Smith And Dale
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Smith and Dale were a famous
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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 other entertainment medium. The term o ...
duo. They consisted of Joe Smith (born Joseph Sultzer on February 17, 1884February 22, 1981) and Charlie Dale (born Charles Marks on September 6, 1881November 16, 1971), who both grew up in the Jewish ghettos of New York City at the end of the 19th century. Beginning in their adolescence, their career spanned the majority of their lives, with the two performing together continuously for more than seventy years. The duo were one of several famous comic performers of
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 ...
, radio and movies that collectively originated from the same place and era. Other entertainers included
Gallagher and Shean Gallagher & Shean was a highly successful musical comedy double act in vaudeville and on Broadway in the 1910s and 1920s, consisting of Ed Gallagher (1873–1929) and Al Shean (1868–1949); Shean was the maternal uncle of the Marx Brothers. C ...
,
George Burns George Burns (born Nathan Birnbaum; January 20, 1896March 9, 1996) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer, and one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, radio, film and television. His arched eyebr ...
,
Eddie Cantor Eddie Cantor (born Isidore Itzkowitz; January 31, 1892 – October 10, 1964) was an American comedian, actor, dancer, singer, songwriter, film producer, screenwriter and author. Familiar to Broadway, radio, movie, and early television audiences, ...
, George Jessel and the
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.


Early life and work

Sultzer and Marks met as teenagers in the fall of 1898, when they accidentally ran into each other while cycling. Joe was cycling north on Eldridge Street on Manhattan's Lower East Side, while Charlie was cycling east on Delancey. As they argued over whose fault it was, the shopkeeper who rented the bikes, said: “You two sound like Weber and
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.” Initially performing under the name Sultzer and Marks, they later renamed their act to Smith and Dale because a local printer gave them a good deal on business cards that read "Smith & Dale". These were initially intended for a team that had since decided on a different name - Moran and Mack, unrelated to the later group of the same name. Joe Sultzer became Joe Smith, and Charlie Marks became Charlie Dale.


The Avon Comedy Four

Beginning in 1902, Smith and Dale partnered with singing comedians Will Lester and Jack Coleman to form a group called The Avon Comedy Four. Initially booked for a series of appearances in
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region, the act was so successful that performances were continued in many other clubs for years after. Aside from Smith and Dale, membership of this group changed often over the years. Known performers included Irving Kaufman, Harry Goodwin, E. Rash, and Charles Adams. The act became one of the more successful comedy turns in vaudeville. For over 15 years, the group were top-of-the-bill performers on Broadway and appeared in the 1916 show ''Why Worry?'' The foursome made commercial recordings replicating their stage act, as in a 1917 restaurant sketch: However, this would prove to be the group's peak. While they continued to perform throughout the 1920's, this only resulted in a single record being published during this decade, and they proved unable to secure many lucrative contracts or gigs. This was contrasted by Smith and Dale's popularity as a duo, which had continued to rise throughout the same period. By 1930, Smith and Dale had grown tired of the act, and so, after 28 years of performing, dissolved the Avon Comedy Four to focus exclusively on their career as a duo. Smith and Dale took up where the foursome left off, playing Broadway and vaudeville (including the Palace Theatre, considered the pinnacle of stage venues) while also beginning their movie career. Both used a heavy Jewish dialect, with Smith speaking in a deep, pessimistic voice and Dale in a high, wheedling tenor.


"Dr. Kronkheit and His Only Living Patient"

