Leon Errol
Encyclopedia
Leon Errol was an Australia
n-born American
comedian and actor, popular in the first half of the 20th century.
, he managed a traveling vaudeville troupe and gave a young comedian named Roscoe Arbuckle his first professional opportunity. In America, Errol became a well-known vaudevillian
who appeared in the Ziegfeld Follies
on Broadway
, and played skits with such notables as Bert Williams
and W. C. Fields
. Errol's sister, Leda Errol (née Sims), appeared with him in the Follies.
Errol made a successful transition to film
s in a variety of comedy roles (over 150 films from 1923). His comic trademark was a wobbly, unsteady walk, moving as though his legs were made of rubber; this bit served him well in drunk routines such as the drunken valet in Morgy and Shoo's "Mama's Little Babies" as well as numerous RKO two-reelers.
Leon Errol is well remembered for his energetic performances in the Mexican Spitfire movies opposite Lupe Vélez
(1939–43), in which Errol had the recurring dual role of affable Uncle Matt and foggy British nobleman Lord Epping. Monogram Pictures
signed Errol to appear as fight manager Knobby Walsh in the "Joe Palooka
" sports comedies (1946–50). Leon Errol's most famous non-series appearance is in the nonsensical comedy feature Never Give a Sucker an Even Break
(1941), starring fellow vaudeville and Ziegfeld alumnus W. C. Fields.
Errol concurrently starred in a long string of two-reel comedy shorts, which began at Columbia Pictures
in 1933. He also starred in two early three-strip Technicolor
shorts made at Warner Brothers, Service With a Smile (released 28 July 1934) and Good Morning, Eve! (5 August), just beating La Cucaracha
(31 August) as the first live action
wholly Technicolor film (these films were preceded by several of Disney's Silly Symphony Technicolor cartoons and by Technicolor sequences in black and white features such as The Cat and the Fiddle).
Moving to RKO Radio Pictures in 1934, he continued to make six shorts per year until his death in 1951. Most of these were marital farces in which Leon would get mixed up with a pretty girl or an involved business proposition, and face the wrath of his wife (usually Dorothy Granger
). Errol's last film, Lord Epping Returns, reprised his famous characterization (and some of the gags) from Mexican Spitfire.
Footage from the Leon Errol short subjects was incorporated into RKO's compilation features Variety Time, Make Mine Laughs, Footlight Varieties, and Merry Mirthquakes. RKO kept Leon Errol in the public eye by reissuing his older comedies through the mid-1950s. His RKO shorts soon became a staple of syndicated television.
Errol married Stella Chatelaine (born 1886) in Denver, Colorado
in 1906. She died on November 7, 1946 in Los Angeles
. Errol died there, five years later, on October 12, 1951, aged 70. They had no children.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
comedian and actor, popular in the first half of the 20th century.
Biography
Born Leonce Errol Sims in SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, he managed a traveling vaudeville troupe and gave a young comedian named Roscoe Arbuckle his first professional opportunity. In America, Errol became a well-known vaudevillian
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
who appeared in the Ziegfeld Follies
Ziegfeld Follies
The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, and played skits with such notables as Bert Williams
Bert Williams
Egbert Austin "Bert" Williams was one of the preeminent entertainers of the Vaudeville era and one of the most popular comedians for all audiences of his time. He was by far the best-selling black recording artist before 1920...
and W. C. Fields
W. C. Fields
William Claude Dukenfield , better known as W. C. Fields, was an American comedian, actor, juggler and writer...
. Errol's sister, Leda Errol (née Sims), appeared with him in the Follies.
Errol made a successful transition to film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s in a variety of comedy roles (over 150 films from 1923). His comic trademark was a wobbly, unsteady walk, moving as though his legs were made of rubber; this bit served him well in drunk routines such as the drunken valet in Morgy and Shoo's "Mama's Little Babies" as well as numerous RKO two-reelers.
Leon Errol is well remembered for his energetic performances in the Mexican Spitfire movies opposite Lupe Vélez
Lupe Vélez
Lupe Vélez was a Mexican film actress. Vélez began her career in Mexico as a dancer, before moving to the U.S. where she worked in vaudeville. She was seen by Fanny Brice who promoted her, and Vélez soon entered films, making her first appearance in 1924. By the end of the decade she had...
(1939–43), in which Errol had the recurring dual role of affable Uncle Matt and foggy British nobleman Lord Epping. Monogram Pictures
Monogram Pictures
Monogram Pictures Corporation is a Hollywood studio that produced and released films, most on low budgets, between 1931 and 1953, when the firm completed a transition to the name Allied Artists Pictures Corporation. Monogram is considered a leader among the smaller studios sometimes referred to...
signed Errol to appear as fight manager Knobby Walsh in the "Joe Palooka
Joe Palooka
Joe Palooka was an American comic strip about a heavyweight boxing champion, created by cartoonist Ham Fisher in 1921. The strip debuted in 1930 and was carried at its peak by 900 newspapers....
" sports comedies (1946–50). Leon Errol's most famous non-series appearance is in the nonsensical comedy feature Never Give a Sucker an Even Break
Never Give a Sucker an Even Break
Never Give a Sucker an Even Break is a 1941 Universal Pictures comedy film starring W.C. Fields. Fields also wrote the original story, under the pseudonym "Otis Criblecoblis". Fields plays himself, searching for a chance to promote a surreal screenplay he has written, whose several framed sequences...
(1941), starring fellow vaudeville and Ziegfeld alumnus W. C. Fields.
Errol concurrently starred in a long string of two-reel comedy shorts, which began at Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
in 1933. He also starred in two early three-strip Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
shorts made at Warner Brothers, Service With a Smile (released 28 July 1934) and Good Morning, Eve! (5 August), just beating La Cucaracha
La Cucaracha (1934 film)
La Cucaracha is a 1934 short musical film directed by Lloyd Corrigan. It was designed by Pioneer Pictures to display the new full-color Technicolor Process No. 4 , which had been used since 1932 mainly in Walt Disney cartoons. Jock Whitney and his cousin C. V. Whitney, the owners of Pioneer, were...
(31 August) as the first live action
Live action
In filmmaking, video production, and other media, the term live action refers to cinematography, videography not produced using animation...
wholly Technicolor film (these films were preceded by several of Disney's Silly Symphony Technicolor cartoons and by Technicolor sequences in black and white features such as The Cat and the Fiddle).
Moving to RKO Radio Pictures in 1934, he continued to make six shorts per year until his death in 1951. Most of these were marital farces in which Leon would get mixed up with a pretty girl or an involved business proposition, and face the wrath of his wife (usually Dorothy Granger
Dorothy Granger
Dorothy Granger was an American actress best known for her roles in short subject comedies in Hollywood.-Career:...
). Errol's last film, Lord Epping Returns, reprised his famous characterization (and some of the gags) from Mexican Spitfire.
Footage from the Leon Errol short subjects was incorporated into RKO's compilation features Variety Time, Make Mine Laughs, Footlight Varieties, and Merry Mirthquakes. RKO kept Leon Errol in the public eye by reissuing his older comedies through the mid-1950s. His RKO shorts soon became a staple of syndicated television.
Errol married Stella Chatelaine (born 1886) in Denver, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
in 1906. She died on November 7, 1946 in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Errol died there, five years later, on October 12, 1951, aged 70. They had no children.