Bernard Shalom Kotzin (November 11, 1918 – December 14, 1997), known as Stubby Kaye, was an American

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...

vaudevillian Vaudeville (; ) is a theatre, theatrical genre of variety show, variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comic ...

and singer, known for his appearances on Broadway and in film musicals. Kaye originated the roles of Nicely-Nicely Johnson in '' Guys and Dolls'' and Marryin' Sam in '' Li'l Abner'', introducing two show-stopping numbers of the era: " Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat" and " Jubilation T. Cornpone". He reprised these roles in the movie versions of the shows. Other well-known roles include Herman in Bob Fosse's '' Sweet Charity'', Sam the Shade in '' Cat Ballou'', and Marvin Acme in ''

Who Framed Roger Rabbit ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' is a 1988 American fantasy comedy film directed by Robert Zemeckis from a screenplay written by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman. It is loosely based on the 1981 novel ''Who Censored Roger Rabbit?'' by Gary K. Wol ...

''.

Biography

Kaye was first generation born Bernard Sholom Kotzin in 1918, at West 114th Street in the Morningside Heights section of

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

. He kept his original name secret throughout his career. His parents were Jewish-Americans originally from

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

. His father, David Kotzin, was a dress salesman, and the former Harriet "Hattie" Freundlish was his mother. He was raised in the Far Rockaway section of

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

and later in

The Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, where he acted in student productions at DeWitt Clinton High School, and where he graduated in 1937. In 1939, he won the '' Major Bowes Amateur Hour'' contest on radio where the prize included touring in

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

, where he was sometimes billed as an "Extra Padded Attraction". During the Second World War, he joined the

USO The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...

where he toured battle fronts and made his

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

debut performing with

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...

. After the war, he continued to work in vaudeville and as master of ceremonies for the swing orchestras of Freddy Martin and Charlie Barnet. As Nicely-Nicely Johnson in ''Guys and Dolls'', first on Broadway (1950) and then in the film version (1955), Kaye introduced " Fugue for Tinhorns" ("I got the horse right here, his name is Paul Revere...") and "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat". He created the role of Marryin' Sam in ''Li'l Abner'' on Broadway (1956), introducing the song "Jubilation T. Cornpone". In 1957 he was named best actor in a musical by the Outer Critics Circle. In his

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

review,

Brooks Atkinson Justin Brooks Atkinson (November 28, 1894 – January 14, 1984) was an American theater critic. He worked for ''The New York Times'' from 1922 to 1960. In his obituary, the ''Times'' called him "the theater's most influential reviewer of his ...

said Kaye sang "it with that vaudeville rhythm and those vaudeville blandishments that turn song numbers into triumphant occasions." He also played the role in the film (1959). His next Broadway show, ''Everybody Loves Opal,'' starring Eileen Heckart, closed after 21 performances in 1961. In 1956, he co-starred with June Allyson and Jack Lemmon in the film'' You Can't Run Away from It'', a musical remake of '' It Happened One Night''. He played the title character in Michael Winner's British film '' The Cool Mikado'' (1962), based on Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera, ''

The Mikado ''The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen Gilbert and Sullivan, operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, whe ...

''. In the mid-1950s, Kaye guest starred on NBC's early

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

''The Martha Raye Show''. In 1958, he appeared on the short-lived NBC

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a comp� ...

'' The Gisele MacKenzie Show''. About this time, he also appeared on ABC's ''The

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

Chevy Showroom''. In the 1959–60 television season, Kaye co-starred in the short-lived NBC sitcom '' Love and Marriage''. Stubby Kaye Shenanigans 1964

In the 1960–61 television season, Kaye appeared as Marty, the agent of aspiring actress Eileen Sherwood, in the CBS sitcom '' My Sister Eileen'', starring Shirley Bonne, Elaine Stritch, Jack Weston, Raymond Bailey, and Rose Marie. In the 1960s, Kaye became known as the host of a weekly children's talent show, ''Stubby's Silver Star Show''. During the 1962–63 television season, he was a regular on '' Stump the Stars''. On April 14, 1963, he guest-starred as "Tubby Mason" in NBC's '' Ensign O'Toole'', a comedy series, starring Dean Jones. From 1964 to 1965, Kaye hosted the Saturday-morning children's game show '' Shenanigans'' on ABC. Shenanigans was a children's television game show produced by Heatter-Quigley Productions that aired from September 26, 1964, to March 20, 1965, and again from September 25 to December 18, 1965. He was dubbed "the Mayor of Shenanigans" and sang the theme song. Kaye and