During the 1920s, Smith and Dale became famous for their signature sketch "Doctor Kronkheit and His Only Living Patient," which like "
Who's on First? "Who's on First?" is a comedy routine made famous by American comedy duo Abbott and Costello. The premise of the sketch is that Abbott is identifying the players on a baseball team for Costello. However, the players' names can simultaneously ...
" for
Abbott and Costello Abbott may refer to: People *Abbott (surname) *Abbott Handerson Thayer (1849–1921), American painter and naturalist * Abbott and Costello, famous American vaudeville act Places Argentina * Abbott, Buenos Aires United States * Abbott, Arkansas ...
, became one of the famous comedy sketches of the 20th century. The name of the doctor is an inside joke: Smith and Dale, both being Jewish, named the physician Kronkheit, which is Yiddish and German for "sickness". Thus we have a doctor named Dr. Sickness. Indeed, a hospital in German is called a Krankenhaus, or literally "sick house." Dr. Kronkheit (played by Dale, not Smith as is sometimes reported) is greeted by skeptical patient Smith: SMITH: Are you a doctor?
DALE: I'm a doctor.
SMITH: I'm dubious.
DALE: I'm glad to know you, Mr. Dubious. Most of the sketch has Dr. Kronkheit trying to determine the patient's problem: SMITH: Doctor, it hurts when I do this.
DALE: Don't ''do'' that. SMITH: Look at this, doctor.
DALE: Look at --- oh, that there? Did you ever have that before?
SMITH: Yes, I did.
DALE: Well, you got it again! SMITH: I can't sleep at night. I walk around all night.
DALE: Ah! You're a somnambulist!
SMITH: No, I'm a night watchman. SMITH: I got rheumatism on the back of my neck. It's a bad place to have rheumatism, on the back of my neck.
DALE: No, no, where would you want a better place than on the back of your neck?
SMITH: On the back of ''your'' neck. My neck hurts me, doctor; it's terrible.
DALE: Oh, well, sit down and open your neck. Smith tries to object. DALE: Mister, please, I got no patience!
SMITH: I shouldn't have been here ''either!'' The patient explains that he has already seen a doctor: SMITH: He told me I had snew in my blood.
DALE: What did he told you?
SMITH: He told me I had snew in my blood.
DALE: Snew? What's snew?
SMITH: Nothing. What's new with you? SMITH (reacting to Dale spitting on his stethoscope:) Doctor, what is that you're doing?
DALE: Sterilization. DALE: Now inhale, please.
SMITH: What?
DALE: Inhale.
SMITH: What?
DALE: Inhale! I would like to see you.
SMITH: Inhale I would like to see ''you!''
DALE: The whole trouble with you is you need eyeglasses.
SMITH: Eyeglasses?! I suppose if I had a headache I'd need an umbrella. Dr. Kronkheit's fee is $10: SMITH: For what?
DALE: For my advice.
SMITH: Ten dollars for your advice?
DALE: That's right.
SMITH: Well, Doctor, here is ''two'' dollars; take it. That's ''my'' advice! In 1951, the Dr. Kronkheit routine was filmed for posterity (in color) for the
RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orphe ...
musical '' Two Tickets to Broadway''.


Other movie appearances

Smith and Dale made several short comedy movies in the late 1920s when sound movies came in. Their comedy relied on verbal interplay and timing, and they typically made changes to their act slowly. As a consequence, their material quickly was exhausted by the medium of the
short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
, and they never became big movie stars. Their act can be seen (to excellent advantage) in the feature movie '' The Heart of New York'' (1932). Based on
David Freedman David Freedman (April 26, 1898 – December 8, 1936) (aged 38) was a Romanian-born American playwright and biographer who became known as the "King of the Gag-writers" in the early days of radio. Biography David Freedman was born in Botoşan ...
's stage success ''Mendel, Inc.'', they play a pair of professional matchmakers, constantly bickering back and forth. They also ran through some of their sketches in
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
and
Vitaphone Vitaphone was a sound film system used for feature films and nearly 1,000 short subjects made by Warner Bros. and its sister studio First National from 1926 to 1931. Vitaphone was the last major analog sound-on-disc system and the only one th ...
short subjects. Their "firemen" sketch, in which Joe and Charlie are lazy firemen who hardly pay attention when someone reports a fire, was filmed as ''The False Alarm Fire Co.'' !1929) and again as ''Fun in a Fire House'' (1936). Another routine was "The Gypsy National Bank," in which fly-by-night banker Joe is questioned by prospective depositor Charlie; this was included in the vaudeville-revue short ''Vitaphone Diversions'' (1937). In 1938, Smith and Dale starred in a pair of two-reel comedies for
Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
, both produced and directed by comedian
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: ''A Nag in the Bag'' (they operate a drive-in restaurant and gamble on a horse race) and ''Mutiny on the Body'' (they visit a shady sanitarium for a rest cure). Smith and Dale adapted surprisingly well to Columbia's fast-paced format, but they made no other movies for the studio; executive producer
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didn't care for their dialect shtick and didn't renew their contract. Smith and Dale also made three
Soundies Soundies are three-minute American musical films, and each short displays a performance. The shorts were produced between 1940 and 1946 and have been referred to as "precursors to music videos" by UCLA. Soundies exhibited a variety of musical gen ...
in 1941. These were three-minute films that played in coin-operated "movie jukeboxes." In a rare exception to Soundies' all-musical policy, Smith and Dale did spoken-comedy routines.
Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American Double act, comedy duo act during the early Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–19 ...
, another venerable comedy team, were scheduled to appear in the
Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...
musical '' Two Tickets to Broadway'' (1951), but scheduling problems forced them to withdraw. They were replaced by Smith and Dale, appearing as Leo and Harry, the proprietors of the Palace Deli. In a throwback to the Avon Comedy Four's restaurant sketch, Smith and Dale rib each other continuously as they serve their patrons. The dialogue is so out of character with the script, and so long in comparison to other exchanges in the movie, that there can be no doubt that Smith and Dale were allowed to insert their own material into the script.


