Dan Leno

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Dan Leno
Dan Leno as Mother Goose
Background information
Birth name:	George Wild Galvin
Date of birth:	December 20, 1860
Birth location:	Somers Town, London
Date of death:	October 31, 1904
Other names:	Little George
Genres:	Music hall comedian
Spouse(s):	Sarah Lydia Reynolds

Dan Leno (born George Wild Galvin, (December 20, 1860 - October 31, 1904) was an English music hall comedian whose act typically revolved around cockney humour and dressing up as a pantomime dame.

1 Life and career
2 Legacy
3 Trivia
4 References
5 Bibliography
6 External links

[edit] Life and career

Dan was born in Somers Town, London, the son of comedian John Galvin and his wife, vocalist Louisa Dutton, appearing as the music hall entertainers Mr & Mrs Johnny Wilde. Dan was the youngest of four children, the eldest Jack, his other brother, Henry and sister, Frances. In 1864, he made his début at the Cosmotheca Music Hall in Paddington when he was billed as Little George, the Infant Wonder, Contortionist and Posturer. His father died in 1864, at the age of 37 and by 1866, his mother remarried the comedian Will Leno, moving to Liverpool, leaving Henry and Frances with the Galvin family in London.

Dan and his brother appeared as The Brothers Leno - Champion Dancers, and the family toured the halls throughout the north of England, Scotland and Ireland. In his late teens he developed a solo act. Leno remained small in his adult life reaching only 5ft 3ins.

In the 1880s he became probably the most popular music hall act in England, performing in up to 20 shows a night. He was a very good clog dancer and entered a competition in 1880, at the Princess's Music Hall in Leeds. The competition was supposed to be rigged, but he overcame the obstacles to become World Champion Clog Dancer and win a gold and silver belt weighing 44.5 ozs. His biographer, J.Hickory Wood (1859-1925) described his act thus: He danced on the stage; he danced on a pedestal; he danced on a slab of slate; he was encored over and over again; but throughout his performance, he never uttered a word.

In 1883 Leno met Sarah Lydia Reynolds, a comedy singer, they married at St. George's Church, Hulme, in Manchester the following year and the first of six children was born, Georgina. The family moved back to London and Leno began his successes with a new act, featuring comedy patter, dancing and song. He appeared at three music halls in one night, the Middlesex (Drury Lane), the Forester's (Mile End) and Gatti's-in-the-Road. He set about creating various comedic characters, including dames, a police officer, a Spanish bandit, a fire-fighter, and a hairdresser. His monologues with the audience, particularly the You know Mrs. Kelly?... routine, increased his stardom. He proved to be so popular that he even entertained royalty at Sandringham, later earning him the nickname the King’s Jester.

In 1896 he was hired by Augustus Harris, manager at the Drury Lane to appear in pantomime productions that included Jack and the Beanstalk, Babes in the Wood and Mother Goose. In virtually all of these production he played the dame.

In 1902, under the strain of continuous performance, Leno suffered a mental breakdown and died soon after at the age of 43. "General Paralysis Of The Insane", a common euphemism for syphilis, was listed on his death certificate; Leno, however, was more likely suffering from a brain tumor which had caused his behaviour to become increasingly erratic. His funeral was a public occasion, the biggest funeral for an actor or comedian since the death of David Garrick. The Times wrote To find anything like a close parallel to his style we should probably have to go back to the Italian commedia dell'arte. Dan Leno is buried in Lambeth cemetery, where his memorial is maintained by the entertainment charity, The Grand Order of Water Rats, of whom he was a King Rat.

[edit] Legacy

Dan Leno remains an important figure in the development of comedy in the late 19th century. Along with the likes of similar music hall stars such as Marie Lloyd, Albert Chevalier and George Robey, legendary masters of mirth such as Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Laurel and Hardy owe a debt to him and the enduring humour from this period.

[edit] Trivia

The tenement where Leno was born, 6 Eve Place, was demolished soon after the family moved to Liverpool. St Pancras railway station was built on the spot, and in later life Leno claimed to have been born under Platform One.
Wild is written on the birth certificate, but it was probably meant to be Wilde, his parents' stage name.
A fictional crime story, Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem was written featuring the artist, by Peter Ackroyd