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, alternatively billed as Nat "King" Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's career as a jazz and Traditional pop, pop ...

portrayed banjo-playing minstrels who sang the title song in the western/comedy '' Cat Ballou'' (1965), starring

Jane Fonda Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an American actress and activist. Recognized as a film icon, Jane Fonda filmography, Fonda's work spans several genres and over six decades of film and television. She is the recipient of List of a ...

and Lee Marvin. He played Herman in the Universal musical film '' Sweet Charity'' (1969), directed by Bob Fosse and starring Shirley MacLaine in the title role. In that movie, he sang the song "I Love to Cry at Weddings". During his career he appeared on the television shows '' The Red Skelton Hour'', '' The Millionaire'', '' Burke's Law'', ''

The Monkees The Monkees were an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band consisted of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones (musician), Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. Spurred by the success of ''The Monkees (TV series), Th ...

, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour'', '' Adam-12'' and '' Love, American Style.'' Kaye's later stage productions included the 1974 Broadway revival of '' Good News'', ''Man of Magic'' in London (with Stuart Damon as Harry Houdini), and the 1975 production of '' The Ritz'', in which he replaced Jack Weston. His final Broadway show was '' Grind'', co-starring

Ben Vereen Benjamin Augustus Vereen (né Middleton; October 10, 1946) is an American actor, dancer and singer. He gained prominence for his performances in the original Broadway productions of the musicals ''Jesus Christ Superstar'', for which he received ...

, in 1985. He made a guest appearance in the

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series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'', in the serial " Delta and the Bannermen" (1987). His final featured film role was as Marvin Acme in Robert Zemeckis's film ''

'' (1988). Kaye died of lung cancer in 1997, at the age of 79 in Rancho Mirage, California, where he lived. He was survived by his wife, Angela Bracewell, whom he married in England in 1966.

Partial filmography

*''

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

'' (1953) - Morris (uncredited) *'' Guys and Dolls'' (1955) - Nicely-Nicely Johnson *'' The Revolt of Mamie Stover'' (1956) - Howard Sloan (scenes deleted) *'' You Can't Run Away from It'' (1956) - Fred Toten *'' Li'l Abner'' (1959) - Marryin' Sam *'' 40 Pounds of Trouble'' (1962) - Cranston *'' The Cool Mikado'' (1963) - Judge Herbert Mikado / Charlie Hotfleisch *'' The Alfred Hitchcock Hour'' (1963) (Season 2 Episode 10: "Good-Bye, George") - George Cassidy *'' Sex and the Single Girl'' (1964) - Helen's Cabbie *'' Cat Ballou'' (1965) - Shouter / Sam the Shade *'' The Way West'' (1967) - Sam Fairman *'' Sweet Charity'' (1969) - Herman *'' Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness?'' (1969) - Fat Writer *'' The Monitors'' (1969) - Man in Monitors Commercial *'' The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County'' (1970) - Bartender *'' Cool It Carol!'' (1970) - Rod Strangeways *'' Six Pack Annie'' (1975) - Mr. Bates *'' Timber Tramps'' (1975) *''Goldie and the Boxer Go to Hollywood'' (1981, TV movie) - Babe *''

Ellis Island Ellis Island is an island in New York Harbor, within the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. Owned by the U.S. government, Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United State ...

'' (1984) (TV Miniseries) - Abe Shulman *''

'' ('' Delta and the Bannermen'', 1987) - Weismuller *''

'' (1988, final film) - Marvin Acme

References

External links

* * *
Stubby Kaye
interview on BBC Radio 4 '' Desert Island Discs'', February 10, 1984 {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaye, Stubby 1918 births 1997 deaths American Ashkenazi Jews People from Far Rockaway, Queens American game show hosts American vaudeville performers Male actors from Manhattan Deaths from lung cancer in California American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American male stage actors American people of Austrian-Jewish descent American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent American people of Russian-Jewish descent 20th-century American male actors Jewish American male actors Jewish male comedians DeWitt Clinton High School alumni 20th-century American comedians 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers 20th-century American Jews Comedians from Manhattan Jewish American comedians