Timmie Rogers (born Timothy Louis Ancrum July 4, 1915 – December 17, 2006) was an American comedian, singer-songwriter, bandleader and actor who appeared on many national TV shows in the 1960s and 1970s.
Rogers was one of the first Black comedians allowed to directly address a white audience when he worked. Before Rogers, African-American funny men had to either work in pairs or groups, only conversing with each other, and they had to play a character, while popular white comedians, such as
Bob Hope
Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with 5 ...
and
Jack Benny
Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky, February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success playing violin on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...
got to play themselves. Rogers worked by himself,
always dressed well, often wearing a tuxedo, and never wore blackface.
His humor was clean, topical, and political. Rogers was inducted into the National Comedy Hall of Fame in 1993,
and is often called the
Jackie Robinson of comedy, because he opened the door for other performers such as
Dick Gregory
Richard Claxton Gregory (October 12, 1932 – August 19, 2017) was an American comedian, civil rights leader, business owner and entrepreneur, and vegetarian activist. His writings were best sellers. Gregory became popular among the Afric ...
and
Bill Cosby
William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...
.
As a singer, he often accompanied himself on a distinctive 10-stringed stringed instrument called a Martin
tiple
A tiple (, literally treble or soprano), is a plucked typically 12-string chordophone of the guitar family. A tiple player is called a ''tiplista''. The first mention of the tiple comes from musicologist Pablo Minguet e Irol in 1752. Although ma ...
, including a 1975 television performance in a musical duet with
Redd Foxx
John Elroy Sanford (December 9, 1922 – October 11, 1991), better known by his stage name Redd Foxx, was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Foxx gained success with his raunchy nightclub act before and during the civil rights movement. ...
on the
Sanford and Son series, playing a character named "Smiley Rogers."
Early life
Timmie Rogers was born in
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
to Lillian Ancrum. At the age of eight, he was earning money by dancing on the street. At the age of 12, Rogers ran away from home and found a job as a dishwasher on a boat, where he learned the languages of the cooks; eventually, he spoke nine. Rogers would later write and record in French and German. Later he cleaned ashtrays at a local ballroom, absorbed what he saw and was invited to dance onstage before acts. By 1932, Rogers was part of a successful dance team, Timmie & Freddie, that performed on the vaudeville circuit. They split in 1944 as blacks across the country were developing a collective voice in the name of civil rights, and Rogers decided to try it on his own, his way.
Career
He was known as the Unknown Pioneer of (Black) Comedy. He insisted on not wearing
blackface
Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used predominantly by non-Black people to portray a caricature of a Black person.
In the United States, the practice became common during the 19th century and contributed to the spread of racial stereo ...
when performing his comedy act and stood firm with his conviction. His catchphrase was "Oh Yeah!" and it was a part of his act for over 50 years. Rogers starred in US television's first black prime-time show ''
Uptown Jubilee'' on
CBS Television in 1949.
He was also a recurring guest star on ''
The Jackie Gleason Show
''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 DuMon ...
'' for over 12 years, and would continue to work with Jackie Gleason for the next thirty years. Rogers later credited Gleason for giving him national exposure which helped his career.
Rogers also wrote music including "If You Can’t Smile and Say Yes", a song recorded by
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...
. He also wrote songs for
Carmen McRae
Carmen Mercedes McRae (April 8, 1920 – November 10, 1994) was an American jazz singer. She is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century and is remembered for her behind-the-beat phrasing and ironic interpre ...
and
Sarah Vaughan
Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer.
Nicknamed "Sassy" and "Jazz royalty, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine ...
.
In the late 1950s and living in Philadelphia, he recorded on Cameo and Parkway Records. His hits included "Back to School Again" and "I Love Ya, I Love Ya, I Love Ya".
Death
On December 17, 2006, Rogers died of undisclosed causes in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
at the age of 91. He was survived by two daughters, five grandchildren and one great grandchild.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Timmie
1915 births
2006 deaths
20th-century American male actors
Male actors from Michigan
African-American male comedians
American male comedians
American male film actors
African-American male singer-songwriters
American bandleaders
Vaudeville performers
African-American male actors
American male television actors
Singers from Detroit
20th-century American comedians
20th-century African-American male singers
Singer-songwriters from Michigan