William Redworth Needham (1837–1927), better known by the stage name of William Horace Lingard, was a

19th century The 19th (nineteenth) century began on 1 January 1801 ( MDCCCI), and ended on 31 December 1900 ( MCM). The 19th century was the ninth century of the 2nd millennium. The 19th century was characterized by vast social upheaval. Slavery was abolis ...

English comic singer and actor.

Early life and marriages

William Horace Lingard is the stage name of William Redworth Needham, who was christened in

Oakham, England Oakham is the county town of Rutland in the East Midlands of England, east of Leicester, south-east of Nottingham and west of Peterborough. It had a population of 10,922 in the 2011 census, estimated at 11,191 in 2019. Oakham is to the west o ...

on 27 May 1837, son of George Gilson Needham, a baker, and wife Sarah. However, his parents moved their family to London by 1840. On 3 April 1860, under the name of William Thomas, at St Anne, Limehouse, London, he married Amelia Martha Flint (1836–1903). Amelia was also a professional actor under the stage name "Miss Minnie Foster". Together they had a child, William Harry Thomas (1861–1941), born on 7 November 1861. William Harry later became an actor, known professionally as "Horace Lingard junior". However, the marriage with Amelia Flint fell apart soon afterwards and Lingard bigamously married 19 year old Alice Dunning (1845–1897) at Bristol in June 1866. A decade later, in 1877, Amelia successfully sued Lingard for divorce on the grounds of proven adultery. She was also awarded custody of her child. Amelia later married an East London engineer, William Musto (1828–1896), in 1878. Together they ran the White Horse Tavern in

Mile End Old Town Mile End is a district of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London, England, east-northeast of Charing Cross. Situated on the London-to-Colchester road, it was one of the earliest suburbs of London. It became part of the m ...

, London, in the 1890s. On 11 August 1883, Lingard (still calling himself a "bachelor") married Alice Dunning legally at Holy Trinity, Grays Inn Road, London. The witnesses on this occasion were Alice's sister Harriet Sarah Dunning and her husband

Davison Dalziel Davison Alexander Dalziel, 1st Baron Dalziel of Wooler (17 October 1852 – 18 April 1928), known as Sir Davison Dalziel, Bt, between 1919 and 1928, was a British newspaper owner and Conservative Party politician. He sat in the House of Commons ...

Immigration to America and subsequent tours

In 1868, Lingard immigrated to America (along with his wife, Alice Dunning Lingard). He made his comic debut in New York City that year. After this debut—held at the

Theatre Comique The Theatre Comique, formerly Wood's Minstrel Hall, was a venue on Broadway in Manhattan, New York City. It was built in 1862, replacing a synagogue on the site. History William Lingard debuted at the theater in 1868. ''Pluto'', the first Broad ...

, on 6 April 1868—Lingard became known as one of the funniest men of the time. He continued his career in New York, and later became manager of Wood's Theatre there. William LIngard as a Lady

Lingard's troupe, which included Alice's sister, Harriet Sarah Dunning (who went by the stage name "Dickey Lingard") toured Australia twice, the first time commencing in 1876 and the second commencing in 1879. During his second Australian tour, in 1880, Lingard was successfully sued in the Supreme Court of the Australian Colony of Victoria by

Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...

for his unauthorised production of . This most likely prompted "The Wreck of the Pinafore" which was written by Lingard and set to music by

Luscombe Searelle William Luscombe Searelle (1853 – 18 December 1907) was a musical composer and impresario. He was born in Devon, England, and brought up in New Zealand, where he attended Christ's College, Christchurch. Searelle began working as a pianist ...

Style

Lingard often appeared on stage in drag, in the high fashion style of the era. Additionally, he mastered the art of quick change, eventually becoming able to act the part of some sixteen characters, with only a few seconds for each costume change. Many were impersonations of well-known historical characters, such as

Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (, ; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898), born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, was a conservative German statesman and diplomat. From his origins in the upper class of J ...

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...

, and

Brigham Young Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his ...

Major role

Lingard is chiefly remembered for the well-known vaudeville song, "

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 ...

", sometimes shortened to simply "Captain Jinks." Lingard wrote the lyrics, and the music is attributed to T. Maclagan.Captain Jinks
at library.duke.edu/ It was a popular song of the 19th century, and is still sung to this day, having entered the country-western and bluegrass repertory. The song later became the basis of a stage comedy of the same title, written by

Clyde Fitch Clyde Fitch (May 2, 1865 – September 4, 1909) was an American dramatist, the most popular writer for the Broadway stage of his time (c. 1890–1909). Biography Born in Elmira, New York, and educated at Holderness School and Amherst College (cl ...

, and a 1975

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

Jack Beeson Jack Hamilton Beeson (July 15, 1921 – June 6, 2010) was an American composer. He was known particularly for his operas, the best known of which are ''Lizzie Borden'', ''Hello Out There!'', and ''The Sweet Bye and Bye''. Early life Born in Muncie ...

. The song has various renditions.

References

* E. J. Khan, ''The Merry Partners: the Age and Stage of Harrigan & Hart'', 1955, pg. 152

External links

Bluegrass Messengers
at bluegrassmessengers.com

at www.liucedarswampcollection.org

at www.thirdspace.ca {{DEFAULTSORT:Lingard, William American entertainers American drag queens 1839 births 1927 deaths English emigrants to the United States