Joseph George O'Gorman (24 July 1890 – 26 August 1974) was a British entertainer and cricketer. With his brother Dave (1894–1964) he formed a song, dance and comedy act called the O'Gorman Brothers. Starting by touring the

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

halls of England, in the 1930s they also became popular in the United States and earned a fortune.

The entertainer

In becoming entertainers, the two brothers were following in the footsteps of their father, also called Joe O'Gorman (1863–1937). He was an Irishman who moved to England in 1879, where he had considerable success as a comedian. In both 1898 and 1901 he was elected King Rat of the

Grand Order of Water Rats The Grand Order of Water Rats is a British entertainment industry fraternity and charitable organisation based in London. Founded in 1889 by the music hall comedians Joe Elvin and Jack Lotto, the order is known for its high-profile membership an ...

and he was also the first chairman of the newly formed

Variety Artistes' Federation The Variety Artistes' Federation (VAF) was a trade union representing variety performers in the United Kingdom. History The union was founded on 18 February 1906, after discussions between the show business social club and charity the Grand Orde ...

. He had a double act with Joe Tennyson; they were known as The Two Irish Gentlemen or The Patter Propagators. In 1907 Joe and Dave began appearing as the O'Gorman Brothers, their act including acrobatic dancing, singing and comedy. They had considerable success, and toured South Africa in 1913 and visited Berlin, Vienna and Budapest the following year. Eventually the format settled into that of a comedy

double act A double act (also known as a comedy duo) is a form of comedy originating in the British music hall tradition, and American vaudeville, in which two comedians perform together as a single act, often highlighting differences in their characters' ...

. They toured their own shows ''Round the Town'', ''Finnegan’s Follies'' and ''Fools in Paradise''. In the 1920s they became noted for the so-called "Crazy" style of comedy. They frequently appeared at the Holborn Empire and toured their

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in Soho. The theatre was designed by Frank Matcham and opened in 1910. The auditorium holds 2,286 people. Hundreds of stars have played there, many wit ...

shows. They toured the United States in 1931 and 1932 for

Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. **Paramount Picture ...

and

RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Kei ...

. From this time their act was renamed "Dave and Joe O’Gorman", in accordance with American convention. Around this time they made their first appearance in

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment, generally combining gender-crossing actors and topical humour with a story more or less based on a well-known fairy tale, fable or ...

, and quickly became recognised as masters of the form. In 1936 they appeared in the film ''Variety Parade''. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

they made broadcasts on

BBC radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927. The service provides national radio stations cove ...

, and toured in shows that included ''The Boys of the BBC'' and ''Hello Playmates'' with

Arthur Askey Arthur Bowden Askey (6 June 1900 – 16 November 1982) was an English comedian and actor. Askey was known for his short stature (5' 2", 1.58 m) and distinctive horn-rimmed glasses, and his playful humour incorporating improvisation an ...

. During this time they developed a very popular comedy ventriloquist routine. They also did much work entertaining the troops with

ENSA The Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA) was an organisation established in 1939 by Basil Dean and Leslie Henson to provide entertainment for British armed forces personnel during World War II. ENSA operated as part of the Navy, ...

, this including visiting Italy, India and Burma. They appeared in the 1946

Royal Variety Show The ''Royal Variety Performance'' is a televised variety show held annually in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity (of which King Charles III is life-patron). It is attended by senior members of the British royal ...

and continued to appear in variety and pantomime. In 1948 they were chosen to lead a British version of the American show '' Hellzapoppin'', which following initial performances in London toured the country. Their final tour was in 1954 with the

Victoria Palace The Victoria Palace () is a government building on the large Victory Square () in Bucharest, housing the Prime Minister of Romania and his cabinet. The Victory Palace was designed in 1937 to house the Foreign Ministry, and nearly complete in 1 ...

show ''Knights of Madness''. In 1956 Dave followed his father in being elected King Rat. He died eight years later.

The cricketer

Both brothers were keen amateur cricketers, playing for clubs including

Honor Oak Honor Oak is an inner suburban area principally of the London Borough of Lewisham, with part in the London Borough of Southwark. It is named after the oak tree on One Tree Hill that Elizabeth I is reputed to have picnicked under. Overview One ...

and

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

. In club cricket Joe took over 1.500 wickets. Both brothers also played for the Surrey second eleven, where Joe in particular was very successful. As a result, in May 1927 he was selected to play two games at

The Oval The Oval, currently named for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club sinc ...

for the Surrey first team, making his debut at the relatively late age of 36. A leg-spinner described as having a "great repertoire of deliveries", he took four wickets, including one with his first ball in

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...

. Batting at number nine, he had three not out scores of 31, 20 and 42. His variety commitments meant that he was unable to play in the next - away - match. He made only one further appearance for the first team, the following month, when he was out for 13. This left him with the freakishly high career first-class batting average of 106. His grandson

Tim O'Gorman Timothy Joseph Gerard O'Gorman (born 15 May 1967) is a former professional cricketer who played first-class cricket for Derbyshire from 1987 to 1996. O'Gorman was born at Woking, Surrey, into a cricketing family. He was educated at St George's Co ...

also played first-class cricket.

References

External links

Musical Hall Guild: Joe O'Gorman senior
Retrieved 11 August 2015
History for Sale: Dave O'Gorman
Retrieved 11 August 2015

The entertainer

The cricketer

References

External links

Further reading