released nationally in the United States in February 1953 by Paramount Pictures. Plot In 1930, entertainer Bil ...

''. The duo continued to perform together up through 1928. In 1925 Silvers made his Broadway debut in the review ''Artists and Models''. He also appeared in the review ''

A Night in Spain ''A Night in Spain'' is a musical revue with a book by Harold R. Atteridge, music by Jean Schwartz and lyrics by Al Bryan. Additional music and lyrics were contributed by Phil Baker, Sid Silvers and Ted Healy. The revue was presented on Broad ...

'' in 1927 and contributed lyrics to the musicals '' The Song Writer'' (1928) and '' Pleasure Bound'' (1929). He wrote the book for the 1931 musical ''

You Said It ''You Said It'' is a musical by Harold Arlen (music) and Jack Yellen (lyrics) that uses a musical book by Yellen and Sid Silvers.The musical opened at the Chanin's 46th Street Theatre in New York City on January 19, 1931 and ran for 192 perform ...

''. He returned to the Broadway stage in 1932 to portray Louie Webb in the musical '' Take a Chance''. He later wrote the music and lyrics to the review '' New Faces of 1936''. Silvers made his film debut in the 1929 feature ''

The Show of Shows ''The Show of Shows'' is a 1929 American pre-Code musical revue film directed by John G. Adolfi and distributed by Warner Bros. The all-talking Vitaphone production cost $850,000 and was shot almost entirely in Technicolor. ''The Show o ...

'' and then went on to play supporting roles in such films as ''

Dancing Sweeties ''Dancing Sweeties'' (1930) is an American Pre-Code romantic comedy film with music directed by Ray Enright, released by Warner Bros., and starring Grant Withers and Sue Carol. The film is based on the story ''Three Flights Up'' by Harry Fried ...

'' (1930), '' Bottoms Up'' (1934), ''

Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round ''Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round'' is a 1934 American drama film with musical and comedic elements, directed by Benjamin Stoloff. Plot Gangster Lee Lother ( Sidney Blackmer) is shot and killed during an ocean liner cruise, and we're introduced in ...

'' (1934), '' Born to Dance'' (1936), and '' Broadway Melody of 1936'', notably also serving as a scriptwriter on the latter two films. He often contributed special comedy material to some of the larger MGM productions, including '' The Wizard of Oz'' in 1939. In the 1940s Silvers was mainly active as a performer on the stage and on radio. He made his final film appearance in 1946, playing a featured comic role in ''

Mr. Ace ''Mr. Ace'' is a 1946 American film noir starring George Raft and Sylvia Sidney involving a society woman who taps a gangster for his political support as she runs for Congress. The movie was written by Fred F. Finkelhoffe, directed by Edwin ...

''. In the 1950s, he was a writer for ''

The Mickey Rooney Show ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

''.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Silvers, Sid 1901 births 1976 deaths American male comedians American male film actors American lyricists American radio personalities American male screenwriters Vaudeville performers Jewish American screenwriters Jewish American comedians 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American comedians 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters Jewish American male comedians 20th-century American Jews