Longevity

Smith and Dale continued working as a team in stage, radio, nightclub, film, and television productions. They were frequent guests on New York-based variety shows like ''
Cavalcade of Stars ''The Jackie Gleason Show'' is the name of a series of American network television shows that starred Jackie Gleason, which ran from 1952 to 1970, in various forms. ''Cavalcade of Stars'' Gleason's first variety series, which aired on the DuMo ...
'' (doing the "firemen" sketch on live television, with
Art Carney Arthur William Matthew Carney (November 4, 1918 – November 9, 2003) was an American actor and comedian. A recipient of an Academy Awards, Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and six Primetime Emmy Awards, he was best known for his role as Ed ...
as the frantic fire victim) and "
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" of September 2, 1956 with
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as the fire victim. They also played ''
The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...
''. Smith and Dale still performed in the 1960s, including an appearance at New York's
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. The partnership, known among entertainers as the longest in show-business history, endured until Charlie Dale's death at age 89, on November 16, 1971. Smith continued to perform, mainly in guest appearances on television sitcoms, until his death on February 22, 1981, at the age of 97. Late in their lives, both men wound up in the
Lillian Booth Actors Home The Lillian Booth Actors Home of The Actors Fund is an American assisted-living facility, in Englewood, New Jersey. It is operated by the Actors Fund, a nonprofit umbrella charitable organization that assists American entertainment and performi ...
in Englewood, New Jersey, an assisted living and nursing care facility available to those who have dedicated the major portion of their professional lives to the theatrical industry. Smith and Dale are buried in the same cemetery plot, with a common headstone. The gravestone notes the name of the three people buried there, Dale and his wife Mollie and the widowed Smith. Smith is identified only by his show business name of Joe Smith, and his partner is listed as Charles Dale Marks, and Dale's wife is listed as Mollie Dale Marks. The larger printing higher on the stone states "Smith & Dale", to which Smith added the words "Booked Solid".


Works based on Smith and Dale

The longevity of the comedy team in
Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...
's play and film ''
The Sunshine Boys ''The Sunshine Boys'' is an original two-act play written by Neil Simon that premiered December 20, 1972 on Broadway starring Jack Albertson as Willie Clark and Sam Levene as Al Lewis and later adapted for film and television. Plot The play's ...
'' is said to be inspired by Smith and Dale. The bickering nature of the team was said to be inspired by the vaudeville comics
Gallagher and Shean Gallagher & Shean was a highly successful musical comedy double act in vaudeville and on Broadway in the 1910s and 1920s, consisting of Ed Gallagher (1873–1929) and Al Shean (1868–1949); Shean was the maternal uncle of the Marx Brothers. C ...
.
Gordon Lish Gordon Lish (born February 11, 1934 in Hewlett, New York) is an American writer. As a literary editor, he championed many American authors, particularly Raymond Carver, Barry Hannah, Amy Hempel, Rick Bass, and Richard Ford. He is the father of t ...
's ''Extravaganza: A Joke Book'' (G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1989) is an avant-garde novel inspired by Smith and Dale's act.


See also

* '' Bright Lights of 1944'' *
Lillian Booth Actors Home The Lillian Booth Actors Home of The Actors Fund is an American assisted-living facility, in Englewood, New Jersey. It is operated by the Actors Fund, a nonprofit umbrella charitable organization that assists American entertainment and performi ...


References


External links


Smith and Dale papers, 1903-1981
held by the 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 ...

Smith and Dale papers, additions, 1898-1987 (bulk 1920-1978)
held by the 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 ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith and Dale American comedy duos Vaudeville performers Victor Records artists Columbia Records artists