Julius Tannen (May 16, 1880 â€" January 3, 1965) was a monologist in
vaudeville. He was known to stage audiences for his witty
improvisations and creative word games. He had a successful career as
a character actor in films, appearing in over 50 films in his 25-year
film career.[better source needed] He is probably best known to film
audiences from the musical Singin' in the Rain, in which he appears as
the man demonstrating a talking picture early in the film.After the
deaths of his parents, Tannen was placed in an orphanage in
Indianapolis, Indiana, when he was seven years old, and he lived there
until he was 13. He worked as a private secretary until he was
21.Tannen never intended to become a performer. As a young man, he was
a salesman whose pitch was so good that he began to get offers to
entertain at parties. He made his professional vaudeville debut at the
age of 21, and soon developed into a monologist, the predecessor to
today's stand up comic. He would frequently end his routines before
the payoff of the story, allowing the audience to complete it for
themselves, and exited with the phrase "My father thanks you, my
mother thanks you, my sister thanks you, and I thank you," which was
co-opted by the young George M. Cohan.Tannen made his Broadway debut
in 1905, in a musical comedy called Lifting the Lid[better source
needed] and went on to appear in three other productions in the next
year. As a vaudevillian, he played the Palace Theatre in New York City
â€" the apex of vaudeville performing â€" more often that almost any
one else, indicating that he was at the peak of his profession. He
appeared again on Broadway in 1916, and returned again in 1920, in a
comic play with music, Her Family Tree, for which he received credit
for writing his own scenes. Tannen was also seen in two editions of
Earl Carroll's Vanities, in 1925 and 1926, and in George White's
Scandals. In 1926, he became manager of Vanities in addition to his
comedic performances.
vaudeville. He was known to stage audiences for his witty
improvisations and creative word games. He had a successful career as
a character actor in films, appearing in over 50 films in his 25-year
film career.[better source needed] He is probably best known to film
audiences from the musical Singin' in the Rain, in which he appears as
the man demonstrating a talking picture early in the film.After the
deaths of his parents, Tannen was placed in an orphanage in
Indianapolis, Indiana, when he was seven years old, and he lived there
until he was 13. He worked as a private secretary until he was
21.Tannen never intended to become a performer. As a young man, he was
a salesman whose pitch was so good that he began to get offers to
entertain at parties. He made his professional vaudeville debut at the
age of 21, and soon developed into a monologist, the predecessor to
today's stand up comic. He would frequently end his routines before
the payoff of the story, allowing the audience to complete it for
themselves, and exited with the phrase "My father thanks you, my
mother thanks you, my sister thanks you, and I thank you," which was
co-opted by the young George M. Cohan.Tannen made his Broadway debut
in 1905, in a musical comedy called Lifting the Lid[better source
needed] and went on to appear in three other productions in the next
year. As a vaudevillian, he played the Palace Theatre in New York City
â€" the apex of vaudeville performing â€" more often that almost any
one else, indicating that he was at the peak of his profession. He
appeared again on Broadway in 1916, and returned again in 1920, in a
comic play with music, Her Family Tree, for which he received credit
for writing his own scenes. Tannen was also seen in two editions of
Earl Carroll's Vanities, in 1925 and 1926, and in George White's
Scandals. In 1926, he became manager of Vanities in addition to his
comedic performances.
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